Travel reviews by The Kettle family from UK

"The perfect start to our holiday. The staff could not have made more effort - starting with being greeted by cold towels to refresh us after the long drive. The rooms were delightful and the vistas endless.

Felix the guide was great (and said that after a day with our kids he felt about 7 again!!) The Sesriem canyon walk should not be missed and we did our drive to the dunes at sunset which can only be done if staying at this lodge inside the park. Absolute peace. Our favorite stay of the holiday.

Would not go to Namibia again without re-visiting. 10/10."

"No surprises here as we didn't expect anything else. The hotel was fine but we could have been in a Holiday Inn anywhere in the world. Bathrooms tired and we felt expensive for what you get. Good position though and a reallly good breakfast with the best oysters we've ever had. And, a TV for us to watch South Africa take the title from us!!! We felt a bit young to be staying there......

Visitors to Swakopmund ( with or without kids) should NOT miss quadbiking on the dunes."

"Nice place to stay for 2 nights - it would be too quiet for us with the kids for any longer. The tents were simple and with lovely views - we particularly like the shower set-up.

Bonnie's guided walk was hot but very interesting - In hindsight we would have preferred to do it even earlier before the heat of the day.

Dennis gave us a wonderful lesson on the stars with the aid of his laserbeam and telescope at 5am and that was one of the highlights of our holiday."

"We had the best sleep of our holiday here - the rooms have fabulous airconditioning and the beds are super comfy. But what miserable recpetion staff. Didn't bother to give us details on breakfast and check-out times so that when we returned at 9 from our early morning drive - as one would expect to do - we were surprised - and hungry to find the restaurant closed.

Seems as if the restaurant hours and the likelihood of people being on safari during those hours hasn't been thought out. It was a shame because whilst they have obviously put a lot of thought into the accommodation, the attitude of those working there does not seem to be any different from what you would expect in a backpackers hostel.

Lovely waterhole. Could have done with 2 nights here."

"We rate this as average because, although in many ways it was nice - the pool, the food (if a little salty) and the nice furniture in the reception areas - it was missing something that for a lodge of this cost you would expect. Comments have been made in the past about the fact that the owners no longer host and there can be no doubt that this IS a problem.

It feels as if everyone there is working to a protocol and the passion is missing. The girl who welcomed us pulled a luggage trolley with our luggage but did nothing to assist in getting the luggage in and out of the trolley and into the rooms. It felt as if it wasn't in her job description to do so and was therefore left to us. Normally I have no problem with doing my own fetching and carrying but not at this price.

The concern we raised about the airconditioning not working in the children's room was ignored and when we checked out we were incorrectly billed. A place like that needs the attention to detail displayed at Sossus Dune Lodge. It was missing. A disappointing stay. Wth the exception of a very nice game drive with Petrus who went out of his way to give us a good time."

"Like Halali, the staff are a problem here. Nick and I have travelled extensively through Africa in the past and after our stay here we remembered why we had found it so frustrating at times in the past. We had a firm but polite "row" with the restaurant manager who argued that we had to pay for breakfast despite our voucher stating clearly that it had already been paid. It leaves a sour taste.

Paying park fees took nearly an hour as the computer was down, things had to be filled our in triplicate and it would have been impossible for the staff to have worked any slower or been generally less friendly and helpful. Again, a shame as they have clearly put a huge amount of effort into the pool and restaurant area which are beautiful. The rooms are not as nice as they look in the leaflet - not really that welcoming and not nearly as nice as Halili."