Another question, sorry!

Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 11:45 AM
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Another question, sorry!

Which for Kampala?:

-Le Petit Village
-Mamba Point Guest House
-Golf Course Hotel (new and I can't find any info on this one)

Thanks again!
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 06:13 PM
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I cannot answer your question ca_vol, but my TA recommended Le Petit Village, Golf Course Hotel, or Protea. I haven't had a chance to look into them, so I'm also interested in responses you receive.
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 06:19 PM
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Thanks! Since I last posted, I read some reviews. The Mamba Point Guest House receives excellent reviews on Trip Advisor. Le Petit Village does not have any reviews, but a regular traveler to Uganda said it was really nice. I saw the Golf Course Hotel website and ruled it out. It looks like a cheesy small Nevada town resort.

So I think Mamba Point is a little cheaper than Le Petit and so if it's available, I'll go for that. Mamba also has one of Kampala's best restaurants (Italian), which is not a factor for me since we will only be there for one night, but after a long, long flight of airplane food, it just might hit the spot!

I would still like feedback though because it is not too late.
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 06:22 PM
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Oh, I just re-read. Best restaurant in Uganda 2004 and 2005. The whole country? I am thinking some major pasta!

I just read some reviews on Yahoo! travel, too. Excellent reviews there also.
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 06:27 PM
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Thanks ca_vol. My flight arrives in Entebbe at 9 pm, and we're off the next morning for Jinja to go white water rafting. Since we won't be anywhere very long I asked for something less expensive than the Serena. However, a cheesy Nevada resort town isn't quite what I had in mind. You've piqued my curiosity. I am going to do a google search now.
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 06:30 PM
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Here you go!


www.golfcoursehotel.com

www.mamba-point.com
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 06:31 PM
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I don't know. It kind of looks like Primm, Nevada to me (border town between CA and NV, in case you aren't familiar).
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 06:37 PM
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You seem kind of familiar with things over there and I see you just booked your trip. Do you know anything about these proposed places to stay from my agent? I feel okay with most of them, but am still unsure. Thanks.

**Kibale Forest Bandas-I am nervous about this one. Says it is updated and we would have a cottage.
Mweya Safari Lodge
Ishasha Wilderness Tented Camp
Buhoma Lodge
**Kinigi Guest House -This is the other one I am really nervous about.
Gorilla Hotel
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 06:52 PM
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The Golf Course hotel looks like Disney meets Vegas. The Protea looks like a decent business class hotel, although quite large. Le Petit Village looks right up my alley, with only 12 rooms. Mamba also looks great, but the restaurant closes at 10:30pm
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 07:03 PM
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Our posts are crossing. Thanks for all of the additional information.

I am not familiar with Uganda or at all, having never been. However, I have read every post I could get my hands on, and asked some questions as well while planning.

I was looking at both Mweya and Ishasha Tented Camp when I planned to include more of Uganda in my trip. I believe it was atravelynn that said Mweya was large and touristy, but that the location was excellent, which frankly is more important to me than accommodations, so if I went to QENP I'd probably stay there. I can't remember exactly what she wrote. I'll find the link for you in a minute. I don't recall where/what I read on Ishasha Tented Camp, but I don't recall anything negative. I don't know anything about the other accommodations. I recall someone posting a few months ago that they were going to try Buhoma Homestead. I'll see if I can find that link also.

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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 07:03 PM
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Le Petit does look nice, but too expensive for me.
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 07:04 PM
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Thanks so much, Dana!
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 07:05 PM
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Here's the link to the thread I posted with Uganda and Rwanda questions on it.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...4&tid=35117912
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 07:08 PM
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Here's a trip report from someone who stayed at Buhoma, although there isn't really anythign on the accomodations other than mentioning a great view. This is not the post I was looking for.

