Travel reviews by Mr & Mrs A from Swindon

"Well worth booking the stilted chalets - very spacious and well appointed with stunning views."

"Stayed 2 nights after long drive from Bagatelle - given very private cosy chalet (no 25) with wonderful views.

Excellent buffet food. Very friendly staff."

"To keep costs down, stayed 2 nights self catering, adequately appointed.

Sea view to the right hand side now mostly blocked by the building of a large house next door. Arrived Sat pm and found only Portuguese supermarket open with limited produce. New Spar supermarket open on Sunday am saved the day!"

"Very friendly and helpful staff who allocated us our requested, in advance, end of line chalet. Also gave me use of personal cell phone to confirm return flights when lodge PC on blink. Excellent pack lunch.

Need to upgrade check out procedure as bills written up manually which caused some delays when more than one person wanted to leave at the same time. Food not as good as five years ago (appeared to have changed management since then) pork chop instead of local game."

"New managers (2 weeks in role) greeted us warmly and we were able to select our own tented room as only one other couple staying that night. Much improved since last visit 5 years ago as tents no longer thatched but made of canvas with much larger decking area to admire stunning views. Proper lockable doors ensured security.

Enjoyed walk with knowledgeable guide to view sunset and saw baboon troop, cliffspringer and the ubiquitous hyrax. Given bottle of champagne to celebrate our wedding anniversary and enjoyed a delicious dinner outside near the lit boma. Good attention to detail - partially unlit walkway due to temporary shortage of bulbs was rectified by staff for return trip after dinner. All staff cheerful and helpful."

"We spent our 20th wedding anniversary here and had such an amazing experience (included being upgraded to the Bush Suite) that we planned the whole trip to coincide with our 25th anniversary.

We booked a View Room which was spacious, well equiped, private and with great bathroom/wet room facilities. Game drives as fabulous as last time although saddened to be informed by Chris that the 4 cheetahs we had seen on our previous trip had all died. However, Norman our guide managed to find us a hunting pack of 3 cheetahs on the day we arrived and TJ the leopard eating his kill on the day we left."

"Excellent welcome after long drive from Windhoek. Charming accommodation (spacious and stylish walk in shower room) in thatched rondavel, well spaced from its neighbours and with views over grassland to the horizon. Friendly and flexible service from all staff.

Excellent food and non menu items made to order (although I did have to explain to the cook how to make eggy toast!) Went horseriding at sundown and met my non-riding husband for drinks in glorious setting. Everyone seemed genuinely keen to ensure that we enjoyed your stay."

"Only stayed one night but upgraded to family room (2 bedrooms and small sitting area). Warm welcome from staff who showed us to treehouse and explained all the facilities (including the radiator which was very welcome later on once the temperature dropped to 60F).

Kettle provided with tea and coffee and well stocked mini bar (reasonably priced). Excellent shower - open to the rafters as are the bedrooms. Stylish and spacious main room with plenty of space to unpack and good storage. Good birdwatching from the sofas out over the lagoon although the traffic from the road from Walvis Bay to Swap could be heard and seen.

We dined at the Tug (pre booking essential) also designed by the same architect round an existing old boat - worth a visit if only for a drink. Breakfast is enjoyed in a large room with views out to the lagoon. Very amenable staff will cook breakfast to order - plenty of choice of both food and beverages."

"Less personal than other accommodation due to size and government ownership but perfectly acceptable for a stop-off in the area. Good size rooms in blocks of 8, 4 back to back with the front 4 overlooking the valley and the back 4 facing the rock the Lodge is built into.

On request, staff moved us to quieter room as pathways link all rooms leading to Reception. Despite its size, from a distance the main reception building and blocks of rooms blend in very well to the surroundings. Rooms facing rock are quite dark and shower facilities are basic and could do with refurbishment but everything was clean.

Wonderful raised open air bar area with adjacent dining room giving spectacular views over the landscape. Breakfast and dinner served buffet style with plenty of choice of roast meats - incuding crocodile (which tastes like gamey chicken!). Fuel at nearby airstrip very useful. Hired bikes to go exploring but gravel roads don't make for a very comfortable cycle ride.

As we left the next morning (9.30am), saw 3 mature desert elephants eating from a branch snapped off a tree in a dry river bed next to the Abu Habib campsite."

