Travel reviews by Mr R & Mrs S from UK

"We had a comfortable stay here, and got one of the lodges on the edge of the development which meant less units surrounding us. Ours had a/c, but there are only a few with this, and its not really needed at night in September.

There ws a lot of lodges here - ours was very spacious, clean and comfortable. No problem at all with mosquitos. Food was pretty good quality - served outside, and dinner main course choice included a broad selection of freshly grilled game meats cooked to order. All aspects of the service was good here.

We also took the early morning dunes trip through the on site adventure centre, which although quite pricey still worth the outlay, our guide was very knowledgeable and friendly and was able to accommodate all the requests of the group throughout the morning. We were also booked for the balloon trip, and disappointed this was cancelled due to the windy conditions. We did feel the communication of this cancellation could have been better, but decided the best thing to do was speak directly to balloon company themselves by phone and would advise others to do the same.

A great feature here was the telescope which was out on one of the 2 evenings we were staying - star gazing was incredible (clearer than in the north in Etosha) and use of the telescope made this even better. We would recommend staying here."

"The location and the friendly personal service were the two great things about this place, and we would have scored it excellent but felt whilst the food was fine, it was not quite up to the standard of other lodges we stayed at. Only here for one night, perhaps two would have helped us relax into the place a little more.

The lodges are individual units spread along the hillside, the furthest ones (higher numbers) a good few minutes walk from the central building where food is served. The lodges are more rustic than at other places - spacious and well presented, with a spacious bathroom inc a view over the plain below. It was possible to watch springbok from our balcony.

I would say you might not enjoy staying here if you were bothered by the occassional small creatures vistiing the room, for some it would be part of the charm. Can't finish the review off without saying how much more enjoyable our stay was made by the welcome of Petronella, who couldnt have been more friendly and helpful."

"We stayed here twice, both just "stopovers" whilst passing through Windhoek, and it was ideal for this. Good value, safe, friendly, easy to find and good quality rooms, if nothing exceptional.

Rolf made us feel very welcome, and helped us with dinner bookings, taxis, airline check in etc etc.

Not alot else to add, would recommend for the purposes we used it for."

"Probably our favourite place we stayed on our trip to Namibia. Its not really about the accommodation here, its about the cats, but we had a view room ( a few minutes walk from the central building) which was very very spacious and comfortable, and as the name suggests has a panoramic view over the surrounding bush where springbok, oryx and warthog roamed freely. The other garden rooms, although we didnt see inside them, gave the impression of being smaller and were in close proximity to where dinner etc is served.

We were a little put off in the first few hours of our stay as we couldnt get any clear information about what activities we could do when, but once allocated a guide (Michael, who was excellent) this was much better explained and organised. The activities were very good, trips in open landrovers to see the cheetah, and leopard tracking was both fun and successful. We werent expecting to see as many other animals (especially giraffe) so that was an added bonus. We did the night drive which was also worthwhile as we got fleeting glimpses of a good number of animals.

Food was very good, breakfast, freshly baked/cooked food for afternoon tea, and dinner (much better one night than the other). Would recommend you to budget for the activities here, as you can't do much on your own, and whilst they are quite pricey if you do a few of them they are what make the stay as good as it is.

We learnt alot about the work of the foundation and the characteristics of the cats in general here, much more so than any other place / safari we have been on so far. We went on to Etosha and in comparison saw relatively few cats there (lion) so if you want guaranteed big cat then do stay over here even if only for one night."

"We only stayed here one night, and were bothered by mosquito here (the only place we stayed in Sept in Namibia where this was a problem) which unfortunately has probably influenced our view of what is a very well appointed lodge.

The welcome was friendly, the central building was very nicely designed and furnished and was very comfortbale and relaxed. The lodges however (only eight of them) were the smallest rooms we stayed in on our trip and whilst furnished well the slight lack of space meant you wouldnt spend much time in the room. Its within easy striking distance of the Etosha park, and very easy to find just off the main road.

The dinner we were served was of a good quality - it was chef prepared for us, fresh, and well presented (no choice, the menu is fixed) so we have no complaints here. Breakfast was ok, but we didnt linger over this as we were leaving promptly for the etosha park.

One of the guests had a birthday, so at the end of dinner all the staff inc from the kitchen came out as a surspise and sang for her (and indeed all the guests) which was actually quite moving and was a real highlight of our stay. Advice on animal sightings in Etosha was also freely given, which proved very helpful (do ask!)."

"This was the only non private accommodation we stayed in on our holiday, but we were not disappointed and it stood up well against the other places we stayed.

We had a normal chalet on the first night, and as there was non available when we booked our second night we had to switch / upgrade to a two room lodge close to the waterhole. What a stroke of luck this turned out to be! We obviously had to pay a premium for the lodge on the seond night (we stayed in W34), but it was a fantastic final night in Etosha before we headed home.

The lodge was incredible - circular in shape with a thatched roof, we slept on the upper floor which had a balcony opening out overlooking the waterhole, a real grandstand view of the animals from our bed! If you can stretch to the price, we would say this is definately worth doing. The waterhole was the most active one overall we saw in the park, and night viewing under the lights, when we saw elephant, rhino and lion, was very exciting and added to the drama of the place.

Food was more mass produced here than most places as its a big facility, and it was ok if nothing outstanding. Do book a table if you want to sit outside, even if dinner is included in your package. We did pass through Halali during the daytime, and based on our quick impression there we think that Okaukuejo seemed a better quaility bet, although this isnt really a fully informed opinion. Dont miss out on staying here if you are visting Etosha."

"See previous [Ed: see below]"