Hi Carla,

That's a hard question. I think going to the Sabi Sands is the most reliable location for continuous great game viewing, number-wise. That was our experience and it seems to be the consensus here on the board.

We had a wonderful guide and tracker at Londolozi, but if we returned to Sabi Sands, we'd go to a different camp. We had good leopard sightings there but probably saw more variety at Phinda.

We really liked Phinda and what they do there. I would definitely return.

But the tented experience at Ngala was special. Though the relationship between the luxury Ngala tents and regular camping tents is the presence of canvas, it was such fun to be able to hear the sounds outside and feel as though you're sleeping out, especially the night when buffalo were outside. The camp is small, only six tents, I think, and I liked the more intimate atmosphere. We had good viewing but the ranger and tracker worked harder for it. That just made it more exciting and rewarding.

We didn't see leopard but did see more lions, larger herds of buffalo and eles, than we saw at Londolozi.

If I had to choose right now among the three, I'd go back to Phinda and to Ngala. Though Phinda is a fenced reserve, our experience was terrific and I loved the different ecosystems, and I liked the wilderness feel of Ngala and the camp.

This probably doesn't help you a bit in your decision-making, but I don't see how you can go wrong either way.

CW

Hi, Carla.

I loved reading your review of Ngala Tented Camp. We'll be there in early September and were wondering if you would recommend your ranger and tracker and if so, who they were. We've been to Africa with CCA two other times and have had wonderful experiences, so I'm sure all the rangers are good, but having a recommendation is always comforting! Thanks again for the great report. I'll post one when we return.

Debbie

Thank you so much for great info on Ngala. We're planning a trip there for 2008 and I was hoping you could tell me why you chose the Tented Camp over the Lodge. Although we'd prefer the privacy/exclusivity of the Tented Camp, due to the difference in price, I thought I'd look into the Lodge. Any comments/thoughts you'd have would be much appreciated. fsh

Hi fsh,

We chose Ngala Tented because we really wanted to stay in a smaller camp, and more importantly wanted to sleep under canvas--better to hear night sounds and get a better feeling of being outdoors. Ngala Lodge looks lovely but is larger than we wanted.

I believe there are other tented camps in the Timbavati area that are less expensive.

The game drives of both are in the same reserve so there shouldn't be any difference there. I'm sure you'll enjoy whatever lodge you choose.

I'd go back in a minute.

CW