Info for safaris in game reserves around Kruger

Old Jan 10th, 2010, 05:31 AM
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Info for safaris in game reserves around Kruger

Somewhere end of December I started assembling a safari itinerary for South Africa. The idea was/is to spend some time in the private game reserves around Kruger, and end the trip in Mozambique (relax a bit on the beach). This would be in September 2010.

Now that our trip is booked, I’d like to share all my information with you. Who knows, it might help you with your itinerary.

For those only interested in lodges with spa’s, massages and heated towel racks: quick! Click Away! Away!

For those looking for info on affordable safaris around Kruger; read on.
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 05:32 AM
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WHAT WE WERE LOOKING FOR:

To put it very simple; a top safari destination (game-wise) for a non-top price.


Otherwise put; the only things important are:

- Quality of game viewing. A broad range of species. A quality guide and tracker to spot them. A vehicle suited to get to the animals. A level of exclusivity (not too many people at a sighting). The possibility to off-road. The possibility to do walking safaris. You get the idea.

- An overall price that remains affordable, while still guaranteeing a good level of comfort. We’re not millionaires, but have no kids and earn decent money. We’ve set ourselves a goal; the total price should not exceed two monthly wages (me & wife combined, net wages). We succeeded in doing so.


Or again otherwise put; what I tried to stay away from is:

- Typical safari offers that we can find over here in the travel agencies. Mostly, they travel in big groups (20 to 40 people) , travel in the wrong type of vehicle (minivans, huge trucks, ...), do not focus entirely on nature (visits to Blyde rivier, Pilgrims Rest, ... been there done that did not bother getting the T-shirt), and only go to the most touristy parts of National Parks.

- Offers that take the comfort level to a too strict minimum. Like sleeping in baboon-infested public campsites with shared amenities that are very filthy. Typically food is sub-par as well. And instead of a bucket shower, you get a bucket all right ...on the floor, filled with cold water. OK, I’m sketching the worst of the worst here but you get the idea.

- The super luxurious lodges that cost as much per night as I make per week. The kind of place that requires you to put on other clothing in the evening. The kind of place that has an electrified fence around it because those staying there cannot even stand the thought of sharing space with wild animals. The kind of place that has a huge pool that is hardly used, while the lodge is located near an almost empty waterhole where animals are fighting over the last drops of water.


I looked at plenty of options. A private mobile camping safari (like we did with Ewan Masson in Botswana) seemed almost impossible to find in/around Kruger. Or it is very expensive. We also dismissed the idea of a self-drive very soon. I hardly have any 4x4 experience. And without a good guide and/or tracker, I’m sure we’d only see half of what there is to see.
I also dismissed – albeit with pain in my heart – multi-day walking safaris like this one: http://www.transfrontiers.com . I could do that, but my wife thinks it’s a bit too much for her.

Soon enough, I was looking at private game reserves around Kruger, to see if I could find some affordable accommodations.
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 05:33 AM
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GENERAL INFORMATION

The first thing to find is some good general sites. Sites that show you what is available around Kruger. Where the game reserves are located. And what concessions/lodges are in them.

For Sabi Sands, that website is easy enough to find, and since this forum is Sabi Sands-biased, I assume it is well known (I’ll mention it anyway, below)

The clickable map on that site is very good of course. It shows all traversing rights of the lodges, and with that info you can make sure you do not end up in a lodge where there’s hardly any ground to cover ( = hardly anything to see). Well, you’re still not 100% sure of course, as a huge area may still prove to be uninteresting (hardly any tracks, no waterways, ...).

But – it may be a surprise to some here – there’s more game reserves around Kruger than Sabi Sands!

I found a zillion sites on these other game reserves, most of which were very very commercial. Of course that is no problem, but for most it was quite clear that their information was far from complete, as they only focused on the stuff they’d like to sell.

This site gave a bit of good info (lots of reading to do, I’m afraid): http://www.frommers.com/destinations...456020905.html

...but in the end, I ended up using this site the most:
http://www.sa-venues.com/game-reserv...es-lowveld.htm

Again a clickable map. You can click on any Game Reserve, and you get some info on that reserve. How big it is. What there is to see, and what game lodges are in it. The info is still not complete, but you do get a large choice of lodges to look into.

