Fire at Chitabe Lebide
 

Just passing along the word I received from our travel agent. There was a fire in early May at Chitabe Lebide that burned down the "main" lodge (with the dining room). Evidently they have converted the office/curio shop into the dining area and are continuing to operate with no claimed interruption in service. Rebuilding was estimated to take around 2 months.

I am very sorry. Hope no one was hurt. Fire there is not that uncommon. The main camp burned down before my 2005 visit.

No interruption in service. How fortunate for those booked in.

sorry to hear!

We just returned from Chitabe Lediba few days ago. "No interuption in service"...means the bar, dining and lounge are all in the one tiny 15 ft by 20 ft converted building. They try to make it nice. Things are just thrown together and tacky compared with the other 2 lodges we enjoyed. Try is the operative word at this camp. Alas, I think every one of the guests we met suffered disappointment at the place. This is a very expensive vacation. I felt bad for the honeymoon couple. The Lediba staff are reduced to about 4 people who do absolutely everything. Every other lodges has oodles of staff around to keep it lovely. Pity the poor Lediba manager tried so hard bless her heart. Why is she being worked 24 hrs a day without respite in such a situation? What in the world are Wilderness and the lodge owners trying to pull? The "traditional camp style" accomodations are old and dusty to begin with. There also is NO privacy in the toilet area of each tent. If you have a case of Africa belly you best have an understanding partner. So in all without a main lodge building it is really not such a nice place. The variety and number animals were great in the Chitabe area. Our guide was ok but not the best. Was this stay worth it? No not to us. This was the final stay of our 4 week trip in Africa. Too bad we had to end of this note. My own advice to those with Chitabe Lediba plans ask to change if possible. We did talk to people who were guests during the fire. They said everything was handled well by the staff. The pool area is untouched. The loo with the view is untouched. These comments only represent my view. YMMV. Our full trip report will follow.

When things like a fire in a wilderness location destroys things like a lounge and dining etc etc., it is best that travellers realize that things are difficut to repair and reconstruct overnight in a remote place. Sounds like Chitabe is trying everything that they possibly can do to keep things operational.

Can't believe people are disappointed after having good game viewing. Imagine what a disappointment it would be if those who are booked can't go at all because of a closed camp????

Never been to Chitabe - but, the above post seems to be reflective for the demand for things to go 6 paw! ijkh, not to be critical of your post ....... just reflecting how the safari destinations are constantly changing!

Your full report will probably shed more light on your ok guide, the wildlife you saw, and the group toilets.

The spot designated for your personal loo really could be viewed by other guests?

I remember at Chitabe Main camp when I ventured to the far reaches of my shower area I might have been viewed by vehicles entering the camp if they looked in my direction. But if I curtailed my naked wanderings to near the spiggot, I had complete privacy. Other than the leopard that treed its kill near my toilet and shower, I believe there was no invasion of my privacy.

Or was there no privacy within the tent? When I've traveled with friends and we've shared a tent like this, we just averted our gaze when nature called one of us. Kind of like in the locker room of a gym.

Your comment "without a main lodge, it was really not such a nice place," means you probably should not have been booked there fire or not. It probably was dusty, especially post-fire. Even without a fire "traditonal" and "camp style" should indicate there may be dust and a rustic setting.

If the fire had frightened all the wildlife away or had prevented you from normal game viewing activities I would better understand the disappointment. Close dining quarters shouldn't detract greatly from your overall experience, given the reason was a fire.

In remote places fires and such will be more disruptive and things will take longer to return to normal. Understanding this is part of the bargain of going to these spots. It appears the staff on hand were doing their utmost given the circumstances.

Your entire report may have more of a go with the flow and appreciate the privilege of spending 4 weeks in Africa tone than this account of a single unfortunate event. I realize you are just calling the fire at Ledibe like you saw it. You were there and I wasn't. Be glad you weren't in Chengdu.

Hari -- Interesting comments. I think a huge part of the disappointment in a situation like this comes from the amount of money spent. At $2000 per night per couple, a stay at a 5-paw camp is more expensive than just about any super-luxury place anywhere in the world. Traveling with a kid or two takes this into the stratosphere -- for a family of four, you're looking at $12,000 for three days!

It's natural in that situation to be asking oneself if the experience is "worth it," -- to almost unconsciously to be noticing ways that the experience conforms to or deviates from the "ideal" bush experience, in order to justify the amount spent to oneself. I think this is true for even the wealthiest guests.

For just about everyone, I'd imagine part of the "ideal" bush experience involves the communal areas of the lodge, including a beautiful, rustic place to have meals with new-found friends etc. Although I haven't even gone on my trip yet and certainly wasn't around for the good old days of pre-6 paw Botswana, my guess is that this has been part of the appeal of even the more rustic lodges for most travelers for a long time.

