Travel reviews by Mr J & Mrs E from Surrey
Review Distribution
Total number of trips
2
Countries visited
1
Lodges stayed in
8
Excursions taken
0
Another fabulous trip - October/November 2016
"Our trip was very enjoyable. We particularly enjoyed returning to Namibia to explore the sights of the South which we had previously not discovered."
Arranged By Tracy Lederer
A trip of a lifetime - loved every minute
Namibia between 2 Nov 2014 and 16 Nov 2014
"This was a truly fabulous trip. We loved the country. In particular, the landscape was so varied but consistently breath-taking. This meant that the long drives in between destinations were as much of a treat as the excursions in between.
We were very pleasantly surprised by the standard of food and service throughout the country and the warmth and friendliness of the people everywhere we went - and more generally, by what an easy place Namibia is to travel around. The game viewing (not just at Etosha) also exceeded our expectations. Returning home has been even more difficult than usual, but I have come back determined to encourage my friends and family to visit Namibia. We certainly plan to return and see more of this beautiful country.
Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
Only a couple of very minor points around car hire:
1. It is worth recommending to clients in the very helpful pre-pack you send out that if they need to buy a new tyre, it is worth phoning ahead to check the nearest town (which could be over a hundred kilometres away) has a spare in stock. We made the mistake of assuming we could get a replacement tyre for a Nissan X Trail which meant we wasted time travelling from Etosha to Tsumeb when in fact the nearest tyre available was in Otjiwarongo, another 200 km or so away.
2. Partly for the above reason, you should recommend/insist upon clients having two decent spare tyres.
We were very impressed with Expert Africa (as was everyone we met who had booked through you) and would certainly use you again."
We were very pleasantly surprised by the standard of food and service throughout the country and the warmth and friendliness of the people everywhere we went - and more generally, by what an easy place Namibia is to travel around. The game viewing (not just at Etosha) also exceeded our expectations. Returning home has been even more difficult than usual, but I have come back determined to encourage my friends and family to visit Namibia. We certainly plan to return and see more of this beautiful country.
Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
Only a couple of very minor points around car hire:
1. It is worth recommending to clients in the very helpful pre-pack you send out that if they need to buy a new tyre, it is worth phoning ahead to check the nearest town (which could be over a hundred kilometres away) has a spare in stock. We made the mistake of assuming we could get a replacement tyre for a Nissan X Trail which meant we wasted time travelling from Etosha to Tsumeb when in fact the nearest tyre available was in Otjiwarongo, another 200 km or so away.
2. Partly for the above reason, you should recommend/insist upon clients having two decent spare tyres.
We were very impressed with Expert Africa (as was everyone we met who had booked through you) and would certainly use you again."
Arranged By Sabina Hekandjo
Galton House
"A nice place to stop overnight on arrival"
1 night
Arrived
2 Nov 2014
"This was a very pleasant spot to spend a night after a difficult and tiring flight - clean, quiet, well-equipped in terms of amenities and with good food."
Good
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good
Location
Average
Service
Good
Facilities
Good
Rooms
Good
Food
Excellent
Zebra River Lodge
"A great place to get away from it all!"
2 nights
Arrived
3 Nov 2014
"This is a great lodge in a wonderful setting with beautiful views and some great walks from the lodge. The staff were all friendly and helpful and the rooms were very comfortable.
Many fellow-travellers we met missed the Naukluft Mountains area but for us, it was a highlight of our trip."
Many fellow-travellers we met missed the Naukluft Mountains area but for us, it was a highlight of our trip."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Good
Rooms
Good
Food
Good
Facilities
Good
Sossusvlei Desert Lodge
"A wonderful treat of a place"
2 nights
Arrived
5 Nov 2014
"This was probably our favourite of all the lodges we stayed in. The staff really had thought of everything and went above and beyond with a particularly lovely surprise on our final night! The accommodation is very luxurious and equipped with everything you could possibly need. There was even a dedicated astronomer on hand throughout the evenings - although unfortunately our stay coincided with the full moon so the star-gazing was not at its best. The view from the lodge is fantastic - we spent hours just looking out to the horizon
The guide assigned to us during our stay, Peter, took us on some very enjoyable excursions, including to the dunes at Sossusvlei and was amiable and very knowledgeable. We had our best sun-downer experiences here - in terms of location, drinks and snacks and company.
The food was excellent - the best we had during our stay in Namibia. We would love to have spent more time at this lodge and would definitely return again."
The guide assigned to us during our stay, Peter, took us on some very enjoyable excursions, including to the dunes at Sossusvlei and was amiable and very knowledgeable. We had our best sun-downer experiences here - in terms of location, drinks and snacks and company.
The food was excellent - the best we had during our stay in Namibia. We would love to have spent more time at this lodge and would definitely return again."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Sam's Giardino
"A very quirky and charming place"
2 nights
Arrived
7 Nov 2014
"We were a little bewildered when we first arrived as the accommodation (run by Swiss Sam) has been decked out very much in Swiss chalet style, which seemed a bit incongruous compared to other places we stayed on our trip. However, it was very comfortable with lovely gardens we sat and enjoyed a beer in after our day trip, with Sam's adorable dog Beethoven.
