Affordable Botswana Part 2: the return trip
Sep 10th, 2009, 08:09 AM
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Hi Tockoloshe! Good to have you back on this forum. I was going to add to my post today, but it is so much more fun to read and respond to yours.
Oh dear! My husband and I have joined the ranks of the "undesirables" - I knew we would be found out evetually. Ah well! At least we have good company in you and your husband.
I loved your Moremi report and photos - they make me long to go back to Botswana. Hopefully, they won't ban self-drivers before we get there. Your photos are amazing. We have yet to see wild dogs, so I am green with envy. I loved the sunset photos over the marsh - did you take the boat trip at Xakanaxa? Where is the fancy bridge? - that's new! - I will miss those old bone rattlers! I laughed at the photo of your husband testing the depth of the water crossing - for pity's sake get the poor man a bigger/stronger stick next time. I am the nervous water-crosser in my family - my husband would have loved all of those water crossings. What a different experience it must have been not to get stuck in the sand. It sounds like going in May instead of August/Sept presented a very different experience. Great lion close-ups!
We could have used those ablutions/showers in Kenya and Tanzania! They were just finishing the buildings in Moremi and Nxai Pan when we were there.
I am amazed that Nxai Pan was fully booked - it was so empty when we were there in August 08. Mind you, they don't have very many campsites.
I fear Kgalagadi is becoming better known - friends just tried to book there with no luck - they are having to go to Etosha instead (not that there is anything wrong with Etosha).
How I wish we had known about Grassland in 2008. We stayed at Tautona Lodge in Ghanzi and Grassland would have been so much better. Your photos are amazing. I read PredatorBiologist's report about Grassland as well - it is now on my "must-see" list for our return trip to Botswana. Thanks for the tip re the gates - I'll make certain I'm driving!
<red>Mongoose</red> - for a review and pictures of Tautona Lodge see page 3 of the following report.
http://bert-and-bin.smugmug.com/Trav...18318816_Pyvk6
Interesting what you say about South Gate - we loved the area around Xini Lagoon and wished we had spent at least one night at that campsite. We would definitely include it on a return visit. I am not certain why that campsite always seems to get poor reviews.
Glad to learn that the slingshot is still working! We took ours with us to Kenya and Tanzania and never used it - the baboons and monkeys in the campsites there were much more skittish - they would run if we even looked at them.
You mention that you have to book and pay for campsites in advance. How did you do that? email? telephone? through a local agent?
Enough questions! Thanks for a great report and the photos - I will show them to Robert tonight. Robin
Oh dear! My husband and I have joined the ranks of the "undesirables" - I knew we would be found out evetually. Ah well! At least we have good company in you and your husband.
I loved your Moremi report and photos - they make me long to go back to Botswana. Hopefully, they won't ban self-drivers before we get there. Your photos are amazing. We have yet to see wild dogs, so I am green with envy. I loved the sunset photos over the marsh - did you take the boat trip at Xakanaxa? Where is the fancy bridge? - that's new! - I will miss those old bone rattlers! I laughed at the photo of your husband testing the depth of the water crossing - for pity's sake get the poor man a bigger/stronger stick next time. I am the nervous water-crosser in my family - my husband would have loved all of those water crossings. What a different experience it must have been not to get stuck in the sand. It sounds like going in May instead of August/Sept presented a very different experience. Great lion close-ups!
We could have used those ablutions/showers in Kenya and Tanzania! They were just finishing the buildings in Moremi and Nxai Pan when we were there.
I am amazed that Nxai Pan was fully booked - it was so empty when we were there in August 08. Mind you, they don't have very many campsites.
I fear Kgalagadi is becoming better known - friends just tried to book there with no luck - they are having to go to Etosha instead (not that there is anything wrong with Etosha).
How I wish we had known about Grassland in 2008. We stayed at Tautona Lodge in Ghanzi and Grassland would have been so much better. Your photos are amazing. I read PredatorBiologist's report about Grassland as well - it is now on my "must-see" list for our return trip to Botswana. Thanks for the tip re the gates - I'll make certain I'm driving!
