Travel reviews by The C family from S London

"For three out of our four nights we were the only guests here so it was strange having the camp to ourselves.

The food here was probably the best we've had anywhere in Africa. Michelin style in the bush with beautiful presentation. The staff were lovely. They gave Adam a birthday cake with candles and performed a Swahili rendition of Happy Birthday with makeshift musical instruments and dancing. Very special memory for him.

Unfortunately the Wild Dogs haven't been seen on the conservancy since April, having been regularly sighted, so that was a major disappointment but we had some great lion and rhino sightings. We had a very good guide in Onesmus who was willing to go the extra mile and tried very hard to find us some of the less fashionable game like Beisa Oryx and Patas Monkey, sadly neither with success.

The Night Drive wasn't particularly productive either but win some lose some."

"Our three nights here were the best of our two weeks away.

The camp managers Darren and Emma are consummate. They create a wonderful atmosphere and the evening meals here were convivial, fun and we laughed so much. This is one of the very few places I have visited in all our Africa trips that I would definitely like to repeat in the future as I think you'd be treated like old friends. They seem to have so much returning business and that speaks for itself.

Superb guide in Nelson who scrutinised the movements of the migration to get us in pole position for a crossing. Incredible 25 minutes of thousand upon thousand of wildebeest. This proved a superb conservancy for lion and cheetah and we had a number of great sightings of both. We all appreciated the way the game drives dictate the day and you can stay out for a long time, no rushing back for a set breakfast or lunch. This is true of Kicheche across the board."

"This is a beautifully sited camp and the tents are well located apart from each other. Really feel you are in the middle of the bush.

After Bush Camp though, Mara really lacked atmosphere. Don't know whether this is due to relief managers rather than permanent fixtures but it was infinitely less friendly and welcoming. David was an excellent guide and very informative and knowledgeable with a lovely gentle manner. He made the stay for us."

"Pinewood didn't live up to expectation I'm afraid.

We hadn't realised it was so far removed from Diani Beach itself and felt very isolated. Given that there weren't many other guests here the place felt very souless.

Lots of irritating little niggles and I know we should make allowances because this is Africa but compared with the 'luxury' places we've stayed in Mozambique and Malawi and most recently Zanzibar this didn't compare favourably.

Our suite was lovely and the grounds are beautiful with visiting colobus monkeys and the food was fine. But we were ready to come home."

"Our four nights at Lake Manze far exceeded our expectations. It's a beautiful camp and you feel as if you are in the heart of the bush. Not least because we were visited every day by a young bull elephant which literally fed a few metres from our tent. The tents are simply but effectively furnished and living by candles and hurricane lamps at night added to the magic.

The food was excellent - both lunches and dinners, relatively simple fare but absolutely fresh and delicious.

We were blessed with a charming and very knowledgeable guide, Emmanuel, who was terrific with Adam and his many questions.
On our way to camp from the airstrip we were taken to see some lions that had made a kill the day before and I have to say that I was rather alarmed at the number of vehicles that were clustered around them - our main reason for choosing the South had been the reputed lack of traffic compared with the North - but fears were unfounded and we didn't experience anything like that in any of the game drives thereafter.

We were extraordinarily lucky with Wild Dog sightings - one of our favourites - as a pack of ten was rearing four pups and not straying too far. We found them on four drives and spent an aggregated few hours in their company and very close. Fantastic.

Lions were seen on every drive bar one. General game was prolific especially Giraffe but compared with the Ruaha and places where we've beein in Zambia and Botswana relatively skittish. The lakeside setting brought the gamut of beautiful bird sightings and the Manze boat trip is especially good for approaching herons. storks, fish eagles, bee eaters, kingfishers and pods of hippo of course.

I would recommend Lake Manze camp to anyone - whether it was a first time in Africa or seasoned pros."

"Kwihala was a very different experience from Manze in terms of luxury. To call their accommodation tents is something of a misnomer! Being half the size in terms of guests, it was a very different atmosphere too and dinners were much more intimate and friendly. Sara was a wonderful manager and hostess. The food was good but sometimes a little too fancy in the evenings for our taste. The brunch and the lunch (depending on when you return to camp) were wonderful though.

Excellent guiding again and even fewer vehicles in the Ruaha. Lions on every drive, two separate Cheetah and a Leopard, big herds of elephant and buffalo - and my first Lesser Kudu made it another superb game experience. What was so evident here was the quality of the tracking, rather than reliance on radio contact although the two, sometimes three Kwihala vehicles were in constant touch for the big sightings."

"Places like Breezes are always difficult to critique fairly because after the excitements of safari your needs are very different and expectations lower. We have tried several 'post safari' places like this in Mozambique, Malawi and most disastrously in Mauritius, but I think for all of us Breezes has come out as our best. The staff were, without exception, delightful. Our room was vast and extremely comfortable. The food was overwhelming in choice and quantity at times but of such high standard. Best curry ever!

Lovely pool, empty beach. We played tennis every day on a good quality court but if I had one slight niggle I would moan about the quality of the fencing around it - just a low wall on one side and some ill fitting wire on the other - which meant you felt beholden to the very obliging man to constantly retrieve your balls.

Should also mention Fishermen Tours here who were always punctual and efficient. We arranged a Jozani Forest trip to see the colobus (had no idea quite how close they would be) which I'm very pleased we did but they charged 50 dollars each for what amounted to a half hour taxi there and back. By the time you tipped the guide it was an expensive few hours."