Travel reviews by Mrs F & family from London

"We liked Olive Grove very much. The staff were extremely helpful and courteous, the rooms were good, clean and spacious (we had Rooms 10 and 11).

The shower was excellent, and much appreciated after a long journey. It was a cold night, and hot water bottles were a welcome touch.

We ate dinner and breakfast there, and thought the food was of a very high standard and great value. We stayed again at the end of our holiday, in more expensive rooms (5 and 6) which were huge but not worth the extra as the other rooms are great."

"A stunning location.

The staff were welcoming, although it would have been helpful to have been told the cost of the evening drive when we hurriedly agreed to go on it. The drive, with a walk to see 'Paula's Cave (?)' was excellent, the guide Coolas informative and entertaining. It was a freezing cold night, so a log fire at dinner in the main lodge was most welcome.

The tents were very cold though, in spite of the hot water bottles supplied. We slept in our clothes and used all the extra blankets etc! I wish we'd heeded the advice to take gloves....After a chilly start the next morning, we had a great walk with the guide Johnny. Again, interesting and fun. We left by 10am but it was a very memorable stay."

"Peter and the other staff were fantastic - helpful and friendly. Nothing was too much trouble. We were recommended restaurants, and they booked tables for us, as well as liaising with Jeanne for the sea kayaking we'd booked.

The rooms, indeed the whole place, was immaculate. We used the laundry service and found it very efficient."

"The location is beautiful, and our rooms were excellent.

I was slightly flummoxed by not being given a key to the room, and felt untrusting when I asked for one. It is a reasonably large lodge with a lot of people staying for a night or two, and we didn't want to leave expensive camera equipment, ipads etc in temptation's way.

My husband and teenage sons went quadbiking with Llewelyn and had a great time. Otherwise we took our own trip into Sossusvlei ( which meant we couldn't use Kulala's gate) in the afternoon. It was v quiet (we had Deadvlei to ourselves), and we still saw the dramatic light on the dunes, but at the end of the day rather than the beginning.

The main lodge, bar, pool, dining area and terraces are excellent, and the food was fine. My only small criticism is that there was obviously a new manager, and there was a sense of the service being a little erratic, ie sometimes monosyllabic responses were given, at other times the staff were so chatty you felt overwhelmed! A member of staff noticed we had a flat tyre and helped to change it which was much appreciated."

"Not as swanky as Kulala, but a lovely atmosphere. The rooms were charming, and the staff were helpful. We enjoyed lunch, dinner, and lounging by the pool (not brave enough to go in the freezing water though!). The chairs etc by the pool are looking a bit tired, if I'm being very critical.

We had booked a sunrise horseride, which was excellent. Annoyingly I can't remember our guide's name which is a shame as he was great. None of us are experienced riders but he put us at our ease and let us dictate the pace and length of ride. As for the champagne breakfast (including bacon, sausage and eggs cooked over a fire): my kids reckoned it was the best breakfast they'd ever had."

"A truly amazing experience - from the moment we arrived. The staff were incredibly friendly and welcoming, without being overbearing in any way. The atmosphere is relaxed and comfortable, the accommodation is fantastic.

This was our first safari, so we can't make comparisons, but there's a real sense of being in the wilderness when in the Selous. We rarely saw another vehicle on our game drives. We saw the immediate aftermath of a lion kill on our first afternoon, and elephants digging drinking holes in a dried up riverbed about an hour later - quite a start.

The Beho Beho staff provide great surprises for the guests - sundowner drinks in spectacular settings, and meals in a variety of locations, for example. The guides are so enthusiastic about their surroundings, and made every outing seem special, whether by jeep, boat, or on foot.

We were out for 10 hours one day, with so many experiences one after another."

"The rooms seemed quite dingy after Beho Beho, but this was due mainly to the lighting. The bathrooms in particular could do with a decent light for shaving, contact lenses, make up etc! Housekeeping and cleanliness was excellent. Always plenty of sunloungers, particularly overlooking the beautiful beach.

Staff brought round fruit kebabs mid-morning. We regretted not taking reef shoes, as there are coral and sea urchins everywhere in the water, although shoes can be borrowed from the water centre for a small fee. We sailed and canoed from the Breezes water centre, and learnt to scuba dive at the independent Rising Sun Centre (this was very expensive - $500 for scuba diver level and $655 for open water diver per person).

Charges at Breezes for drinks, lunch, laundry etc all very reasonable. I had an excellent Thai massage at the spa. The service in the bar and restaurant was friendly and very good. Food was generally good, and different each night. The breakfast buffet was excellent.

It was a relief not to have TV and phones in the bedrooms - our teenage sons watched an Arsenal match in the TV room which pleased them!"

"Lovely welcome, very helpful staff. Hotel well placed in the centre of Stone Town.

We would highly recommend hiring a guide (the hotel got one for us) to prevent being hassled as you walk around the alleys. Ours was informative about the area, and took us to the market at our request. Unfortunately, the evening we stayed was quite cloudy so we missed out on the sunset which would have been fabulous from the bar area.

The restaurant is a lovely room, with windows over the beach and sea. Our dinner was very acceptable, although one of our sons had an upset stomach that night. The hotel management were very accommodating the following day when he still felt ill, and allowed us to use one bedroom for 6 hours after the checkout time at no extra charge."