<red>Mongoose</red> - for a review and pictures of Tautona Lodge see page 3 of the following report.
http://bert-and-bin.smugmug.com/Trav...18318816_Pyvk6
Interesting what you say about South Gate - we loved the area around Xini Lagoon and wished we had spent at least one night at that campsite. We would definitely include it on a return visit. I am not certain why that campsite always seems to get poor reviews.
Glad to learn that the slingshot is still working! We took ours with us to Kenya and Tanzania and never used it - the baboons and monkeys in the campsites there were much more skittish - they would run if we even looked at them.
You mention that you have to book and pay for campsites in advance. How did you do that? email? telephone? through a local agent?
Enough questions! Thanks for a great report and the photos - I will show them to Robert tonight. Robin
Sep 11th, 2009, 05:41 AM
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Sorry Tokoloshe - ignore most of the questions - found the photo captions when I looked at the photos with Robert. Duh! I can't believe they rebuilt North Bridge! Half the fun was wondering if you were going to fall through and join the hippos!
Robert loved the Grassland photos and agreed we will have to go there next time. Robin
Robert loved the Grassland photos and agreed we will have to go there next time. Robin
Sep 12th, 2009, 04:07 PM
#25
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Thanks for your comment about the photos leely2, the San group were such a pleasure to meet!
Tautona Lodge
Robin, this is actually a bit wierd – I was looking at your report again about Tautona Lodge to see if I could add anything for Mongoose – and guess which cabin we stayed in - I thought it looked familiar! For mongoose I would just add that we thought it was OK value for an overnight motel-type stop (about 500pula if I remember well) – considering there isn’t a great deal of choice in the area. We hadn’t booked, just phoned from the main road where we saw their sign and phone number so didn’t know what to expect. We didn’t realise until afterwards that they had a campsite, we would probably have camped otherwise – it looked very nice and was in what they call their ‘game park’ so I’m sure there’d be something to see. I’ve noticed that many lodges have campsites but don’t seem to advertise them, there is nothing about it on the Tautona website – same for Grasslands Lodge. I must say the food was fine, but not memorable. What was nice was that we were the only tourists in there, the rest were local, and very friendly. What made an amusing evening was having the tourist board inspectors at the next table, one ‘traditionally built’ Motswana lady and her assistant. She spent the evening making loud comments about the quality (or not) of the meal and service to anyone who was within earshot – certainly not a ‘mystery shopper’! (“I will have to try a desert even if I don’t want one” – then demolishing the lot)
One thing we didn’t like about Tautona was that they had a captive cheetah which they fed at a certain time for the guests – after having spent so long in Moremi with the truly wild animals we felt very sorry to hear about it, and couldn’t summon up any enthusiasm at all to see it. The friendly gate guard asked us on our way out if we’d like to see it, so we asked why it was there, expecting to hear a line about ‘rehabilitation’ or ‘orphaned cub’ etc etc but he just honestly said – “It’s there for the tourists to see”. He also said we could see the lions for 100 pula – this was too much, and we left feeling very sad. I meant to write to the lodge to ask what they were breeding lions for but never got round to it, maybe I will now I’ve been reminded.
We looked at Edo’s and as you say they required a minimum two-night stay and for this trip just too expensive, but it does look very nice. However I can’t recommend Grasslands highly enough for hospitality and the bushman experience. It would be a long way down that 60km track for one night though, I wouldn’t say it was an overnight stop unless you were continuing on into the CKGR. We intended to go that way but were dissuaded by the lodge, they said that without a sat phone it was very risky because it was so little travelled and if you got into difficulties you could be days away from rescue. They told the tale of an Australian couple with 2 young children who were doing that route when their 4x4 caught fire (that problem of dry grass collecting under the car and igniting), they managed to save themselves but nothing else, not passports or anything. They were lucky that a vehicle came along a few hours later the same day and took them to Grasslands where they stayed until they could arrange for alternative transport, documents etc.