The only thing lacking is traversing right info. So you’ll probably end up doing what I did; visit the websites of these lodges, and if you like what you see: write to the lodge, ask them to make you an offer, and ask them about how big the area is that they are allowed to drive/walk in.

I started getting plenty of information back, and soon enough decided to choose one lodge per game reserve. I had 12 days of safari to fill, so that gave me the possibility to choose 4 lodges in four different game reserves.

But which game reserves? I decided to stay as close to Kruger borders as possible (it is obvious from reading the info that the further you get from Kruger, the less biodiversity there is). And I decided to pick four, from north to south. That made sense, as it means minimizing transfer times between lodges, and as we needed to get to Kruger airport (which is in the south) for our flight to Mozambique. I chose:

- Klaserie Nature Reserve
- Timbavati Game Reserve
- Manyeleti Game Reserve
- Sabi Sands Game Reserve
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 05:33 AM
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LODGE INFORMATION – In Game Reserves not chosen

Before I continue with the four reserves mentioned above, let me give you the list of lodges that I also looked at, but where located elsewhere. FWIW, this info may be of use to you. Prices are averages, not exact science. Note that this is just a short list, far from being complete ( = far from all there is available). The essence of the list is: these are accommodations that were in my budget, and looked OK.

Lodge: Edeni Hoyo Hoyo Lodge
Location: Edeni Private Game Reserve
Web: www.edeni.com
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2500/250/375

Lodge: Edeni Hoyo Hoyo River Lodge
Location: Edeni Private Game Reserve
Web: www.edeni.com
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2000/200/300

Lodge: Edeni Hoyo Hoyo Bush Lodge
Location: Edeni Private Game Reserve
Web: www.edeni.com
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2000/200/300

Lodge: Kuname River Lodge
Location: Edeni Private Game Reserve
Web: http://www.kuname.co.za/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2000/200/300

Lodge: Mopaya Safari Lodge
Location: Thornybush GR
Web: http://www.mopayasafari.co.za/english/default.htm
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2650/265/400

Lodge: Nokana Safari Camp
Location: Thornybush GR
Web: http://www.mopayasafari.co.za/english/default.htm
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 1350/135/200

Lodge: Tangala Lodge
Location: Thornybush GR
Web: http://www.tangala.co.za/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 1500/150/225

Lodge: Thornybush Chapungu
Location: Thornybush GR
Web: http://www.chapungulodge.co.za/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2500/250/375

Lodge: Jackalberry safari lodge
Location: Thornybush GR
Web: http://thornybush.krugerpark.co.za/F...ckalberry.html
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2500/250/375

Lodge: Hoyo Hoyo Tsonga lodge
Location: Kruger NP, center-west
Web: http://www.hoyohoyo.co.za/hoyo-hoyo/index.jsp
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2900/290/450

Lodge: Isibindi Rhino Post Safari lodge
Location: Kruger NP, center-west
Web: http://www.isibindiafrica.co.za
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2200/220/330

Lodge: Isibindi Plains Camp
Location: Kruger NP, center-west
Web: http://www.isibindiafrica.co.za
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2500/250/375

Lodge: Mohlabetsi safari lodge
Location: Balule NR
Web: http://www.mohlabetsi.co.za/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 1500/150/225

Lodge: Pondoro Game Lodge
Location: Balule GR
Web: http://www.pondoro.co.za
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 1900/190/300

Lodge: Makalali Private Game Lodge
Location: Makalali Private Game Reserve
Web: http://www.makalali.co.za/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2500/250/375
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 05:34 AM
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LODGE INFORMATION – Klaserie NR

In this Game Reserve I found a lot of interesting lodges. There’s this self-catering thing (“Maduma Boma”) but that’s obviously not what we’re looking for.

