Travel reviews by The A Family from East Gri

"I'm one of those people who over-researches a trip so I read a lot of reviews on Lagoon camp and I must say that it was just at advertised: exceptional! The camp looks exactly as one might expect right down to the stunning glowing of the lanterns lit around camp at night.

The service and hospitality went above and beyond. Our guide and tracker (Spencer and A.T.) were fantastic! They appealed to our sense of adventure, and seemed to be just as excited (if not more) when we spotted something rare like the 3 male cheetahs that had been out of the area for months and had just returned, or the wild dogs hunting. Back in camp the manager (Obe ...spelling??) was an excellent gracious host. She was always there to wave us off on our drives and welcome us back to camp again when we returned. Days at the camp had a routine that we all began to look forward to from the morning porridge and coffee to the moment we stopped for our sun-downer during evening drives.

The cooks even too special interest when someone in our company managed to catch a tilapia while fishing off the Lagoon dock. Our one and only fish was even featured at dinner that night! It was also my boyfriends birthday on our last morning there and we came back to our morning drive to a birthday note and small gift. It was really very thoughtful!

I can't say enough about our experience at lagoon camp!"

"Although perhaps not as luxurious as the previous camp we had been in (Lagoon), Kwara sure did not lack for hospitality or service! This time our guide was T.J. and tracker (H?)Orace. I must admit that we were worried we might be disappointed after having such a fantastic time at Lagoon, but we quickly realized that although very different, Kwara camp had just as much to offer.

The tents were smaller but warm and clean and comfortable, and this also went for the main buildings. None of really mattered though because it was the staff who worked there that made it an experience not to be forgotten. As I mentioned with Lagoon, it was my boyfriend's birthday on the day we switched camps, so our first night at dinner he was treated to a birthday cake and both the English birthday song and a very enthusiastic traditional song of celebration. This really set the tone for the rest of our stay.

I can't say enough about the knowledge of our guide! While Spencer in lagoon camp satisfied our thirst for action, T.J. satisfied our thirst for knowledge. Although still very willing to follow the excitement, T.J. was able to point out smaller things that we might not have otherwise have noticed. Examples include: a missing tail on a giraffe due to lion attack, and one with an injured eye from a dispute with another giraffe, as well as a baby elephant with a missing trunk. He was also able to spot and identify many birds, and if he didn't know something, he'd find out. Since we were a crowd just as interested in the small things as the big game, T.J. made for an excellent guide! Not to mention (H)Orace, our tracker who was also fantastic. I jokingly asked him to find a leopard for us while he was waiting for us to return from our evening boat ride, and when we had returned, he lead us to a baby leopard up in a tree. It was a really memorable moment on our last night at Kwara. We were quite late for dinner that night from enjoying the leopard, which seemed to be quite alright with the staff as well. They are really very accommodating when it comes to meal times!

Overall we had such an excellent stay, I don't have enough words. As someone who had never been to Africa before, both Kwara and Lagoon camps absolutely exceeded my expectations in every way!"

"Ilala was a lovely way to end our holiday in Africa. Upon arrival we were greeted with a welcome drink and informed that our room had been upgraded which was a lovely surprise! The rooms were stunning and the service was excellent. We loved sipping coffee from the balcony of our room while watching the mist rise over the falls.

We enjoyed all of the meals we had at the in house restaurant, but we did notice that the prices were a little bit steep, as were the prices of many things in Zimbabwe. Saying that, the prices were consistent with prices you'd see at a tourist town in North America.

It was only a short walk to the falls from Ilala so the location was perfect. Overall it was a beautiful and tranquil way to spend the last days of our vacation."