Travel reviews by Mr E. from London

"We had a good time at the Serena, and it served well it’s purpose of killing a few hours between flights.

We had lunch in the patio. The food was tasty, the service very good and attentive. We did not use the pool but we had a look around and it seemed very nice.

The facilities were nice, all squeaky clean. The decor is slightly outdated, but still looking good. Perhaps it feels a bit too much a business hotel, but it’s a minor detail for a very short stay.

The distance from the airport was acceptable (about 30 mins or so late in the morning).

All in all, positive experience"

"Our stay at Pole Pole was fantastic.

There are only 8 or 9 bungalows, nicely decorated in the local style. The rooms are basic but elegant. Perhaps they are due a refresh, but even as is they work well. The ownership of the hotel changed 2 years ago and the new management is gradually making improvements, for example adding 2 new bungalows with more luxurious features.

The location of the hotel is very scenic, with lush vegetation, white sand beach and blue ocean. Arriving from a boat, you could hardly see that there is a hotel!

The service is very attentive and whatever you ask, staff will make a big effort to help. “Pole Pole” means “slowly slowly” in Swahili, so if you expect everything to run fast as it would be in a London hotel, you will be disappointed. But that’s actually a good thing. Embrace a slower pace, that’s what a holiday should be about.

The food is amazing. I have high standards for food (I am Italian, cook a lot and love good ingredients nicely cooked) and Pole Pole delivered big time. One of the new owners is Italian and runs a hotel/restaurant in Dar Es Salaam. He taught the Pole Pole staff to cook and did an amazing job.

If anything, the main issue is that there is too much too eat. Also, you have to decide ahead of time what you want to eat for breakfast, lunch or dinner. That’s perhaps not super convenient.

The hotel partners with a local diving Center to provide activities and excursions (not only diving) some are included and some are charged extra. The week we stayed was the second week that this Pole Pole was working with the diving centre and it showed. It was not clear what was / was not included and this led to avoidable discussions about money. On the other hand, all activities were nice and exciting and we liked them all (diving, snorkelling, sunset cruises, barbecue on low tide sand banks, fishing, swimming with whale sharks). The only downside is that the diving centre is 10 mins walk away, and the walk is not super nice. Either you walk on the road, or along the beach but there is a bit where you have to walk among trees over smelly seaweed.

However, if you want to just lie on the hotel beach all day, and occasionally plunge in the sea, this may not be the right place. The beach is very pretty, but at low tide you cannot swim. There is a pool if you want, but it’s not the same.

Lastly, and I am not sure if it’s a positive or negative, WiFi is only available by the hotel reception. This helps with digital detox, but can be frustrating if you want to use WiFi while in your room.

I would go back to Pole Pole in a heartbeat!"

"We loved our private mobile safari. Our tent was placed just in front of a pond where elephants and hippos frequently paid a visit. A very idillic set up.

Being in a tent you cannot expect the same comfort as a camp room. The bed could have been slightly softer, the washing facilities more convenient, and the space is not a lot. BUT, you cannot beat the experience of being immersed in the nature.

Andrew, our guide and the owner of the mobile safari, is a lovely Scottish-turned-Botswanan, and made us feel special. Very attentive, as well as fun and extremely knowledgeable about animals and safaris. He built a support team that makes the the experience work impeccably. The food is very good, the tents and facilities kept very clean, the laundry washed and ironed. You could not believe you are camping.

The activities are all about safari. Andrew drives the jeep and spots animals (no idea how) while giving a lot of info. We saw incredible things, including a leopard climbing a tree to hunt a squirrel (which incredibly survived!). You go out for safaris twice a day - early morning and afternoon. As you basically sit in a car for hours, Andrew creates moments to break for a tea or a short walk.

If you don’t like sitting in a car, you will struggle, but will also miss incredible sightings as in a walking safari you may not be able to cover a large area looking for animals.

The mobile safari is unique, and being private there are no other guests, which I loved. Staying in a camp is certainly more comfortable, but less special. We stayed first in the mobile safari and then in a camp - and I think that’s the right sequence.

All in all, I loved our time with Andrew and his crew, and I highly recommend it."

"We really liked our time at Splash Camp. The location and facilities are amazing, and the staff is very attentive and ready to help.

The best part of Splash Camp are the safari guides. TJ and Obi were incredible at tracking and spotting animals, and we saw incredible things, like lions eating a zebra, wild dogs eating an impala, lions mating and a fight between lions and hyenas. Not to mention the cutest lion cubs ever!

There are a couple of things that could be improved. The food was good, but not very exciting. I would have loved to eat local recipes, but the staff played it safe. I understand that some tourists may feel uncomfortable eating food they are not used to, but that's part of the trip.

In addition, dinner and lunch are served on a large shared table. Sometimes after a long day, you may want to stay quiet and not engage with other guests, and this is hard when you all eat together.

In addition, it would have been useful to know that there was no voice or internet connection at all (nor through mobile, nor WiFi). I enjoyed the digital detox, but I needed to connect with family and work and I could not. If I had known that in advance, I could have organized myself better"