Yep that fancy bridge at North Gate takes all the fun out of the crossing! The showers are an improvement, though the old-timers seem to think it’s spoiling the rustic experience. There’s something to be said for that, I suppose, but if they provide facilities at all then they should be useable, I wouldn’t venture into the old shower at North Gate. It doesn’t worry me not having ablutions if there is no-one else around, I loved our portable shower we hung on a tree, but you do need some privacy to use it! At Grasslands we washed in the open because we were the only ones there and it was less worrisome than wondering if Mr Puffadder was going to make an appearance out of the plug-hole!
I think we were just unlucky not to get a site at Nxai pan, as you say there are very few sites and it only takes a large group to take over. Even with the new system DWNP are having the same problem as before with empty sites, the books say they are full but when you arrive they are empty. They are apparently being very strict about the ‘no booking no campsite’ policy, we heard that people had been turned away at Savuti without a booking, even though they’d have to drive in the dark to get out of the park. So now you can’t just pass Nxai, for example, and think about camping there if you didn’t pay the site and park fees beforehand in Maun, they are actually making people drive all the way back to Maun to pay . The bookings are still done the same way, in our case by phone (several calls to keep adding dates) – they then fax you a booking form and you fax back credit card payment of the 30pula per person per night camping fee. You then have to go to the parks office to pay the park entry fees, we went to the office in Maun when we arrived, and if you get to South Gate without having paid then too bad, they’ll turn you away. There’s more talk of putting the fees up next year to discourage self-drivers, they’ve already done it for some sites in CKGR and it’s putting a lot of campers off – especially South Africans.
But Robin, don’t let me stop you posting! There was already a comment somewhere on the forum about too much ‘private messaging’ but I hope the comments are useful.
mongoose - when are you off on your trip? Are you doing a self-drive?
Tautona Lodge
Robin, this is actually a bit wierd – I was looking at your report again about Tautona Lodge to see if I could add anything for Mongoose – and guess which cabin we stayed in - I thought it looked familiar! For mongoose I would just add that we thought it was OK value for an overnight motel-type stop (about 500pula if I remember well) – considering there isn’t a great deal of choice in the area. We hadn’t booked, just phoned from the main road where we saw their sign and phone number so didn’t know what to expect. We didn’t realise until afterwards that they had a campsite, we would probably have camped otherwise – it looked very nice and was in what they call their ‘game park’ so I’m sure there’d be something to see. I’ve noticed that many lodges have campsites but don’t seem to advertise them, there is nothing about it on the Tautona website – same for Grasslands Lodge. I must say the food was fine, but not memorable. What was nice was that we were the only tourists in there, the rest were local, and very friendly. What made an amusing evening was having the tourist board inspectors at the next table, one ‘traditionally built’ Motswana lady and her assistant. She spent the evening making loud comments about the quality (or not) of the meal and service to anyone who was within earshot – certainly not a ‘mystery shopper’! (“I will have to try a desert even if I don’t want one” – then demolishing the lot)
One thing we didn’t like about Tautona was that they had a captive cheetah which they fed at a certain time for the guests – after having spent so long in Moremi with the truly wild animals we felt very sorry to hear about it, and couldn’t summon up any enthusiasm at all to see it. The friendly gate guard asked us on our way out if we’d like to see it, so we asked why it was there, expecting to hear a line about ‘rehabilitation’ or ‘orphaned cub’ etc etc but he just honestly said – “It’s there for the tourists to see”. He also said we could see the lions for 100 pula – this was too much, and we left feeling very sad. I meant to write to the lodge to ask what they were breeding lions for but never got round to it, maybe I will now I’ve been reminded.
We looked at Edo’s and as you say they required a minimum two-night stay and for this trip just too expensive, but it does look very nice. However I can’t recommend Grasslands highly enough for hospitality and the bushman experience. It would be a long way down that 60km track for one night though, I wouldn’t say it was an overnight stop unless you were continuing on into the CKGR. We intended to go that way but were dissuaded by the lodge, they said that without a sat phone it was very risky because it was so little travelled and if you got into difficulties you could be days away from rescue. They told the tale of an Australian couple with 2 young children who were doing that route when their 4x4 caught fire (that problem of dry grass collecting under the car and igniting), they managed to save themselves but nothing else, not passports or anything. They were lucky that a vehicle came along a few hours later the same day and took them to Grasslands where they stayed until they could arrange for alternative transport, documents etc.