It's not like this traveler was disappointed by the unavailability of silly affectation adopted by a higher end camp, like a burnt-out creme brulee torch or a malfunctioning hot-stone-massage stone-warmer or something. The main part of the lodge was gone! And reading between the lines, it sounds like Wilderness Safari did not offer to refund any part of the price. I find that unbelievable!

My guess is that if Wilderness Safaris had offered to refund, say, 50% of the cost, this guest and others would have been more than happy to cheerfully make do with a less than optimal situation!

Isabel,

I can understand the disappointment of not having a lounge to sit around to read during the siesta break or whatever and trust me, I am fully aware of the cost implications of Botswana safari .......

My point is, things like a fire is possible in these areas and is not uncommon. And typically, these are beyond the control of the operators. Giving the benefit of the doubt to someone like WS who I'm sure are doing everything in their power to resurrect the camp ...... I don't see any reason to be complaining. These are some of the uncertainties of going on safari isn't it? It isn't the same as booking a stay in say, The Plaza Central Park where everything is pre-determined and you can't accept a few things going astray.

What would you rather have? Chitabe close down camp until all renovations are complete and tell their guests, I'm sorry can't accomodate you at camp because our lounge and dining won't be ready for three months. Where do they go? All their other camps are probably full anyways .... and maybe some people picked Chitabe for things like wild dogs or whatever?

Not my intent to stir a controversy, but, it just appears to me that people are starting to see safari destinations more like a beach resort or worse like a cruise trip!

Why would Chitabe or any place else refund anyone any money for a wilderness fire that destroyed their lounge?

PS: The poster did state that there is a bar/lounge/dining common area that has been put together under the circumstances. Just not as luxurious as the permanent structure ..... well, that's probably all that could be done!

Interesting first hand report. I do not understand why the camp would be understaffed if the normal amount of clients are still being served unless all the staff housing was destroyed.

I think this is the big problem with charging that level of prices, it definitely builds a corresponding level of expectations. Personally I would have been ecstatic that the wildlife viewing was still stellar and roll with the situation as you often have to in remote locations and make it into another colorful Africa story. If this was a small community owned lodge I would expect exactly the situation described and be happy to roll with it and even love to help with clean up etc. But this is the type of thing where you would expect WS to earn it's high costs. With their empire and at $970 pppn in these 'classic' camps you would think they could bring in a mobile set up for staff housing if needed and definitely to provide a suitable common area. I'm sure some guests would have been impressed with that kind of solution and it could have created a unique atmosphere. In my opinion if they can't do something to approximate the product they have sold they should adjust the price to reflect that.

The fire was NOT a wilderness fire. It began in the lodge and was confined to it thanks to the brave action of the staff who by report climbed up into trees with hoses to save it.

"Giving the benefit of the doubt to someone like WS who I'm sure are doing everything in their power to resurrect the camp ......" or are they. Certainly they had cleared the debris but NO work on actual lodge had begun because that requires an architect far away in another country. The beef I have is that:
a) no mention of the fire by WS until any of us arrived. We found out via some fellow guests at another camp who witnessed the fire. IF WS had been smart they would have notified us of the situation in advance and we would have been more sympathetic. There was mention to any of the guests until arrival on the Ledima site.

b) no mention of any refund, discount or coupon toward a future trip even though we paid top dollar for this camp. Others who paid the same money for other 5 paw camps had much better facilities which we experienced at the two other 5 paw camps we stayed.

c) understaffing and lack of staff support for the experience of the stay. Sure it was easier for WS to keep the camp open but at what cost to the guest? There was no thought to increasing the staff to bolster morale due the loss of the facilities. This was not a very fun camp to hang out in at all. The place had the abiance of "shell shock" as no doubt the employees were only a little more week out from the fire. I am not a complainer by nature but this needs to be fixed.
P.S. We loved our other 5 paw camps. We did NOT need 6 paw. After 3 weeks in Madagascar it was luxury enough with this one exception

Thanks for your response - is there a reason why they were short-staffed?

I think your travel agent shares responsibility to have kept you updated regarding the fire? Do they have anything to say? What would you have done differently, if you had known during your trip that a fire had torn down the lounge and dining?

I'm not one to worry about a particular level of accomodation because wildlife viewing is always my priority. But if you pay for a certain level of amenity, and suddenly that amenity does not exist, you should be compensated in some way... a cheaper rate for example.

