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Luwi Bushcamp

Reviews of Luwi Bushcamp

Wildlife sightings and reviews

39 independent comments and wildlife information from our travellers who have visited Luwi Bushcamp and kindly agreed to share their thoughts. They do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa

Wildlife sightings by our travellers
Starting in May-2018, 2 of our travellers have recorded their wildlife sightings at Luwi Bushcamp.
Lion

100% success

Leopard

0% success

Wild dog

0% success

Elephant

100% success

Hippo

100% success

Showing 1-10 of 39
Duration
Arrival date
Mr F
Amsterdam

"Luwi Bushcamp review"

3 nights Arrived 2 Jun 2024
"What a nice little place, we loved the very remote and secluded location, literally the end of the road. As only 2 tents were occupied everything felt very personal making you really connect to the surroundings.

The thatched rooms were replaced by tents last season and this seems to work well. We love canvas and zippers, it really adds to the bush vibe.

Our tent 3 was spacious and well layed out, plenty of storage space, although and extra hook or two to hang a towel or a jacket would be welcome. Two directors seats in front of the tent allowed for wonderful views over the dry Luwi riverbed.

Tents 1 and 2 are well protected from the sun by large trees, however tents 3 and 4 are much more exposed leading to quite high temperatures inside the tent. The fan provides welcome relieve, however we can imagine conditions to be quite uncomfortable later in the season as temperatures rise. Especially our bathroom area was in full sun most of the day, making the toilet a very hot seat. We improvised by rearranging a sideflap of the tent for some shade, possibly a more permanent solution could provide relief for future guests?
Another slight criticism is about the towels and refreshers, they smelled a bit musty as if they weren’t washed at high enough temperature or not fully dried, this comment applies to the other Time+Tide camps we stayed at too.

As there was only one guide available the first 2 nights due to the low occupancy we were restricted to gamedrives those days as the other guest wouldn’t/couldn’t do walking safaris. This was disappointing at first as we expected the gamedrives to be rather limited and had set our minds on walking. But obviously the opportunities for drives have improved a lot, many tracks aside from the establishment limited road network were available, making for varied drives and the other guest was on the “same frequency” as us as to how to experience the bush so these drives turned out to be lovely.

Most important factor in that succes however was our guide Lawrence: what a beacon of knowledge, kindness, a true gentleman too, the best of the best for sure and an example for many. Especially on the walks he would shine, showing us every intricate detail, very educational and entertaining at the same time, we loved to hear how plants and trees are used as local medicine and appreciated Lawrence’s concern that obvious outside, modern influences have left people to abandon these very effective measures." See all these reviews: 16n in Zambia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Good
Facilities:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Buffalo

4 sightings

Elephant

8 sightings

Hippo

8 sightings

Lion

1 sighting

Zebra

6 sightings

Mr S
Sanur, Bali

"Luwi Bushcamp review"

2 nights Arrived 28 May 2018
"This one is a tough one to comment on. I personally loved the bush camp feel, the rustic nostalgic charm, the isolation and sense of adventure. We got there in the dark and it was a little intimidating for my wife, she has a phobia of frogs. She manifested her fears and when we got to the room there were frogs everywhere and unfortunately we had a snake crawling around as well. She was uncomfortable the whole night. I feel the website (official) does not really grasp what Luwi is all about. And when i enquired what the difference is between Nsolo and Luwi was, i was told there were nearly identical but in a different surrounding. Yes the concept is similar however the feel and layout is completely different. My wife felt a lot more comfortable at Nsolo then at Luwi. The following night we decided to do a sleep out (away from the frogs haha). The sleep out was one of the highlights of the trip. Absolutely fantastic experience and so liberating. My wife loved it as well. The best parts about Luwi was the common area, the FOOD!, and our guide Phillip. What a happy go lucky knowledgable guide. It was so nice cruising around with him, we had a great drive and the best part is, that it was private, there were no other guests with us. The staff in general were amazing as well. I would definitely stay at Luwi again, however i would have to ensure that the person i would be traveling with would be comfortable in that surrounding." See all these reviews: 10n in Zambia; 4n in Namibia; 1n in South Africa
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Sightings Report

Elephant

1 sighting

Hippo

Multiple sightings

Lion

Multiple sightings

Mr A & family
UK

"Luwi Bushcamp review"

