Travel reviews by Ms. S from Madrid

"Unfortunately, due to my flight being cancelled, I spent very little time at Waterberry Lodge, and all of it in the dark.

However, the staff were marvellous during the process of me being delayed, as they were when I finally arrived, doing their best to ease my concerns/stress and making new arrangements to visit the falls.

The tent was lovely and had everything you could wish for (even an electric blanket!) and the dinner that I had there was excellent."

"Nkwali was my first real experience on safari and it was a fantastic way to start.

It's situated on a beautiful spot on the river, where there was water even despite the drought, and the camp is spacious and the accommodation lovely. You can sit watching the wildlife on the river from your tent and the pool is a plus.

The staff were exceedingly friendly and helpful and the guide I had, Chizi (who I was lucky enough to be on my own with for a couple of days), was extremely knowledgeable and always seemed to manage to be in the right spot at the right time. I learnt a lot with him.

I loved the drum call to meals/wake up. A perfect start for a first-timer!"

"Of the five camps that I stayed at on my trip, Tena Tena was where I saw the most, and most varied, wildlife.

The guide that I had, John (who I was lucky enough to be with on my own for most of the 3 days), was superb, and I learnt a huge amount about animals, birds, insects and plants, as well as life in Zambia.

The camp was not the most luxurious (no pool and unfortunately the river was very low so the view from the tents was quite arid) but the wildlife and the staff more than compensated for that. I also enjoyed my conversations with Bertram, the camp host, about the situation in Zambia.

The tents are well spaced out and although not very big, there was enough space to move around.

For me, Tena Tena provided the best wildlife experience on my trip."

"Nsefu is a lovely camp in a beautiful location on the river, although I found the rondavels a touch small and too close together, so much so that you can see into your neighbours and sometimes hear their conversations.

Otherwise, the staff were lovely and the food excellent.

I found the guiding slightly weaker than at other camps, and there seemed to be less wildlife around, although I did love seeing the carmine bee eaters and we had a great sighting of male lions."

"Anabezi is a very luxurious camp indeed. After South Luangwa, the landscape was very different, more open, and very attractive, and being just by the Zambezi was marvellous. The tents are huge, with a sitting room, terrace and private plunge pool and two bathrooms. Nearly as big as my flat at home!

Travelling alone, I was sitting at a table for one at meals (unlike the smaller camps, where people sit around one table), although I sat with people I'd met along the way a couple of times and also had great conversations about Zambia with the staff. Service was excellent, the food outstanding, and the guiding (Lawrence) extremely good, and committed, especially haring after the wild dogs on a hunt!

Here I went on a boat down the Zambezi and also did a couple of walking safaris. Although you see much less wildlife that way, it's a good change after 2 weeks sitting down and a way to look at the small things (while hastening away from the elephants...)"