"Government run campsite inside Etosha National Park undergoing renovation on our visit. Stayed in newly refurbished (semi detached) rondavel (well soundproofed) within sight of waterhole. Stylish walk in shower and 4 poster bed with mosquito net. Deposit required on arrival of 500N$, returned once chambermaid had checked room before departure. Kettle and fridge.

Supper and breakfast taken inside giant tent as restaurant still being built. On site mini supermarket caters for campers, next to small tourist shop and post office.

Despite size of site, everyone conscious of need for quiet at waterhole and we saw large groups of elephants, zebra, warthogs, giraffe, wildebeest and oryx and a mother and baby rhino. Total petrol station on site. Large pool (very cold). Needed torch to find way back to room after dinner."

"Greeted immediately on arrival by receptionist with baggage trolley. Offered refreshment at bar whilst checking in - very stylish vaulted sitting area with whicker or leather sofas and tables partitioned by wooden screens into small areas with a central aisle leading to an open sided vaulted dining room (the latter frequented by squirrels after titbits).

A further sitting area outside the large shop had a selection of new books and some left by visitors. All furnishings made of wood with natural fabrics and lighting provided by ostrich egg chandeliers or porcupine lampshades (I wanted to buy one from the shop but it was £60!)

Accommodation was in thatched lodges with large bedroom/sitting area, well spaced from its neighbour. Generous bathroom - with bath - and separate WC and shower. The verandah had a table and 2 chairs and overlooked the grassed swimming pool area with the thatched reception/dining room behind. Outside lights meant we could make the most of the early evening sitting outside our room with a drink. Kettle and mini bar provided. Local wildlife in evidence (iguana, hornbill and squirrel)

Excellent food and wine , and the waiting staff and chef sung to us after the meal. Visited the Omibili Foundation about half an hours drive away and spent an enjoyable couple of hours experiencing life at the Foundation including listening to a school choir and visiting the vegetable garden. Small shop sells souvenirs."

"Booked a Bush Camp chalet but on arrival we were upgraded to the Bush Suite. Amazing thatched chalet with 2 double bedrooms, inside and outside showers, separate bathroom, kitchen, dining area and sunken sitting room. Set apart from the Bush Camp with its own swimming pool, floodlit waterhole and completely private verandah with spectacular views across the Namibian bush. The chalets have khaki green canvas flaps that can be rolled up to allow a breeze and the sound of wildlife.

The thatched reception and dining area was open at the front to enjoy the view of the waterhole and there is a small pool and gift shop. The game drives are taken open topped jeeps with noweldgeable and friendly guides. The afternoon one starts at 4pm and we went tracking the radio collared leopard and were lucky enough to see one up close sitting against a giant anthill. We followed him for a while until he wandered off through the bush. We also saw a variety of other wildelife on the 2 hour drive and the guide obligingly drove into the undergrowth for better photos opportunities.

After a quick change it was back to the main reception for a drink round the outside fire to discuss the next morning's game drive. After a delicious a set course dinner (mussels, kudu steak and lemon sponge and custard), we were taken to a floodlit hide to watch porcupines fight over kitchen scraps.

Woke at 6am for early morning game drive to view cheetahs as part of the rehabilitation project run by Africat. This is an an amazing experience not to be missed - you won't believe how close you get to the animals. Brunch is served around 10am and as we were celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary, the staff gave everyone sparkling wine (we also got a card and some flowers).

This holiday was a special anniversary trip and was booked round the stay at Okonjima- which surpassed all our expectations. Staying at Okonjima is not cheap but the experience of getting up close to the big cats and staying in such a remote location is worth every penny. I have never experienced anything like it and I imagine it would be difficult to replicate the experience anywhere else."

"A totally different setting from Okonjima but very special in its own way. Set against the backdrop of the Erongo Mountains there are 10 luxury tented chalets linked by wooden walkways. The tents are thatched and have a small verandah, kettle and fridge. The shower room/WC are built into the rocks and open to the elements in part but privacy is maintained.

The dining room is reached up natural stone steps, passed the small swimming pool,and gives wonderful views of the surrounding mountains. We had a delicous dinner of potato and leek soup, salad, oryx and panatone and at breakfast next morning watched the local (love)birds swooping on breadcrumbs.

As this was our last night we were content to relax and didn't go on any excursions except for a sundowner walk to the top of a mountain in the company of a Belgian honeymoon couple."