2 nights Arrived 12 Sep 2017
"We had an outstanding visit with abundant wildlife ,excellent guiding and walks and interesting company would willingly return here." See all these reviews: 10n in Zambia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Good
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Good
Facilities:
Good
S & J
Herefordshire

"Luwi Bushcamp perfect"

2 nights Arrived 18 Sep 2016
"Luwi was one of the two best camps on our trip, the other being Tena Tena. The greeting was exceptionally warm, from Charles and all the staff, the accommodation was perfect, clean, comfortable and yet still part of the bush, and the food excellent. Our guide, Lawrence, had a fund of knowledge yet still made everything fun. To have a pride of lions polishing off an impala while we polished off our own dinner and then to see them running around only a few yards from the camp was particularly impressive. Perfect in every way." See all these reviews: 10n in Zambia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Miss P
London

"Beautiful Camp"

3 nights Arrived 24 Jul 2016
"The camp itself is lovely and remains one of my favourite in South Luangwa (this is a return visit - I was here in 2012). I particularly love the open fronted design and the huge outdoor bathrooms. It should be a wonderful bush experience.

However, something was amiss. The host was absent, and a young hostess from Chinzombo was there, but seemingly specifically to entertain one particular group of guests (including joining them on game drives). It wasn't clear what the relationship was, but it was very flirtatious and made me feel uncomfortable. Norman Carr seem very flexible and happy to have guests at Luwi who are not much interested, or not at all interested in walking. As I wanted to walk the whole time I did end up feeling somewhat out of place. Not due to the guide, Lawrence, who welcomed me as someone after his own heart. But somehow it felt like Luwi had lost its soul." See all these reviews: 14n in Zambia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Good

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Average
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Good
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr & Mrs T
TunbridgeW

"Luwi Bushcamp"

1 night Arrived 15 Aug 2015
"The walk to Luwi from Nsolo was varied and along with all the walking safaris that we did a fabulous addition to our experinece.

Lawrence and Frank looked after us very well" See all these reviews: 8n in Zambia; 1n in South Africa
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Good
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr & Mrs VV-G
Belgium

"Luwi Bushcamp review"

3 nights Arrived 14 Jul 2015
"Enjoying the remoteness of the camp.
We highly appreciated Judy's cooking !
Friendly relaxed atmosphere and very helpful staff." See all these reviews: 9n in Zambia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Ms H & Mr F
Chicago

"Lions roaring at night!"

2 nights Arrived 6 Jul 2015
"We got to Luwi after sunset, so we only got to have one full day there. However, we loved that day!

We'd never done a walking safari before & we didn't see any of the Big 5 on our walks, but that was OK. We saw lots of plants, smaller animals & just enjoyed being out in the wild. We did hear lions roaring nearby on both nights - that was super exciting! Rooms were rustic, yet super comfortable & we loved the open-air bathrooms & showers (plenty of hot water).

Manager Frank & guide Brian obviously have a great relationship & they are so hilarious to swap stories with during meals & during happy hour. Staying at Luwi was an awesome way to start our adventures in South Luangwa!" See all these reviews: 9n in Zambia; 4n in Malawi
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Mr H
Switzerland

"Luwi the real Bushcamp experience!"

2 nights Arrived 4 Oct 2014
"The best Camp of Norman Carr Safari's if stayed in.

Definately a Bush Camp, so remote but so wonderfully designed and wonderfull peoples there. Stayed only for 2 nights but would have loved to stay longer there. Lawrence the Guide was extraordinary and the Walks there were just fantastic.

I was really impressed! Thanks" See all these reviews: 9n in Zambia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Dr T
Suffolk

"rustic luxury in the bush"

2 nights Arrived 16 Jun 2014
"My first walk on this trip, which was lovely and a delight to come back to a shower with lashings of hot water ! How do they do it ?

Quality of guiding very good indeed which made the walks even better. A superb setting with an amazing night chorus of lion, hyena ,honey badger, hippo and wild dog !" See all these reviews: 10n in Zambia
Experience Report
Overall Rating:
Excellent

Location:
Excellent
Service:
Excellent
Activities:
Excellent
Rooms:
Excellent
Food:
Excellent
Facilities:
Excellent
Showing 1-10 of 39
93%
39 reviews of Luwi Bushcamp by travellers since August 2007
Overall rating by our travellers
27
10
2
0
0
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