Travel reviews by The O family from London

"A very well-run camp, with excellent food and great facilities. Guides were extremely helpful and knowledgeable, and it was a great experience for us and the two grandchildren.

Barbara and Andrea made everything run smoothly. There's not a great variety of things to do, and animal life was a bit sparse and the best at some distance, so 3 nights would be the maximum optimum time to spend there - but would definitely recommend it."

"This is obviously a more basic camp and we were glad it was the second one, so that the children (or anyone who hadn't been in Africa before) were more used to bush life. The animal life was great (elephants in camp, lots of lions and buffaloes) and the range of activities (including day safari to hot springs) very good. The guides were also excellent - extremely knowledgeable and got on really well with us and children, and the staff as a whole were very good.

It felt rather less confidently run than Impala - it is a rather big camp to manage with only basic facilities and the relatively new manager and his 18-year-old assistant, though very friendly and helpful, did seem less experienced in running such a facility. Food was plentiful though not to the standard of Impala.

One practical point - why use polluting and potentially dangerous kerosene lamps, rather than the individual solar powered lights which are now being used as best practice by development agencies across Africa?"

"This was a great experience, and a complete and relaxing change from the safaris. The staff were great (and it was really good to be somewhere that was Tanzanian-run) and the island and its facilities fantastic.

The accommodation is very good (though don't believe them when they say there are no mosquitoes - there are certainly biting insects) and the location wonderful. The food was also excellent and the guides - and indeed all the staff - very helpful.

The only concern was our departure, on a very windy day which had prevented one boat from reaching the island, with the result that nine passengers and all their luggage piled into one small boat on a very choppy sea, which didn't feel too safe. There probably need to be fall-back arrangements for such times. But overall a wonderful and memorable time."

"Hotel was very convenient, with good facilities and the room was excellent. Some staff (but not all) were very helpful, and they facilitated our trip to a spice farm - though the promised breakfast on our last day, when we were leaving very early, did not materialise.

It's worth telling guests that the hotel won't accept credit cards for any extras (meals. laundry etc) and their exchange rate for dollars is poor."

"The hotel was extremely luxurious and in a great position and the staff were really attentive (if a bit over the top - we did not need a personal butler!). But it did feel rather like a pseudo-colonial experience and the extras (such as the food) were very expensive (and indeed not as good as the food we had later in Botswana lodges).

If we went again, we'd prefer to stay somewhere like the Tongabezi/Sinabezi - a bit further from the Falls, but more relaxed and better value."

"This was the best camp we stayed at.

The manager and all the staff were extremely friendly and helpful - and our guide, tracker and trainee guide could not have been more helpful and knowledgeable. They created a very good atmosphere, and the location is terrific. They were prepared to stay out long beyond the 'official' activity times if there was a chance of seeing a lion, leopard or wild dogs hunting. In fact, we threw the meal schedule into disarray once, but no-one minded.

They also put on a bush meal and staff dancing. The only trick they might learn from a later camp is hot water bottles on the early morning game drive! We saw a lot of game, very close - including a huge herd of buffalo, and a wild dog den, which we did not see elsewhere."

"This was what we wanted - a remote small camp with the opportunity to walk, and some very congenial company who were also into walking.

We were amazed at the ingenuity and skill of the staff in creating amazing meals and hot showers from charcoal pits in the ground. The camp needs to make it clear - as you did to us - that it is a specialised walking place, where you'd be lucky to see big game (one of our co-guests would have been much happier at neighbouring Shinde).

The guides were again very knowledgeable and helpful, though a bit more distant than Lagoon. We found Ker and Downey camps in general somewhat more formal, and a bit more inflexible, than Kwando. But a great experience."

"Shinde is in a great location - you get the benefit of both water and game drives. We saw the best big game here (lion and leopard) thanks to some very clever tracking by the ever-knowledgeable guides.

It was also the most luxurious camp we stayed at - but also probably the most formal. The atmosphere was not as relaxed or welcoming as at the other camps, and one of the guides was a little too gung-ho (especially for the 12-year-old in the party - eg inviting elephants to charge).

Nevertheless, a great and memorable time, and an ideal camp if you have limited time and want to sample both kinds of Delta experience."

"This was a good experience at the end of the trip, when we were pretty much game-d out and wanted to relax more.

There were longer breaks between activities, and more gentle mokoro-ing. We are not birders or fishers, but we found ourselves fascinated by the variety - and the rarity - of some of the birds, and even caught fish to feed the fish eagle.

The staff were very welcoming and our guide extremely knowledgeable. Apart from some very noisy hippos, it was a very relaxing experience."