Then I found this: http://www.klaseriecamps.com/ which gave me:

Lodge: Kitara Camp
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2200/220/330

Lodge: Nzumba lodge
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 1900/190/300

And then one other lodge, from the general site mentioned above;

Lodge: Africa On Foot
Web: http://www.africaonfoot.com/index.html
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 1550/155/230

I chose this one because it has that little extra, something special: a tree house where you can spend the night as well (complete with beds, but open views). Seems fun to me. Some fun way to start the safari.
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 05:35 AM
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LODGE INFORMATION – Timbavati GR

I can be very short about Timbavati:

- Here’s a list of all lodges: http://www.timbavati.co.za/ (choose “tourism” -> “Timbavati Lodges”)
- Personally, I only looked at these three:

Lodge: Motswari Private Game Lodge
Web: http://www.motswari.co.za
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2750/275/420

Lodge: Gomo GomoGame Lodge
Web: http://www.gomogomo.co.za/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 1500/150/225

Lodge: Shindzela Tented Safari Camp
Web: http://www.shindzela.co.za/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 1200/120/180

...and on this last one I read this:


****
- we don't have an African spa... we think that fresh air and the sights and sounds of the bush constitute a spa experience second to none anyway....
- we don't have a high staff / guest ratio. If you fancy a cold beer, please help yourself and mark it down on our honesty bar tab
- our menu's don't feature dishes with culinary terms like "jus", "compote" or "lightly seared". Our meals are tasty and homemade, with lots of fresh fruit, veg and salads. Enjoy a traditional South Africa braai with freshly baked safari bread, or a potjie (stew), cooked slowly over the fire.
- our camp is not built by an award winning architect, nor is it furnished by an interior designer. What you will find though, is a comfy bed, freshly laundered linen, and decor from local crafters and artists. We love our informal, relaxed atmosphere.
****


That’s the spirit! I’ve never seen a lodge that dares to say it so straight forward on their website. Reason enough to just book this lodge and support their style of safari.

Strangely enough, this lodge is not on the list of Timbavati lodges (see first weblink in this post).
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 05:35 AM
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LODGE INFORMATION – Manyeleti GR

Again a short list:

- There are the Honeyguide camps (Khoka Moya and Montabeni), but these are R3000 or more pppn, and that is the limit I set myself. So I have not looked further into those
- There’s Tintswalo Safari lodge, and those rates are even more ridiculous.
- And then there’s Pungwe.:

Lodge: Pungwe Bush Camp
Web: http://www.pungwe.co.za/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 1450/145/220

Obviously I chose this one, as it’s the only one in our budget range. I checked tripadvisor to make sure, but oh bot ...I shouldn’t have worried at all.
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 05:36 AM
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LODGE INFORMATION – Sabi Sands

For this, I obviously used the website often mentioned on this board. I guess you all know it. But here is the link anyway:

http://www.sabisand.co.za/ssw-map.html

So getting the list of available choices was easy, but getting the right lodge was even more easy; most were simply out of my budget range. Not that that would have changed much. Most of the expensive ones did not even appeal to me. In fact, some websites made my stomach turn.

So I guess I’ll start with mentioning the one choice I really had:

Lodge: Elephant Plains Game Lodge
Web: http://www.elephantplains.co.za/home/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 1700/170/250

Are there any alternatives? No.

Well, only if the regular accomodations at Elephant’s are fully booked. Then yes there is one that can compete with Elephant’s luxury rooms.

Lodge: Arathusa Safari Lodge
Web: http://www.arathusa.co.za/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2400/240/360

...and if you’re prepared to pay a wee bit more, there’s even more choices:

Lodge: Djuma Bush Lodge
Web: http://www.djuma.com/gallery_B_lodge.php
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2900/290/450

Lodge: Notten’s Bush Camp
Web: http://www.nottens.com/default.asp
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2800/280/440

...and finally, there’s one last option that even may bring that price down a bit: if you book 3 nights at Idube and combine that with 3 nights in Lukimbi Safari lodge (in the very south of Kruger, very close to Kruger Airport), then you the price is about 250€ pppn. Still too much for my liking though.

Lodge: Idube Game Reserve / Lukimbi Safari Lodge
Web: http://idube.com/
Price pppn Rand/€/$: 2500/250/375
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 05:37 AM
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There you have it, folks. Hope this info is worth something to you.

