Travel reviews by Mrs M from Lincolnshire

"This has been my first visit to Botswana.

I have always dreamt about going since I started reading the books by Alexander McCall Smith - The No.1 Ladies' detective agency. I was interested in knowing more about the country and was looking forward to seeing different areas. The Makgadikgadi Pans in the Kalahari was one of them. Both my husband and I have truly enjoyed our stay at Camp Kalahari. Apart from seeing various wild animals (wildebeests, ostriches, brown hyenas, jackals, etc. - and for a few minutes we missed the famous Aardvack which had been spotted by a couple of guests who were travelling on another car - when we arrived on the spot the Aardvack had gone back into its burrow) and many interesting birds (amongst which the lilac breasted rollers, secretarybirds, condors, etc.) we had an amazing time watching the meerkats and following them while they went looking for food.

We also had lots of fan driving the quad bikes over the salt pans and loved the walk with the bush men. We have seen lots of interesting plants and trees and have been impressed with the size of the Chapman's baobab (the third largest tree in Africa). Our guide, Fanwell, was very nice and extremely knowledgeable. He was able to answer all our questions and give us a lot of interesting details about the flora and the fauna of the area. Every staff member was very kind and helpful. The food was very good and there was plenty of it which applied to the drinks as well.

All the tents at the camp had been replaced a few weeks before. Our was very comfortable and clean. We did not mind at all the fact that the camp doesn't have electric lights (illumination is provided by lamps and there are torches available if needed). This helped to make the all experience more realistic. We could still re-charge our camera batteries thanks to a charging station which is connected to solar panels.

We also liked eating at one big table with the guides, the managers and the other guests as we had the chance to get to know many nice and interesting people and we enjoyed our conversations around the fire before going to bed. Last but not least Fanwell and the rest of the team organised a few amazing surprises for us and the rest of the guests. I believe that none of us will never forget our stay at Camp Kalahari!!"

"Kanana has been the second camp we stayed in after our arrival in Botswana. Being in the Okavango delta, Kanana is completely different from the area we were coming from (the Makgadikgadi Pans). This means that we have managed to see different animals, birds and plants. On our drive from the air strip to the camp we have seen elephants, an hippo, monkeys and impalas and on our first game drive in the afternoon we spotted giraffes, kudus, warthogs and many different kind of antelopes. Kenny, our guide, was very nice and friendly. He was very prepared and helped us identifying birds and trees.

The managers Mark and Georgie made us feel very welcome, as did all the rest of the staff. Again, the food was really nice and plenty of treats. The accommodation was spacious, comfortable and clean. We have fully enjoyed our activities including the trip on the mokoro during which we saw many birds( amongst which the bird eagles, different kingfishers, African darters, jacanas, herons, storkes, etc), otters and hippos, while floating amongst all the lovely water lilies and other aquatic plants. Then on the way back to the camp, on board of a small motorised boat, we came across elephants bathing themselves and eating papyrus. That was great!

We went out again on the small boat with a guide called Ono. He took us to the herons ring. Unfortunately it was a bit early for the season (they are expected later in June /July) but we could still appreciate the beauty of the place. Ono showed us a pelican colony and we got quite close to some hippos which were very funny and interesting to watch while they yawned, dived in the water and got upset with each other trying to defend their territory. The highlight of the afternoon boat trip was spotting a sitatunga (a water antelope) which apparently is very shy and quite difficult to spot. Even Ono was quite excited when we saw it.

We went out for a night drive but we only saw some impalas, one elephant and a bush baby (or rather the eyes of a bush baby watching us). We have been told that at the moment is a bit too cold for the animal (being still winter there) and they do not come out much at night. Nevertheless we still liked it. At night, from our cabin, we could hear thousand of those minuscule frogs but also hippos and elephants. It was very exciting knowing that those large animals were just outside the camp...

The morning we left we had the camp to ourselves as all the other guests had gone out. The table for breakfast was set in front of the lagoon so that we could have the amazing view all to ourselves! After that our guide Kenny walked us to the air strip and on the way he explained all about animal tracks and behaviours and we talked about the traditions of local people. When we arrived at the air strip we found another guide waiting with our bags and we were ready to jump on a plane to go to our next camp. We really had a great time in Kanana!"

"Shinde was our third camp during our stay in Botswana. Before getting there we were a bit concerned that since Shinde is a sister camp of Kanane (where we had staid the previous two nights) they would be too similar and we would have not gained much from moving there. How wrong we were! Despite being sister camps and both being on the Okavango delta the experience was completely different. Although we liked Kanane a lot, we definitively fell in love with Shinde! The fact that we were given the Honeymoon hut could have helped a bit (out trip to Botswana was a present to ourselves to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary and since the anniversary date fell in the middle of our stay in Shinde, we had been given one of the best huts in the camp) but in any case we loved our experience at Shinde.

First of all the managers Gabs and Mhpo and all the staff were very kind and extremely attentive to all their guests. Our guide Bee has been great and I shall never forget such a beautiful person. He not only was very knowledgeable like all the other guides that we have met but he has been able to transmit to us his love and his respect for nature. We have learnt so much not just about wild life and the flora, but also about each other's culture. At the end of the three days the two of us, Bee and another two ladies who were in our group had bonded so well that we felt like we had known one other for years. On our second day at Shinde we went out on a relaxing boat trip in the afternoon. It was lovely to see the sun disappearing at the horizon from the boat , while enjoying a drink. Back at the camp we found a lovely card and bottle of champagne waiting for us in the hut, courtesy of the managers Gabs and Mhpo who, together with the rest of the staff wanted to wish us happy anniversary. How thoughtful of them!

