Travel reviews by Mr & Mrs R from Honiton

"Rufiji was a great camp and extremely well organised. The tented accommodation was excellent and the overall rating we gave on the feedback form was "Excellent". The key to this rating is and was reflected across all the camps, the team really do want you to have a good time and are motivated to providing a great service.

The guides we particularly knowledgeable and were prepared to follow wishes of the guests.

Commenting on game is I think risky, we are all aware of the challenge facing elephant, rhino, lion and other major attractions in terms of game. The Selous has excellent game but its sheer size means that sometimes game go walkabout, this was certainly true for Rufiji, there was early rain the week before we arrived which triggered a mini migration north for some game. however we still saw excellent elephant (particularly one night when they decided to visit camp an were still there in the morning, which made the walk to breakfast interesting!!), lion, Kudu, Waterbuck, warthog, duiker and many others. Clearly seeing leopard can be a challenge and on this camp we were unlucky. This is not a criticism purely a statement of fact.

We were also impressed with the fact that guides are now virtually all African and they clearly know their subject, on previous visits guides were often predominantly of European origin and this is a good development.

I mention in my title a "great start" because it was just that, which will become apparent in the review of other camps.

Activity wise it was all excellent yet at a personal level the opportunity to go fishing for Cat Fish and Tiger fish would have been a bonus. I did not request this because everything we did was great, it occurred to me later that we had fished on previous visits to the river and I did wonder why it was not offered as an option, perhaps an option for consideration in the future."

"Ruaha National park had by far the most game to see in terms of different species. Elephant in abundance and looking at the tree damage possibly too many, but I'm sure others are looking into this matter, particularly as other parts (Selous) have lost 65% of their elephant in the last 7 years. Lion, leopard, cheetah, many antelope and an array too many to detail, the park has a great depth in game.

The fact that it is a national park does present some challenges viewing some of the game because of the strict rules, for example, driving off track. Lion under a tree 200 yards away look ok to the naked eye but unless you have professional camera equipment good shots can be difficult. This did not prove to be a major problem, just a little disappointing and we do not blame the guides for observing the rules considering the heavy fines.

The camp itself is a fabulous location alongside the river which provided great morning and evening viewing over mealtimes. Elephant and antelope were regular visitors as were baboons and much of the great bird life.

The new open restaurant area was a great success although the area split into two does break up some of the networking between guests. Clearly this a question of logistics, the big plus of the new design is more people can be served simultaneously which makes good sense.

The facilities were all excellent, great rooms and everything worked as one would hope in such a remote location. The staff were also excellent but noticeably younger than those at Rufiji, however this we saw as a positive in terms of expanding the knowledge base into the next generation. As mentioned earlier, all the staff were brilliant and the team effort at Ruaha reflects the considerable managerial skills by Karen and the senior team.

The Massai night guards earned their money on a couple of occasions chasing out bull elephants so we could return to our Bandas."

"This was our third visit to Beho Beho and it was simply superb. The quality, range and depth of service is outstanding and confirms that they have maintained their objective of doing more than just tracking game.

The lodges have remained the most exquisite and fantastic standard and offer excellent views across the Beho Beho valley.

The whole staff act as a team expertly led by Phil and Tricia who have a relaxed customer focussed style that is simply second to none. Whilst the game is less dense in availability we saw most of the target species and were unfortunate not to see wild dogs which had been there the week before ( a known safari challenge!!). We were particularly fortunate to see a stand off between 17 Hyenas and a pride of 6 lions over a giraffe kill. Each group chased out the other on more than one occasion, until both groups had managed to satisfy their needs. Sadly the plight of the elephant population is well recorded and looks to be currently unsolvable.

The Beho team go to great lengths to offer a range of trips, Boat safaris with alfresco breakfasts, walking evening safaris with sun downers, great themed catering which goes beyond much of the super efforts of other camps. One excellent example is the bush dinner where the guests have dinner literally in the bush, a totally unique dining experience particularly when a couple of hyena arrive as unwanted guests. We were never in danger and it was an incredible evening, I could go on but it would take too long to cover it all.

The Tree house was another Beho innovation, replacing the previous fly camps. Sleeping up a tree in the middle of wild Africa is an experience we will never forget. The detail covered to protect the guest whilst maintaining the sense of adventure made the experience all the more enjoyable. The quality of services available in a tree have to be seen to be believed and would outstrip many expensive hotels!!

The rotation of the guide team is also a great idea, it offers different views and perspectives of game/bird life, safaris and the African experience. We would recommend other camps make this a norm where possible.

The numbers of superlatives for this camp/team and location could go on and on, however it is perhaps best to say that the cliché of "less is more" is particularly apt to this camp, it is simply paradise.

We hope to make a 4th trip in the not too distant future. If the other camps were Excellent, and they were, then Beho Beho deserves the title of the Rolls Royce Safari."

"I have covered most of his in the overview of the Beho Beho camp. I would perhaps add that the walking safari to arrive at the Treehouse is an equally enjoyable experience, avoiding, lone bulls, potentially angry matriarch elephants and hippos dislodged from safe ponds makes for an interesting hour!

A must do for a unique experience, particularly for us because we forgot to close the door at night, who knows what might have entered the timber boudoir?"