Travel reviews by Mrs C from Barbados

"Excellent stay - far better facilities than expected - large tent with A/C, kettle hairdryer bath etc a/c was in our case was needed on “warm” and was a welcome surprise when we arrived at sunset in the cool winter evening.

Golf buggie with luggage up to room and dune chalet worth the extra as the view was spectacular.

Dinner was excellent too …. Wished we had stayed two nights"

"If you wish to see Fish river Canyon this is the only place to see it !! The views are just unbeatable!!

The staff are all superb and work extremely hard to make your stay enjoyable - I have a wheat allergy and chef prepared gluten free bread and desserts for me daily !

Unfortunately only lodge where management presence amongst guests was non existent which is a missed opportunity! In fact female manager when seen looked sullen to point of being rude!

Rooms are sadly concrete boxes that never get warm - we had glorious sunny days and it was colder in the rooms than outside. Concrete floors with not sufficient rugs! At night the rooms and sheets felt damp …. We subsequently stayed in many different equally remote lodges (eg: shipwreck lodge) and they have all found ways to make rooms warm and comfortable for the winter.

All that said the staff gave us a fabulous stay and would we return …… of course !! For the view !!"

"We stayed in luderitz to visit the kolmanskop at sunset.

Town is not up to much however hotel whilst a little dated and lacking in charm has excellent facilities. The suite was large with fabulous views of the sea….. all the usual in room extras you would expect, fridge, hairdryer etc with a brand new shower and copious hot water. A great respite from the lodge scene for a night.

Dinner (despite the restaurant having little atmosphere) had excellent food with charming staff and our take away breakfast was as requested and ready and waiting for us at reception."

"Must say the two staff - chef Claudia and hostess Sharon were exceptional - you drive to reception to collect your key and then drive up to the dining room/ lounge where you are ably looked after by the two charming individuals for drinks, dinner and breakfast.

The views and location are amazing and certainly worth the drive.

The tents are basic and would not have mentioned the word “luxury” anywhere in the description. We purposely did not have an evening shower - aware of desert location and solar tank capacity so when you only then have cold water in the morning it does not sit well !!

Silly things missed too by housekeeping - bring boiling water for morning drinks but rooms missing milk or creamer ! That said we still had a wonderful stay - all really down to the team mentioned. Food was amazing and the team even sang and danced for us after dinner!"

"Sorry Expert Africa but you are doing this lodge a disservice by not visiting - it is Fabulous !!

Huge tents (18ft x 20) tastefully decorated and well thought out with all the facilities including kettle, climate control and fridges.
The separate bathrooms are a poor design for nighttime visits but to be honest it is a small price to pay for the fact their water is heated by an individual hot water system for each room so is available 24/7 !!

The lodge itself is brand new and looks like a showroom for Timothy Olton !! Open plan, Modern and fresh….. stunning.

The two front men - Richard and Julio couldn’t do enough for us - physically helped with car pressures, arranged washing with a housekeeper (they don’t offer this service) and were genuinely on hand to ensure your stay was a very enjoyable one.
Klaus (manager) was also always there and it shows.

The lodge was only half full so do hope they can keep up the quality when they are full but for a government run facility (within the park gates which was a requirement for us) this lodge was exceptional and we would certainly rank it within our top three amongst shipwreck lodge and Serra Cafema !!

Food was excellent ….. only dinner drinks service slightly slow on BBQ night but small Critism really"

"We cheated and upgraded to a suite when we arrived so this review is a little biased….. we had booked a luxury room which whilst very tasteful was really quite small so we asked and paid for an upgrade.

Swakamund is a wonderful town and provides a fabulous break from the desert and lodge life.

The strand hotel is a “proper hotel” that is virtually brand new and very tastefully decorated….. with lots of nice touches! We ate in the fish restaurant one night and the food was excellent and the breakfasts were also varied and tatsy. There are three restaurants and all are highly rated with fab menus (we chose to eat at the Tug on our second night which was also excellent)

We took the opportunity to rest here after many early morning photographic starts and it was the perfect location and facilities for that.

The only thing that you might expect at this type of property is a swimming pool which they don’t have but as that is not something we would use ….. we didn’t miss it"

"Dominique and Christian run a tight ship here !! It is a long way but truly worth it for this once in a lifetime experience.

Rooms have glorious day beds to enjoy the views, fires and all the mod cons in this well thought out lodge in the wilderness - a very special place! Food was fabulous and some lovely extra touches.

Our guide for the three days Bravo was a very humble but charming Namibian who went out of his way to make sure our photographic needs were met !

A wonderful place with some exceptional staff that make sure you’re needs are met!"

"Hoanib valley is a wonderful camp with some fabulous facilities and staff. It is only six tents but they are all very large and luxurious, with hot water and all the mod cons (except hairdryer and kettle) Morning tea is delivered at the required time no matter how early.

The food is exceptional and all my dietary needs were met and exceeded (daily gluten free bread)

The camp is tucked in the mountain so has it’s only little warm micro climate which means it is much warmer than many other camps visited - there is a swimming pool with a fabulous breeze during the day which is a great place to just hang out between morning and evening activities.

Picnic lunch and BBQ by the fire were all added touches that are what makes this camp special and worth the visit.

We came here to see desert-adapted animals and we’re lucky the herd of ten were around for two days - however this is often not the case as they move between Hoanib and skeleton coast - also Note that this camp only has the concession rights for river bed (not skeleton coast) so a two night stay is recommended.

Our guide Raymon was a great ambassador for lodge and also Namibian conservation- wow what an amazingly charming and interesting man."

"We saved the best till last ! We booked Serra Cafema for our last three nights to rest before our journey home. It is a wonderful property that has some superb touches. The rooms are by far the largest of our whole trip with a very large lounge and exceptional views.

Our laundry was done and returned daily and apart from one cloudy day we did have hot water (not sure how they cope with several cloudy days?) the rooms are serviced three times a day which is a nice touch but when a bath towel is missing for a day and your told it’s because it’s been cloudy (surely at this price point they have extras especially as the lodge was not even half full) We wonder if they have become a little complacent ?

Our arrival food whilst fresh and looked lovely was not gluten free so I couldn’t eat it!! We waited in the transportation to the lodge whilst the two guides (@ the airport pick up hut) partook of the left overs …. Not for long but not sure it’s the right first impression.

Guessing that the other pre contact arrangement of a close cabin for My husband post op had also been omitted, we mentioned that upon arrival and once again the change needed to be made upon arrival!

Our guide was good but not exceptional and the food was delicious (although the BBQ night we felt was lacking)
There are some touching welcomes and drinks and the staff were amazing. The two new assistant managers were charming and very welcoming.

The Himba village trip was excellent although little cultural information was passed on. I was lucky I then was able to have a Himba driver (Ricardo who spoke excellent English and would make a fabulous guide) who shared with me some excellent information that filled the gap.

It is an amazing facility that is a must do if you have the opportunity….. we feel it just needs a little more attention to the detail that charm and smiles don’t necessarily make up for!"