Yep that fancy bridge at North Gate takes all the fun out of the crossing! The showers are an improvement, though the old-timers seem to think it’s spoiling the rustic experience. There’s something to be said for that, I suppose, but if they provide facilities at all then they should be useable, I wouldn’t venture into the old shower at North Gate. It doesn’t worry me not having ablutions if there is no-one else around, I loved our portable shower we hung on a tree, but you do need some privacy to use it! At Grasslands we washed in the open because we were the only ones there and it was less worrisome than wondering if Mr Puffadder was going to make an appearance out of the plug-hole!
I think we were just unlucky not to get a site at Nxai pan, as you say there are very few sites and it only takes a large group to take over. Even with the new system DWNP are having the same problem as before with empty sites, the books say they are full but when you arrive they are empty. They are apparently being very strict about the ‘no booking no campsite’ policy, we heard that people had been turned away at Savuti without a booking, even though they’d have to drive in the dark to get out of the park. So now you can’t just pass Nxai, for example, and think about camping there if you didn’t pay the site and park fees beforehand in Maun, they are actually making people drive all the way back to Maun to pay . The bookings are still done the same way, in our case by phone (several calls to keep adding dates) – they then fax you a booking form and you fax back credit card payment of the 30pula per person per night camping fee. You then have to go to the parks office to pay the park entry fees, we went to the office in Maun when we arrived, and if you get to South Gate without having paid then too bad, they’ll turn you away. There’s more talk of putting the fees up next year to discourage self-drivers, they’ve already done it for some sites in CKGR and it’s putting a lot of campers off – especially South Africans.
But Robin, don’t let me stop you posting! There was already a comment somewhere on the forum about too much ‘private messaging’ but I hope the comments are useful.
mongoose - when are you off on your trip? Are you doing a self-drive?
Sep 13th, 2009, 11:53 AM
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Hi Tokoloshe! Odd that we should stay in the same cabin. Like you, we felt that Tautona Lodge was a convenient place to stay, but we wouldn't want to spend more than one night there, especially given the captive cheetahs, which I found very depressing. There wasn't a guard on the gate, either in the late afternoon when we arrived or when we left in the morning, so we were not invited to view the lions. I didn't even realize there were lions or that you could visit them. Like you, we proabaly would have declined anyway.
Odd TL doesn't mention the campsite on their website. I was astounded to learn that there was a website - it must be quite new. One of our greatest difficulties in organizing that 2008 trip was trying to reach that lodge.
Thank you for that tip regarding the road from the lodge to the CKGR - I will keep that in mind when planning our next trip. Although Safari Drive provides a satellite phone, I would rather not put us in the position of having to use it.
A puffadder in the ablution block would definitely have had me using our portable shower as well!
So, is the reason the books say the sites are full, when in fact they are empty, due to group bookings (mobile tented camps) - mobile companies that pay in advance to hold the campsites but then don't get the clients to fill them? Seems like an incredible waste, especially for those of us who can't get in because the sites are supposedly full.
Pity that they are discouraging self-drivers - who exactly are they hoping will use all of those lovely new campsites and ablution blocks?
Interesting that you made your bookings by telephone - we tried repeatedly from Canada for 2008 with no luck (always no answer or busy) and finally had to get Safari Drive (in the UK) to phone for us.
Back to my writing - have spent the morning at dim sum. Robin
Odd TL doesn't mention the campsite on their website. I was astounded to learn that there was a website - it must be quite new. One of our greatest difficulties in organizing that 2008 trip was trying to reach that lodge.
Thank you for that tip regarding the road from the lodge to the CKGR - I will keep that in mind when planning our next trip. Although Safari Drive provides a satellite phone, I would rather not put us in the position of having to use it.
A puffadder in the ablution block would definitely have had me using our portable shower as well!
