Travel reviews by Mr & Mrs lion from UK

"Using a hotel closely situated to the international and Wilson airports was great. A new, good quality road to the hotel that doesn't need to take you into the jams of Nairobi was also appreciated. The hotel is fairly new with friendly and efficient staff.

Rooms are clean and contain all that you need for a nights rest before going on safari or starting the long haul flight home."

"Our first time at this camp, but with the experience of many safaris. Andrew and Marietta were the new hosts. Both were really friendly and efficient. We enjoyed their company.

The set up was first class. We had tent 4 which was one of the closest to the dining area. The quality of the newish tents was brilliant. Loved the design, space, storage and the fact we had battery charging points. Tent was spotless and the shower worked well.

Meal times was conducted as a group. We were fortunate in having lovely guests which made meal times relaxing and informative.Our driver Johnson was superb and as an amateur photographer I appreciated his positioning and awareness of light. He was always open to suggestions and did his best to help us achieve our shots.

Game was great including leopard and lion cubs and a cheetah coalition."

"A different feel to Valley camp but really loved it. The hosts were great, being good fun, friendly and informative. Frank, their Jack Russell was the star of the camp.
Our tent was number 1 The monkey. It was close to the hub of the camp and was well appointed, spotlessly clean and with a great bucket shower. All the staff were very friendly and helpful and the evening dance they put on was much appreciated.

Organisation of meals was either out under the trees or inside in one group. Both worked really well and much friendly banter and stimulating conversation took place.

Our driver/guide, James was excellent, a very safe driver and a keen photographer which suited me down to the ground. The jeep was well set up including bean bags for photography.

The wildlife was amazing and we certainly saw more animal behaviour and species ie 9 different antelope than on many safaris we've done. Predators included Fig (leopard) with two very young cubs, many lion cubs and a cheetah. I liked that we could stay as long as we liked at any sighting and that nobody was interested in hunting down the Big Five, but we could spend ages at dwarf mongoose etc. The highlights were time spent with two hunting dog up from the Serengeti and watching a lion pride hunting wildebeest in the pouring rain. Absolute magic."

"We visited Selous Impala for a four night stay at the end of June. Wewere surprised at the amount of water in the river and surrounding lakes which added greatly to the variety of wildlife seen compared with a normal safari.

The camp was small and personal. All of the staff were ultra friendly and obviously happy. They worked superbly as a team, ably led by Chloe. Food was varied and consistently of a good standard. Tents were well equiped, spotlessly clean and contained a three pin plug suitable for battery charging. One minor irritation was that the two deckchairs outside on the platform were almost horizontal and could not be adjusted so there wasn't anywhere ideal to relax apart from the main eating area which was superb. As the camp was open, we had to be careful when moving around as giraffe and elephant moved freely about. At night, we were led to and from our rooms by Massai which added to the sense of adventure.

Game drives were well conducted and the drivers went to a lot of trouble to position the vehicles for great photos. Guides were knowledgeable and great fun. The chance to partake in boat trips was a new safari experience for us and a highlight. We managed three including a visit to Bird island which was a twitchers paradise. Abdullah, the boatman, was expert at spotting and positioning his craft for photos and I still can't believe how close he got us to a variety of kingfishers and bee eaters.


The highlight of our trip was spotting three hunting dogs with whom we stayed for half an hour. However, this sighting was a real bonus as they hadn't been seen for the previous two weeks.


We are always sad when we leave a camp, but this was especially so at Impala where there was a genuine warmth and interest in our visit and where we shared many happy and humorous moments."

"We stayed at Mwagusi for four nights at the beginning of July. The camp is medium sized and there regularly seemed to be about twenty plus tourists coming and going.

Staff were friendly, efficient and helpful. Guides varied in ability, and as some were shyer than others, imparted different amounts of information. We had several different guides and drivers during our stay so didn't really get the opportunity to develop a relationship with a particular individual.

Chris, who owned the lodge was interesting to talk to and keen to solve any minor problems.
The buildings that we stayed in were superbly designed, consisting of open sided viewing area containing comfy seating, tent with comfortable furniture, and a toilet/shower area with clothes storage. There was no power point so all batteries plus charger had to be taken to the office for charging which was a drag as you had to make sure that you got the right one back, plus they had found time to charge it.

The person in charge of cleaning and tidying the accomodation was amazingly thorough and everything was left perfectly.
Food was of a reasonable standard and the staff went to a lot of trouble to set up a different dining area in the bush each night. The system of everybody sitting along one table had its good and bad points. Mwagusi staff were experimenting with setting up two areas if the numbers eating was quite high to make it a little more personal.

Laundry was availabe free and the system generally worked well.

Wildlife and scenery were varied. The bush was still quite high and green which made animal spotting more difficult. Wild dogs were hard to locate and hadn't been seen for several months. Apparently December is the best bet. Lion were common, leopard elusive and the terrain didn't suit cheetah. Elephants were numerous but Roan and Sable, which I thought were in the area were rarely seen. We did see Lesser kudu but, like many of the shy antelope there, only from a distance.

Ruaha was an interesting place to visit and the camp was a good base."

"THis was a great hotel for a stop-over. Staff were friendly and efficient. The rooms were clean and contained all that you need.
The restaurant we visited was brilliant. There was a fish night when we were there and the freshness, quality and variety of food was amongst the best we have eaten anywhere. The price was reasonable and a lot cheaper than in England.

The bar was lively with live music but almost exclusively male predominated.

The concierge was particularly helpful and arranged a taxi out to the slipway. The driver was superb and reasonably priced. In the morning the bill was already prepared and we wasted no time in being able to get to the airport.

One word of caution. the restaurant doesn't serve breakfast until half six so if leaving earlier you need to book room service before three o'clock on the previous day."