It makes no difference if the operators are not to blame for the fire and do not have the resources to back up existing staff and quickly replace the lost amenities to the original standard. That is the operators' problem, not the clients', and any argument to the contrary is a cop out. Until the amenity is replaced, you compensate.

I'd already decided not to have anything to do with Chitabe or Wilderness in future because of an over-booking problem in 2005. The efforts of the staff in this latest incident seem without reproach-- but the bosses need a kick in the arse. They should offer a discount to committed clients without waiting for a request.

As Bill says, once lodges start charging these sort of rates and marketing luxury then they really need to provide some sort of refund if they can't provide what's advertised. Yes, things can go wrong in the bush but that is part of the risks they should be covering in their business plan and one of the reasons that rates are high in the delta is because of the infrastructure/risks that have to be taken care of.

They should have advised travellers in advance too, that's what hotels attempt to do if the advertised facilities aren't available.

Lediba has always been a smaller staffed camp with a far more help yourself style approach. As one of the smaller camps, they do this to try and create a more homely atmosphere.

As someone who yesterday left Chitabe, all the gang were at Lediba. The major differece is that Kenny etc were busy working transporting materials so were not always there to do management things.

Whilst I appreciate your complaint, I found the curio shop rather rustic and cool. In most camps, people only use the lounge area for high tea breakfast and dinner, so I was not too concerned. If you were that bothered, you could have easily changed camps and requested to be flown out free of charge.

Hari, you are indeed correct, many Americans, who make up the proportion of guests in Botswana, are pushing for more and more 6 paw standard camps.

Chitabe is actually due to be refurbed at the end of this year. Though it will probably have the Meru tent style, which will be set itself apart from the other remaing wilderness camps.

must 100% agree with isabel!
who/what the fire caused is not the question.
the selling point of such luxurious camps - the always highlight:
lounge, dining, bar facility besides other things.
they charge a whole lot of money. and if anything has an impact on the camp experience itself they should offer a compensation.

it's so easy to show clients a company's willingness to compensate. if something has such an impact on the camp itself: i think a client is entitled to a refund - it could have been 2 nights voucher for the next safari or so. it wouldn't had cost anything right now. but the client gets the feeling of appreciation.

One concern that I have is how the re-building noise will be for my stay in the beginning of August.
As an architect, I look forward to not having someone having to hammer my shower together while I'm in it. :)

It also makes one wonder how the wildlife is affected by the sounds, smells and activities of rehabbing.

Hope my dogs didn't flee.

LBJ,

Thanks for your comments - your comments makes complete sense and in line with what I've heard from respected people like Skimmer who find Lediba to be amongst their favourite places.

Refreshing that they intend to set Chitabe Lediba apart from the rest of the standard portfolio. It's upto the agents to match the right clientele to this place.

Cheers
Hari

Re-reading this entire thread from top to bottom, I get the feeling that Botswana camps in general emphasises the in-camp experience a little bit more than the outdoors!

Pippa's post is clearly reflective of my above statement! and they are a travel agent isn't it? So, that's probably the message their clients are receiving too?

<i>&quot;Re-reading this entire thread from top to bottom, I get the feeling that Botswana camps in general emphasises the in-camp experience a little bit more than the outdoors!&quot;</i>

At least certain providers of camps may be going that way. While for some visitors this may be a step in the right direction, for others (me included) this is sad trend.

The fire and what resulted was just another example of how client expectations can clash with the reality of the African bush and how the African bush is being fashiond and marketed to meet those high client expectations.

<b>LBJ</b>
Glad the overall trip was good. If you feel the experience at Ledibe was truly unacceptable, you could pursue some adjustment or compensation. A couple times I did that after the fact with a non-Africa travel company and felt I eventually was treated fairly.

I am not out for money. I want to let other know of our experience at Chitabe Lediba and how we were treated. During our 3 day stay at the camp we saw only ONE overworked manager on 24 hrs/day. At times she looked close to tears. Not one other staff person appeared except the barman cook and our guide. We are certainly not the 6 paw travelers. We just completed a very unique rugged overland trip of Madagascar and were looking for R&amp;R. We felt that rest and relaxation all during the 6 days at other WS camps prior to Chitabe Lediba. Maybe if this had been our first camp it would have been less of a shock. However as the last 3 days of an amazing and perfect 4 week trip, &quot;making do&quot; was the last thing on our minds. I am afraid I this is making me join the WS &quot;never again&quot; group. I don't like how this has been handled. In terms of our TA back in the states. They did an admirable job dealing with the shut down and loss of our Nationwide tickets. I don't know how TA would have gotten ahold of us whilst on safari. That was WS's job. They dropped the ball in my personal opinion. Bottom line buyer beware.