Our host Sam was very charming, welcoming and interesting. We had a meal at the accommodation one evening, which was excellent and accompanied by delicious wine chosen by Sam.
Sam also arranged a Sandwich Harbour tour with Bruno Nebe of Turnstone tours which was really enjoyable. Bruno was very good company and a really interesting chap who gave us a good insight on various aspects of life in Namibia.
We would certainly recommend this accommodation."
Our host Sam was very charming, welcoming and interesting. We had a meal at the accommodation one evening, which was excellent and accompanied by delicious wine chosen by Sam.
Sam also arranged a Sandwich Harbour tour with Bruno Nebe of Turnstone tours which was really enjoyable. Bruno was very good company and a really interesting chap who gave us a good insight on various aspects of life in Namibia.
We would certainly recommend this accommodation."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location
Good
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Good
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Good
Doro Nawas
"A great spot with a fantastic vantage point"
2 nights
Arrived
9 Nov 2014
"We enjoyed our time here, and particularly the trip to the Desert Elephants. For those who have their own transport, we would recommend making your own way to the rock engravings and Organ Pipes/Burnt mountain as there is no real added value in taking the lodge trip, which works out more expensively. Although not offered by the Lodge, we would strongly recommend a trip to the Petrified forest, which we found really interesting.
The staff were friendly and welcoming, particularly the manager Alvin, although I wished he hadn't laboured the dangers of snakes and scorpions as much as he did, as this meant I was particularly on edge throughout the two nights of our stay (unnecessarily it transpired)."
The staff were friendly and welcoming, particularly the manager Alvin, although I wished he hadn't laboured the dangers of snakes and scorpions as much as he did, as this meant I was particularly on edge throughout the two nights of our stay (unnecessarily it transpired)."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location
Excellent
Service
Good
Activities
Good
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Good
Facilities
Good
Ongava Lodge
"A very comfortable lodge with great views"
2 nights
Arrived
11 Nov 2014
"We really enjoyed our stay at Ongava, which was very comfortable - until we found a scorpion in our room! However, one of the managers Will dealt with the situation very quickly and immediately put us at ease.
The rooms are very tastefully decorated and ours had an excellent view over the watering hole. The food was very good and the service excellent. Our guide, Teacher, was very knowledgeable and helpful and managed to locate lions and lionesses - in both the private Reserve and Etosha itself.
We would definitely stay at this lodge again."
The rooms are very tastefully decorated and ours had an excellent view over the watering hole. The food was very good and the service excellent. Our guide, Teacher, was very knowledgeable and helpful and managed to locate lions and lionesses - in both the private Reserve and Etosha itself.
We would definitely stay at this lodge again."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Activities
Excellent
Rooms
Excellent
Food
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Mushara Bush Camp
"Particulatly well set-up for families"
2 nights
Arrived
13 Nov 2014
"Of all the places we stayed, this was probably our least favourite. This is more a positive reflection on the other lodges rather than a negative assessment of Mushara. The two main things we missed were (1) a view, as we had been hugely spoilt in all of the other places we stayed and (2) qthe level of warmth and service we experienced in other lodges - particularly on check-in. The staff were not unfriendly, but were a little stand-offish and less effusive than elsewhere.
The lodge and the tented rooms are all very stylishly decorated and thoughtfully equipped. However the tent got very hot during our stay (November) which did not make for a comfortable night's sleep, even with the fan that was provided. I would imagine the rooms would have been a lot more comfortable between May - September.
We found the guided game drive into Etosha a bit disappointing compared to other game drives elsewhere as the guide did not seem very engaged or interested in telling us about the wildlife and seemed to prefer chatting with his friends on the radio. Also, due to the distance of the lodge from Namutoni, we lost some time getting to/from the park."
The lodge and the tented rooms are all very stylishly decorated and thoughtfully equipped. However the tent got very hot during our stay (November) which did not make for a comfortable night's sleep, even with the fan that was provided. I would imagine the rooms would have been a lot more comfortable between May - September.
We found the guided game drive into Etosha a bit disappointing compared to other game drives elsewhere as the guide did not seem very engaged or interested in telling us about the wildlife and seemed to prefer chatting with his friends on the radio. Also, due to the distance of the lodge from Namutoni, we lost some time getting to/from the park."
Good
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good
Location
Average
Service
Average
Activities
Average
Rooms
Good
Food
Good
Facilities
Good
Frans Indongo Lodge
"A fantastic spot to spend our last night"
1 night
Arrived
15 Nov 2014
"We had no expectations of this lodge which we viewed as a necessary stopping point on our way to Windhoek to catch our return flight. We ended up regretting not getting there until 6pm as it really is a lovely spot set in very attractive grounds with scenic local walking trails, and what we suspect would have been an interesting game drive which we sadly missed due to our late arrival.
The evening meal was excellent. We wished we could have spent more time at this lodge and would like to spend more time in the area next time."
The evening meal was excellent. We wished we could have spent more time at this lodge and would like to spend more time in the area next time."
Excellent
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent
Location
Excellent
Service
Excellent
Facilities
Excellent
Rooms
Good
Food
Excellent