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...4&tid=35120608
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 07:14 PM
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These links got me thinking. I am going to post my itinerary for feedback. Thanks again!
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 07:37 PM
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Good idea. I see the thread, but I don't have anything to add. I'm sure others will. Have a great time.
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 07:52 PM
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I'm starting to worry safari (Mweya) isn't that good in Uganda. The game viewing in South Africa was amazing, and although I don't expect the viewing in Uganda to even compare, the more I read, the more I worry. I just read a thread that they saw one lion. That's it!
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 08:46 PM
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I originally thought of doing Murchison Falls, then QENP, Ishasha, Bwindi, and driving to PNV. Similar to what you're doing. However, I wanted to see the wildebeest migration during calving season, also wanted to go to Mahale, and new I would not be back any time soon, so I rearranged everything.

I do not think safari in Uganda is anything like safari in SA, Bots, Kenya, TZ, etc., and I thought I'd be dissappointed. Then a friend of mine said he'd join me, and I knew I could not do "safari-light" since he's seen all of my photos from prior trips. The pressure was on. If I wanted a permanent vacation buddy I had to make it a good trip. It is my friend's first trip to Africa, and he left all of the planning up to me. Therefore, I felt I had to do justice to game viewing activities. However, if I had time, I'd do it all. I'd go to MF, QENP, and Bwindi. The problem is, I did not have time. I'm already up to nearly 4 weeks. YIKES. In the end we're spending much more time in TZ than Uganda and Rwanda combined, although the original purpose of the trip (for me) was to go gorilla tracking.

I found the problem with Uganda was the driving and the time it took. If you drive, it makes sense to go to Kibale, QENP, Ishasha, and Bwindi. When I cut out Kibale (and replaced it with Mahale), I then eliminated QENP, which left me deciding whether or not I should fly to Bwindi. Mahale added a huge cost, and the charter to Bwindi was pretty expensive, so at that point I chucked Bwindi and decided to go white water rafting instead. We'll take a commercial flight from Entebbe to Kigali, then drive to PNV, and we'll do two treks there. It was cheaper, more convenient, and took less time.

It's a really hard decision. I must have had a few dozen potential itineraries. For me, I just knew that if I did not sleep in a tent in the Serengeti for several nights that I would be sorry. I love the wide open plains. I also realized, after Lynn and Leely responded to my initial post, that I needed to include the Crater since my friend had never seen it. The decisions were very difficult. If I could go to Africa twice a year, or even once a year, I'd spend two weeks in each country I visited. But, I can't do that.

I do feel like I'm not doing Uganda or Rwanda justice with the small amount of time spent there, but no matter how hard I tried I could not make myself limit the Tanzania portion of my trip. For me, it was hard to decide, but in the end I ended up very close to what my TA initially suggested, and I know he is right. He sent me a list of "priorities" based on the numerous, lengthy emails I sent him. And we was totally correct. He said "your priority # 1 is XYX, right?, # 2 is ABS, right?" etc., and he went from there.

Do you want really productive game drives, or do you want to see more of Uganda? If the former, maybe you should gorilla track in PNV, and then fly to Tanzania. If you want to see more of Uganda, then maybe you should forgo the drive to PNV, skip Rwanda, and add Murchison Falls.

I like the outdoor experience, the game viewing, staying at small camps, and getting to know the guides and other guests. Moving around alot (which I do) doesn't really afford me that opportunity unless I'm in a location with a small number of accommodations. That is my personal preference.

What do you want the most? Productive game drives or getting to know a country well? It's a hard call. I struggled for a while with the same dilema.
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Old Jun 2nd, 2008, 09:27 PM
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Who is your TA? Are they giving you advice? If so, what are they saying? My TA really laid out the plusses and minuses so that I could decide for myself. He had an excellent Bwindi-PNV trip planned for me, but I needed to cut back both on time and more importantly on cost, and he had great suggestions, based on what I told him I enjoyed the most from prior Africa trips. Tell your TA what you liked the most about SA, and see what they recommend. Then post that on the other thread. For example, I told my TA I did not like Ngorongoro Crater Lodge because it was too over the top for me. He suggested Lemale Camp, a tented camp on the Crater Rim. We don't all want the same things, but a good TA will match the accomodations and locations to what we want.
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Old Jun 3rd, 2008, 02:49 AM
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We really, really loved safari (game drives) but our main two reasons for coming to Uganda and Rwanda are the gorillas and chimps. We thought the game drives would be a little bonus. We knew it would not be like South Africa, but I thought we would see animals. One lion? That worries me.
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