Travel reviews by Mr & Mrs E from Montana

"This was a wonderful place to unwind after a long trip. It was quiet, the accommodations outstanding, the food the best in the whole trip, and the staff warm and welcoming. We wished we could have stayed longer! A perfect stop for those just arriving in Namibia."

"This was a great lodge to stay in the eastern part of Etosha. And the birding was a wonderful beginning to adding to a lifelist of birds. The night drive was fun although we didn't see a lot of wildlife."

"The park has definitely been impacted by the pandemic of the past year and a half. Services were somewhat limited, particularly in the general store, shelves were almost bare and in the curio shop. This was not a problem for us but I wondered about those that were camping and might have needed supplies. Overall, the staff was very helpful, making a real effort to make visitors feel welcome.

Of course, the waterhole at the camp was a fabulous focal point. And wildlife viewing throughout the park was plentiful."

"A pleasant stay on a quick overnight. The owner was onsite the following morning and was extremely helpful assisting us in getting our Covid test appointment set up. The online forms were tedious and not clear in some places.

There didn't seem to be a lot of choices for dinner within a short distance of the lodge and we were uncomfortable straying too far. But we were happy with Joe's Beer House."

"Sossusvlei is a special place for us and it was great to be back. We were very happy to have our meals and sundowners at Sossousvlei Lodge."

"My one concern was the steps. Ti Melen is located on a steep hillside, there is a very short steep driveway (scarey when driving a manual car) and then a steep flight of steps leading into the main area. Additionally our room was located at the top of a spiral staircase. All this is to say, not for the elderly. Access to convenient dinner places was also very limited here.

Ti Melen is gorgeous!!"

"We could have stayed here a long time. The owner was so friendly and helpful, the staff was great! The design of the lodge was superb, unique and creative. There was lots of wildlife, waterbuck, kudu, impala, warthogs and birds, birds, birds!"

"Nice place for sundowners, looking over the river."

"Beautifully refurbished camp. We had a great guide and tracker, everyone was warm and welcoming, and did everything to make our stay memorable. Covid 19 protocols well in place."

"We loved this camp. For those who like birds and water, this is it. We had a great guide and very comfortable boats to be out on the water. The activities were well spaced and very relaxing. We saw and learned a lot!"

"We had some great wildlife encounters here. Our guide and tracker were superb. The guide was very knowledgeable and was very good about giving us a full picture of what we were seeing and why, from animal behavior to the general environment.

Staffing was not quite as efficient at this camp, there were some minor deficiencies. Nothing major at all. I mention this only because Kwando Safaris moves staff around among their various camps and the manager while we were at Lagoon had been there only a month. She seemed to be feeling her way. It could have been simply because she was new, either to a managerial position or this particular camp with unfamiliar staff."

"This was the perfect place to end our southern Africa journey!"

"After long international flights, this was a quiet, comfortable retreat to recharge our batteries.

The proprietors were very helpful and friendly; we felt very welcomed."

"Everything at the lodge was outstanding. We were there for a wedding and the staff out-did themselves in providing an unforgettable experience.

It was magical!!!!"

"The guesthouse has a great location, easy walking to the waterfront and the downtown. It was also easy and very convenient to connect with the companies offering water and sand boarding excursions.

My only negative comment is that the flow to the dining room and other rooms was disconnected. I had to step around planters, berms, chairs, leave the walkway to get from A to B. Not only an inconvenience ( I am older and not as agile as the young) but could present a safety issue such as tripping."

"This camp can't be beat for location within the Park. The grounds are pleasant, the rooms very comfortable, the waterhole great for viewing wildlife and a good location for going either east or west within the park. It is a large camp so interaction with staff was minimal, but people seemed friendly and helpful.

I thought the food was just average and it was expensive. We had a large group and our server was not very good at keeping track of our extras. As a result mistakes were made, not in our favor. Management might want to look at a more efficient method for larger groups."

"This camp was smaller and quieter than Okaukuejo, a welcomed change. The grounds were lovely and the overall location of the camp much more wooded and secluded. Our wildlife viewing was disappointing, but not the fault of the camp.

The waterhole has an interesting layout. The water level seemed to be low which may or may not be the cause of very little animal activity.

Food here was the same as Okuakuejo. The service was better but we were no longer with a large group."

"This camp was a happy surprise. We wish we had reason to stay longer. The owner is very creative and has spent a lot of time over the years adding quirky, whimsical items to the overall decor. A fun place to stay.

For us it was a little tricky getting to our next lodge at the appointed meeting time, the distance was just a bit too far. We really had to push it. Also the time change on Sunday, October 1st, did not happen in Botswana. At that point, it was the same time in both countries. This was very fortunate or we would have been really late."

"Nxamaseri was a most wonderful place. We were both sorry we had not booked three nights. We were the only guests so had the undivided attention of the staff.

After all the activity of the wedding and traveling with a large group, this was a perfect place to begin our safari experience. Our guide, "Small", was wonderful, very knowledgeable, we loved being in his company. We spent two days on the river, birding and fishing, looking for other water wildlife. We saw many beautiful new birds and the fishing was good.

This lodge did sustain damage in the floods of 2010, I believe, and unless there is some attention to repair in the near future, this camp will suffer. It is something to inquire about. We did share these observations with our host."

"Just a stopping place on our travels. If we were staying any longer in Maun, this would have been a good place to stay."

"Lebala was the highlight of our safari. The camp was beautifully appointed, very comfortable, very exciting with hippos and elephants outside the tents at night. The staff could not have been better.

Our guide, Sughur (sp?), was just wonderful, quietly confident, highly professional. We felt very safe in his and the tracker's company. We had lots of laughs. We had great jeep-mates, coincidental, but it added to the overall enjoyment.

We had many exciting wildlife viewing experiences, some of which made the heart beat faster! But we did not see many cats, a disappointment, but not anyone's fault."

"Kwara was a seamless continuation of our bush camp experience. The camp was more rustic than Lebala but for the most part very comfortable. My one criticism was the tents, which were canvas, got uncomfortably hot during the middle of the day, when we were in camp. They need either overhead fans or easily accessible flaps to open. The staff was very professional, courteous, anxious to make our stay as enjoyable as possible. The wildlife viewing was fantastic.

Our guide, TJ, was very knowledgeable and a good communicator, but he either did not like me or didn't like the clients in general. He reprimanded me 3 times during our first drive not in a tactful or caring way at all. I was angry and offended. Our last night drive was miserable. He wanted to find the wilddogs, which we had already seen, for a new couple that had joined us in the jeep. So we spent two hours tearing around at a very uncomfortable speed, getting thrown around. I was exhausted when we got back to camp. I think he showed poor judgement in his decision to favor the new couple over the two others who were leaving the next day. You also did not question his decisions on what we were doing. The simple thing to have done was to give us a choice.

On the other hand, our tracker, KP, was a delight."