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.