So, is the reason the books say the sites are full, when in fact they are empty, due to group bookings (mobile tented camps) - mobile companies that pay in advance to hold the campsites but then don't get the clients to fill them? Seems like an incredible waste, especially for those of us who can't get in because the sites are supposedly full.
Pity that they are discouraging self-drivers - who exactly are they hoping will use all of those lovely new campsites and ablution blocks?
Interesting that you made your bookings by telephone - we tried repeatedly from Canada for 2008 with no luck (always no answer or busy) and finally had to get Safari Drive (in the UK) to phone for us.
Back to my writing - have spent the morning at dim sum. Robin
Sep 13th, 2009, 03:35 PM
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robin & tock,
Thanks for the info on Tautona Lodge, in the meantime we're still looking at alternatives in the Ghanzi area, unless we decide to drive straight from Windhoek - Maun, think it can be done in one go.
tock,
We're doing a self-drive but not camping, at the moment the itinerary is Windhoek-Maun-Planet Boabab for pans & meerkats-Kasane for Chobe-Caprivi-then back either down the panhandle or through Rundu and back through Namibia. Your last report has come in very useful in the planning!
Thanks for the info on Tautona Lodge, in the meantime we're still looking at alternatives in the Ghanzi area, unless we decide to drive straight from Windhoek - Maun, think it can be done in one go.
tock,
We're doing a self-drive but not camping, at the moment the itinerary is Windhoek-Maun-Planet Boabab for pans & meerkats-Kasane for Chobe-Caprivi-then back either down the panhandle or through Rundu and back through Namibia. Your last report has come in very useful in the planning!
Sep 13th, 2009, 03:58 PM
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Hi Mongoose!
You could do the drive from Windhoek to Maun in a day but, although the highway is paved, it is a slow go - many sheep, goats, cows, people etc all over the road. Have a look at my report - I do describe the drive in reasonable detail. It would depend partly on how early you would want to be in Maun. We left Ghanzi as soon as breakfast was over - certainly before 8am and arrived in Maun at noon. My report would tell you how long the Windhoek to Ghanzi stretch took.
There was a new lodge being built in 2008 on the west side of Ghanzi as you came into town from Windhoek - unfortunately, there were no signs indicating the future name. Perhaps Tockoloshe saw it.
Robin
You could do the drive from Windhoek to Maun in a day but, although the highway is paved, it is a slow go - many sheep, goats, cows, people etc all over the road. Have a look at my report - I do describe the drive in reasonable detail. It would depend partly on how early you would want to be in Maun. We left Ghanzi as soon as breakfast was over - certainly before 8am and arrived in Maun at noon. My report would tell you how long the Windhoek to Ghanzi stretch took.
There was a new lodge being built in 2008 on the west side of Ghanzi as you came into town from Windhoek - unfortunately, there were no signs indicating the future name. Perhaps Tockoloshe saw it.
Robin
Sep 14th, 2009, 06:37 AM
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Thanks for all clarifications on the parks booking system.
Don't worry about ‘private messaging’ comments, I for one find all this of interest even if I don't post, it's the sort of first hand information which is useful.
Don't worry about ‘private messaging’ comments, I for one find all this of interest even if I don't post, it's the sort of first hand information which is useful.
Sep 14th, 2009, 07:23 AM
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Hi again Mongoose!
I had a look at my Botswana trip report and it took us from 8:30am to 5:00pm to drive from Windhoek to Ghanzi, so going all the way to Maun would be a long day (mind you, Robert and I do take our time). Given all the donkeys and cows on the road, it is definitely not a drive you would want to complete or begin in the dark. Robin
Here is the link to the report (see pages 2 and 3 for a description on the drive):
http://bert-and-bin.smugmug.com/Trav...18318816_Pyvk6
I had a look at my Botswana trip report and it took us from 8:30am to 5:00pm to drive from Windhoek to Ghanzi, so going all the way to Maun would be a long day (mind you, Robert and I do take our time). Given all the donkeys and cows on the road, it is definitely not a drive you would want to complete or begin in the dark. Robin
Here is the link to the report (see pages 2 and 3 for a description on the drive):
http://bert-and-bin.smugmug.com/Trav...18318816_Pyvk6
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