Very interesting thread with views that are very understandable on both sides. My understanding is that Wilderness Safaris manages this propery but does not own it so they may have less leeway to make changes on the fly. As was mentioned, most if not all camps are fully booked so moving clients is often not an option. However, and I think this is a big however, there has to be responsiblility on someone's part to make the client aware of the situation and at least offer something to compensate for the difference in the experience. For me, game viewing is what I am most interested in and Chitabe Ledibe delivered big time last October. I suspect bush brais and bush breakfasts could have been substituted for the dinning room experience and maybe it was the lack of staff that prevented that.
While I understand the &quot;This is Africa&quot; thought, at $750-$900pp/pd there has to be some responsibility of the owners/corporate managers to the client who clearly have not received what they paid for.
If this was my first trip to Africa I probably would have been extremely disappointed. Those of us who go back on a regular basis seem to overlook the accoutrements as long as the game viewing delivers.
I love Wilderness properties but I must say they have no clue how to do public relations. Filling out their surveys never illicits a reply even when one is obviously called for. It seems odd to me that a company that relies on people willing to spend rediculous amounts of money does not have someone to reply to surveys that may at times be very negative.
I guess, until we stop filling up their lodges 2 years in advance things will not change nor will they feel the need to be responsive to their clients.
I know this was somewhat rambling but there is no right or wrong here except SOMEONE ought to have owned up and taken some responsibility.
Regards,
Eric

We´ve been to Chitabe Lediba (at that time it was Chitabe Trails) in 2006. My luggage was lost, I was ill.
Kenny and the other manager, who´s name I forgot (a big, tall lady), did everything to get our luggage and treated my illness as good as possible in the bush. Our luggage arrived one day later and they did everything to get it in the plane even cancelled some food they needed.
I really can´t understand, that these guys should not care for guests.
For me they were amongst top, about the most friendly staff. Can´t wait to get back there. Our guide was Newman, who may be one of the best in the industry.
I even can´t complain about the tents.
Hey, I´m in the bush.
One should blame the tourist agents for not telling their clients what to expect. There is no 5 star accomodation comparable to western standards in cities.
And yes, it is dusty.
If I can´t take that, I have to go to an 5 star all inclusive resort in the caribbean and skip the bush.

As the discussion focuses more on a camp manager that was clearly overworked, I understand your distress with her treatment. Did you get an inkling that the skeleton crew had something to do with the fire or that's just how Ledibe operates?

I've seen some debate on tipping the camp managers. As a rule I have not. Maybe this would be a case that warrants it.

<b>Eyelaser</b>, I am surprised you never get a response on the surveys espeically because I believe you're a repeat visitor. I guess I have not ever gotten a reply either, but I never addressed any specific issue or had any complaint. Maybe Wilderness does not read surveys, but they read this forum because I've been contacted by them as a result of one of my responses. As I recall that email contact was quite cordial and informative and fostered good customer relations.

So by the end of June the rebuilding should be finished. Wonder how that works with your dates <b>Cybor?</b>

Lynn, I am surprised too but I have had guiding issues at Mombo &amp; Little Ongava that bordered on embarrasing and my comments (ie: complaints) went totally ignored.
I guess they gots theirs to Wilderness properties, so who's to blame, I only have to look in the mirror to see!
Regards,
Eric

Having been to Chitabe Trails last summer, I have to admit that for me part of the charm of the camp was the outdoor open-air lounge and dining areas. In many other camps I sat outside my tent during the day, but at Chitabe my tent did not have a comfortable porch, and there was no view at all. So, I’m not sure what somebody was supposed to do during those siesta hours if, like me, they don’t sleep and there weren’t any common areas to hang around in. The tents are a bit dark, so for me hanging out in my tent all day was not an option.

The curio shop is very small, and frankly when I was there I thought it was small just for a curio shop. It, too, was also very dark. I can’t imagine how crowded it would be with all guests having dinner in there.

Being a small camp, a big part of the “magic” of the camp was the intimate nature where guests and staff alike could cozy round the camp fire early mornings and late evenings. Kenny was a great manager, as was Josephine. But, if Kenny was off transporting materials, Josephine was on 24/7 and probably exhausted, other camp staff was reduced, and there were no outdoor common areas, then I can imagine the atmosphere could be quite different.

I don’t know what I think WS should have done about it, if they could have done anything at all. Perhaps they could have had all meals at Chitabe Main Camp and used the curio shop solely for a lounge area during the day. I’ve never been to Main Camp, so I don’t know how much room there is, but it is right next door. Or, provide meals in the bush, or additional game drives (or walks) during the day so guests could get out of the tents. Of course, that would have required adequate staffing. But, something probably should have been offered if for no other reason than to show they were attempting to compensate, in some way, for the situation, whether offering a partial refund, offering more activities, or just having notified guests in advance so they were offered a choice of cancelling their stay or not.

