Travel reviews by Mr & Mrs R & V from ASCOT

"This is a very comfortable hotel in a new slightly self contained development with security and modern amenities in mind. Its an easy drive from the airport and the restaurant we ate at (Capetown Fish Market) was friendly, efficient and buzzy.

Breakfast is a buffet affair but with cooked options too. We also went to the cafe in the courtyard, which had a lot of healthy options and lovely coffee. We also bought a couple of sandwich wraps for our journey which were delicious.

Staff were all excellent and there is covered, secure parking adjacent the hotel. Didn't do any hotel organised activities, hence the no comment. All in all, it fitted the bill perfectly."

"This is a nice lodge with large, rustic rooms overlooking a water hole which encourages some resident wildlife to make an appearance, plenty of bird life too. The rooms really are large, ours had 2 inside showers AND an outside one too ! Very comfortable with aircon which is essential given the large glass windows.

We did the Trans-Kalahari trek. This sounds a grand affair but its really a Trek around the (10,000 acre) property in a kind of zigzag direction to make the mileage. It does give you a nice insight into the terrain and we did see some wildlife. Our guide, Phillomon (Sp ?) was very good in pointing out all sorts of desert flora and insects etc. There were many yellow flowers out too and it was nice to walk in the cool of the morning, though this does give way to extreme heat approaching the middle of the day.

We did +/- 18 km, it finished at the bush camp, which is very comfortable, even with a plunge pool which is v cold. The guide and a cook put together a really nice braai and it was fabulous to eat out in this way. Both guys talked about the bush and Namibia and we all enjoyed their company.

The rooms were very comfortable, but they were very, very hot ! the blanket/duvet is completely unnecessary, only really needs a cotton sheet. There isn't aircon or a ceiling fan, I opened some windows slightly to encourage a draught, but it was only any good when I cracked open the door a bit, which the next morning I learned I should NOT have done, as some insects/reptiles may want to come in and join us ! SO this IS a problem here. It was too hot for us to sleep properly, despite being tired after our trek. If you can't open the door and / or windows (later in the night I killed 3 or 4 mozzies so that was frustrating too) the camp owners need to consider how to make this work more efficiently. The windows need a fine gauze to allow a draught but to keep out even the smallest of insects. Not sure about how to modify the doors, but they need a large gauze panel with perhaps a drop down flap secured by velcro, again to keep out unwanted insects and reptiles but to allow the lovely breeze in, that does indeed blow at night and would have transformed our experience. Its all doo-able, Ive seen it in other camps. Kulala do it well in the Namib in their rooms.

In short, we loved the whole thing except the hot room. If we did it again, we'd just stay in our nice cool room ( # 5 Springbok) and get up early for an early morning walk and forget the sleep over in the bush camp. BUT, if they made the mods, this would be even better and quite special, please consider it Red Dune Lodge owners.......

I put 'Good' on the room grade which really doesn't take into account our pretty much sleepless night in the bush camp.
Food was ok, no choice, and no vegetarian option, given the increasing amount of people moving away from meat, this should be
a consideration, even if the dish is the same, just without the meat !"

"An excellent camp, though its a long & dusty drive to get there over a corrugated road. We were very well looked after, the staff were all very friendly and couldn't be more helpful. The room are nice and more than adequate given the location. The views are outstanding and the relaxing areas very well appointed. The pool area is a nice space and its quite surreal lazing around with the dunes all around you.

The activities were first rate, the 'regulation' climb of dune 45 was fun and gave us great views, coming down the side in giant steps was a great feeling. Markus, our guide was first rate. He also took us for a walk the following morning down the dry river bed and pointed out all sorts of things of interest.

I'd recommend Kuala to anyone, especially as its location puts you close the the park and ahead of the crowd."

"The Stiltz is a bit quirky, the location is good, in town, close enough to walk (during the day) and a short taxi hop from either of the 'go to' restaurants 'The Tug' and 'The Jetty'

The rooms are a bit dated and the decor is a bit of an acquired taste, but it was ok, it would be great for an interior stylist came in and modernised it, would be great ! ...... the bed was v comfortable, we slept really well and the breakfast was good. Receptionist was nice and helpful too.

You can walk to 2 things worth taking a look at; The aquarium, which has indigenous specimens including some sharks and also The Living Desert Snake Park, run by a character called 'Stretch' all sorts of snakes here and lots to learn. This man actually handles some right there, including what he call's a mild mannered Black Mamba ..... yes, go and take a look !"