Travel reviews by Mr & Mrs W from Devon

"We met with our guide Hussein and driver Ally at the airstrip and had our first game drive on the way to camp was a perfect start to our trip.
Hussain & Ali were a lot of fun and their bush knowledge was exceptional. We remained with them for most of our game viewing during our stay at Impala which gave our stay the personal touch.

We relaxed on a boat safari after our long journey to camp from the U.K. This was a great opportunity to see many different birds & animals up close. The sundowner on the return to camp was a lovely surprise

Mealtimes at Impala were very relaxed with exceptional food. We could not believe we had our own personal waiter called Idi who made mealtimes fun and educational at the same time with free KiSwahili lessons thrown in. The added incentive of having no dinner and being thrown to the crocodiles in the river below if we didn't learn our words meant we learnt very quickly!

The camp is a very relaxed and beautiful place where you can watch the river go by with many chances to see big game up close. Behind this is a very well run team who work extremely hard to make your stay as perfect as possible. Nothing seems too much trouble for them. In particular both Barbara and Matteo are really easy to get along with and this reflects in the camps whole atmosphere.

The look on our guide Hussein's face when we said we'd most like to see the hunting dogs was a picture as he'd already set himself on finding us a Leopard before we left which wasn't going to be an easy task in itself but he came up trumps and found us both!!"

"We expected our fly-camp to be back to the basics of camping but we were in for a surprise! We had a tent by a beautiful lake with its own warm bush shower. The food was exceptional and was provided by our own kitchen team! Having our guide Hussein join us for dinner was great as we had chance to talk while the sun went down and the camp fire burnt beside us.

Waking up to the sound of Baboons making alarm calls during the night was a bit disconcerting but added to the whole experience. We found Leopard tracks behind the camp on our bush walk the following morning. We highly recommend the fly camp and a bush walk as you feel more part of the surroundings."

"A long drive from the airstrip provided some excellent game viewing on our journey to camp where we were greeted with a warm welcome from Mcol and her team. Although this camp is more basic than some others it has everything that you need and has a more isolated feel. Campfires, elephants at breakfast and showers under the stars make for a magical experience.

We had different guides each day at this camp, Geremia, Zakaria and Giovanni were all exceptionally good. With their drivers it amazes us how they spot thing with the naked eye that you struggle to see when its pointed out to you!
A walk down the river with Evans the ranger was also well worth doing. Crocodiles & Hippos are really close and leaving the vehicle behind makes it very peaceful.

The communal meals under the stars have a lovely atmosphere and give a chance to meet and swap stories. the food was delicious and full of surprises, we did not expect lasagne and apple pie in the middle of the bush! On the last night the Mdonya team surprised us with a romantic meal outside our tent complete with camp fire and our guide Zakaria to tell us stories.

The game viewing was brilliant. We were very lucky to see 4 Leopards whilst in Rhuaha as well as a Leopard tortoise!! There are very large herds of Elephant, Buffalo, Zebra, which are great to see up close.

Nothing is a problem for Mcol and her team at Mdonya even when the water was off because of an elephant digging up the pipe this did not cause too much disruption for guests."

"What a way to relax after a weeks safari!

If you fancy a bit of adventure the mini bus trip down from Dar is worth trying! It gives you a high speed close up view of life in Dar and an amazing spectacle on how many people and cars can fit on a ferry!!

Upendo gave us a very warm welcome on arrival, we couldn't believe how posh it all was!! For a few moments we thought we were out of our depth but we very soon settled in to doing nothing but eating and sleeping quite well! In between bouts of lazing in a hammock and lounging on the beach we did manage a lovely walk along the beach and around the lagoon plus a bit of kayaking thrown in.

The food here is of the highest quality and the kitchen team were all great. The menu of the finest local produce with plenty of seafood was perfect.

The manager Greg was very friendly and helpfull to the extent of arranging a very early morning breakfast of bacon butties and fruit on our last morning before we left plus driving us personally to the airstrip from the boat jetty!"