In my opinion, the biggest issue seems to be inadequate staffing. That is something WS should have been able to address.

Dana,
You make a lot of sense and seem to understand the situation best of any who have posted here.

This is only intended as a FYI to people who are planning on visiting Chitabe Lediba soon. If WS reads this posting they are welcome to respond.

ttt

Firstly WS can hardly be blamed for the fire, but they should have alerted customers or made other arrangements. I think a large refund is called for!
I wonder if any customers were told of the reduction in game viewing available in the Kings Pool etc area following the flooding in the early part of the year.
I find it strange that there is little if any support for WS in this thread, is this a first?

Lynn,
I'll be there Aug. 5 -8. I do hope that none of my alloted wildlife sightings have gone to Angola. LOL

By Aug you should be fine, Cybor. Your remark may make some readers believe you are geographically challenged. Have a good trip.

Have to say that I haven't perceived any trend by WS to promote the camp experience over wildlife. But like a lot of successful companies they are beginning to forget what made them successful in the first place, not a problem unique to them.

I have to agree with nappmatt. Although Wilderness has a youngish management team they seem unable to grasp the speed and nearly instantaneous power of the Internet. I think we can best judge their overall quality as an organization when we see how they accomodate their guests during this rebuilding period. It is important to keep in mind that while everyone has different expectations, Wilderness has made certain representations as to what amenities each property has to offer. Each client has a right to expect the representation of those amenities to be reasonably accurate. Certainly everyone on this board understands that while wildlife viewing is a chance and opportunistic event, a Dinning Room/Bar/Lounge is not. They charge premium rates and must deliver a premium product. I think we want to keep this thread on top and see what develops. Wilderness has an opportunity to demonstrate that it is in fact the high-end company we have come to expect.
Cheers-Safarichuck

I spoke with our TA who sold us the WS product. She was unaware of the extent of the damage to the Lediba camp. We will see if she can get some sort of compensation or other acknowledgement of loss for us. Now we wait and see.

As a side note the couple we spoke with who witnessed the fire said it occurred in the middle of the night. They thought the evacuation was done well. Still it must be a frightening thing to witness in the bush. They had to jump off the walkways and run. Because the elevated walkways at this camp all lead to the area that was burning they had to jump. They stated they spent the remainder of the night &quot;sleeping&quot; in Chitabe Main's lobby. The next night they were taken to Mombo for one night only. Then they were taken to another camp (I can't remember which one). This same couple also experienced a tire blow out on one of their Sefofane flights. They were a bit shaken but still on Safari. Tough travelers to say the least.

The nighttime evacuation would be frightening, not knowing how far the flames would spread and wondering if your gear was going to survive. Not everyone is fleet of foot or sure footed, especially in the middle of the night.

Evacuation and blown tire?! Now that's bad luck.

I like the approach that &quot;Wilderness has an opportunity to demonstrate that it is in fact the high-end company we have come to expect,&quot; as SafariChuck states.

I can recall two other occasions that I've read about where Wilderness came through and righted a situation that was not good for their clients.

It is when things go wrong that the true nature of a company comes through.

One thought from recent postings - sounds like the wooden walkways are a fire hazard IMO ........ it's all wood anyways! Maybe the future of safaris is sans those walkways.

One more thing - I just got the AG current issue. Have anyone read the Ian Michler article?

Lynn,
I think I'm one of the situations where WS came through. And they definitely came through, and I commend them. But, as with most people, I would have preferred some sort of action (at the time) rather than reimbursement, and in the end it would have been less expensive for WS.

ijkh-I loved Chitabe Trails. It was the most basic/rustic/least luxurious of the camps I have stayed at, but IMO by no means was it lacking in any way. However, the charm was largely due to the staff, and without proper staffing I can see how your trip was negatively impacted.

Hari-
In its best days Chitabe Lediba wouldn't come close to being 6 paws. And I'm glad for that. That uber luxury would ruin the ambience that makes it so special.

Bad news travels fast. It makes much more sense to &quot;nip it in the bud&quot; and convey the message directly than to let message boards run amuk. WS should have given all guests going to Chitabe notice. They could have tried to make guests' stays special in some way, instead of just operating &quot;as usual...as if nothing happened.&quot; I think it all boils down to proper communication an customer service.

Dana, you were one of the cases I recalled. I agree that a quick response is better than a delayed response. The fact that any company makes any response is often due to persistence of the customer to make it right.