After having seen big groups of giraffes, wildebeests, warthogs, zebras, tsessebes, monkeys, baboons, impalas, lechwes, elephants, crocodiles, hippos, hyenas, honey badgers and many other wild animals (as well as many beautiful birds), on the morning of our third day Bee has managed to track a magnificent lion with his lioness. Spotting them amongst the high grass and following them while they were moving around was so emotional! In the afternoon we also saw a female leopard on a tree and that as well was amazing. We followed her while she came down the tree ready to hunt and even if we have not seen her catching her prey (despite we patiently waited while she was moving slowly crouching in the grass) again it was an exciting experience.

Then, towards the end of the day we met the lion and the lioness again but this time he had to compete with another three majestic males! Words cannot describe our emotion while we witnessed four adult lions fighting for a lioness, which in the end decided that none of them was good enough for her and left them empty ended... What a story!! It must have been a magic day as while we were driving back to the camp we also saw a red moon rising in the dark sky. Last but not least the food was amazing and we particularly liked the traditional meal that they cooked for us one of the evenings.

Our stay at Shinde was first class and we could not have asked for more!"

"Chobe has been the last area we visited in Botswana. We have stayed at Muchenje safari lodge for two nights and we wish we stayed an extra day to make the most of the lodge. The place is really beautiful and it has got stunning views of the river. If we had more time we would have easily spent one morning or one afternoon at the lodge without going on a game drive, just to sit back and watch the wild life go by.... The hut had a thatch roof and it was spacious and very nicely decorated, overlooking the Chobe river.

The managers Joy and Robert have been amazing hosts and Lips, our guide, we very knowledgeable. The activities have been very well organised and included early morning safaris, all day safaris, afternoon safaris and night safaris. During our game drives we have seen lions, elephants, giraffes, zebras, hyenas, jackals, buffalos, kudus, lechwes, honey badgers, mongooses, waterbucks, sable antelopes, impalas, monkeys, baboons, genets and lots of birds (amongst which bustards, cisticolas, cormorants, ducks, eagles, egrets, kingfishers, bee eaters, kingfishers, ground hornbills, storks, francolins, guineafowls, Egyptian geese, etc). The highlight of our stay has been the boat trip along the Chobe river where we saw elephants swimming across it. This was absolutely amazing! We followed them in the boat and it was like "swimming with the elephants"!.

During our river trip we also saw the loads of hippos, crocodiles and lizards, and we spent some time observing the elephants playing in the mud. They were so funny and entertaining! On our last night we found a lovely bottle of fizzy wine in our hut. Joy had found out that we had been celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary a few days before and she wanted to surprise us. So very nice of her!

We will always remember our stay at Muchenje lodge with great pleasure!"

"We spent the last two days of our holiday at the Ilala Lodge. The hotel is beautiful and at a very short walk to the Victoria falls. From our room window we could see the spray of the falls and the sun rising behind it in the morning. The food was amazing and moderately priced. Breakfast was so good and abundant that at lunch we did not need to eat much at all.

The room was spacious and clean with all the modern comforts including flat screen TV and air con. The service was good although when we arrived to check in we felt that the receptionist was not that welcoming.... maybe we had just been spoilt in Botswana... Also the night we had our meal at the hotel the waiter made it quite clear that we were supposed to leave a tip. We did not mind leaving one because we enjoyed the meal and the service was good but we would have left a bigger one had he not say anything.

We went to see the falls on the same afternoon we arrived in town and we managed to complete the visit in 2 and a half hours. It was great! My husband had seen the falls many years ago during the dry season and he loved seeing them again at full flow! They are so powerful! We went prepared wearing sandals and good rainproof coats. We also had plastic bags for our cameras although we wish we had a transparent one to be able to take more photos or videos when we went through the thick splashes.... it was just like walking in heavy rain and being surrounded by rainbows.

On the second day we decided to walk around and explore the town. We went to the Victoria Falls hotel as we were told that from there it was possible to see the bridge that links Zimbabwe to Zambia. We took lovely photos and we took a path via their back gate and we reached a view point. It is one of these places where they do flying fox and other adrenaline rising activities etc. but we just went to look at the amazing views of the gorge. We then walked to the "big tee" which is about 2 km from the centre of the town, along an asphalted road which follows the Zambezi river . On the way back a driver told us to be careful as there were some crazy elephants around. Although I was a bit scared I must admit that I also found it very exciting. We indeed spotted one of the elephants while he was drinking water from the river but to be on the safe side we only stopped a couple of minutes to see him from a safe distance and then we walked back to town where we crossed the bridge, walked through the "no man land" to then step on the Zambian ground. It was a lovely afternoon and we could see the falls and feel the water spray which had been travelling in the air.

To complete the afternoon we went back to the Victoria falls hotel for a high tea experience. We had a gorgeous tea while enjoying the views. The last morning we went to the craft market which is just around the corner from the Ilala Lodge. The people who were managing the stands were pleasant and even if everybody tried to sell everything to us as soon as we walked into the market, we quite enjoyed the experience and the bargaining. We managed to come away with a few nice local artefacts without spending a fortune although we would have done if we gave them the asking price. We actually noticed that they too enjoyed our bargaining skills :-)

Finally a driver came to pick us at the Ilala Lodge in a mini bus according to schedule to take us to the airport. Overall we rate our experience at the Ilala Lodge and Victoria Fall as excellent."