At least it should be clear now that a good safari in Kruger can also be found outside Sabi Sands borders.

If needed, I can also give some info on flights to and from Mozambique, and on choices at the coast of Mozambique. But only around Vilanculos as that is where the airport is.

Of course I’ll write a trip report. But that’ll be about a year from now. ;-)

Ciao,

J.
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 10:08 AM
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Thanks for sharing your survey. I spent some time looking at the websites of some of the options near Sabi Sands. I will be interested in your trip report.
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 12:37 PM
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Pixelpower,

That is the most awesome batch of research work I've seen. Congratulations!

And I'm glad to see that there are those who share my perspective of what "real" Africa is to a large extent. I would probably have chosen the same lodges for the same reasons.

Enjoy your trip!
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 01:16 PM
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Pixelpower
Excellent overall information!

But don't get it wrong:

Klaserie: Hunting - just recently causing a very ugly discussion regarding an elephant hunt - trophy hunt!
http://www.sanparks.org/forums/viewt...38739&start=75

Timbavati as well as Thornybush: Trophy hunting within the reserve.

These "reserves" gain a large portion of their yield by trophy hunting.

Compared to SS, which doesn't allow any trophy hunting - there are rumours that one large concessions does allow occasional hunts but nothing confirms/proven - and therefore sacrifice a huge chunk of money, one should take that into consideration!

I a looking forward to reading your report.

Happy travels!

SV
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 01:45 PM
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A couple questions please.
Were you looking at a $$$ limit for camps/lodges?? Is it about $450 pppn?? If so, you left out several camps in the Timbavati and Sabi Sand reserves, e.g. Kings Camp, Nagal Lodge, Kirkmans Kamp, for starters. (FWIW, all these I've been too). Also, many camps have deals if you stay longer and this can bring down the per night cost by maybe 25%.

Gomo Gomo is no longer in the Timbavati, they moved out to the Klaserie reserve. The old Gomo Gomo camp has another name of ??

I've read that there are 600 game reserves/farms/lodges in SA. I know as you drive in the Kruger area say along SA highways R40, R526 every few miles you see a gate saying game farm/lodge and a lot of fencing. The only one I've been to was Tshukudu Game Lodge outside of Hoedspruit (http://www.tshukudulodge.co.za/englishindex.htm)
We went there one morning to have a little two hour walk with a lion, a young female. We also saw cheetah in fenced area and I think all of their predators are fenced. So, point being, there are safari lodges/camps and then there are safari lodges/camps.

Anyway, have you decided on camps for 2010??

regards - tom
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 01:54 PM
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"We went there one morning to have a little two hour walk with a lion, a young female."

That lioness went straight to be hunted down after it has grown out of the "walking-friendly mood".

One cannot stress often enough: If you consider yourself an "animal lover" you should avoid under any circumstances any venue which does lion walks, elephant back rides and any cat cub petting!
Don't belief in any explanation these venues give you! It's lies and nothing but lies!

NEVER DO IT PLEASE!

These animals all end up as trophies at the walls of sich serial killers!

SV
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 02:19 PM
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Nice work Pixelpower!
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 04:37 PM
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Hey pixelpower,

Wow--great information! I'm curious to hear where you pick as well.

I do want to clear up any misconceptions that some might get by reading about your search. Kruger's campgrounds/rest camps are not nearly as bad as your worse-case scenario suggests they might be. Yes, they are crowded, but not "baboon-infested." The toilets and showers that I have used have all not only worked (hot and cold water), but also were immaculately clean. Much, MUCH cleaner than ANY shower I've ever used in a U.S. National Park. The bungalows and safari tents that I've used have always been clean and very well-priced. I've never spent over $100/night, and that was with a "luxury bungalow." My average lodging costs are usually $35-65 per night (that's for 2 people, too) for a bungalow or safari tent.

One also does not need to do any 4x4 driving in Kruger. I think every road that is publicly acccessible can be done so using a 2-wheel drive vehicle.

It sounds like you've traveled to other national parks that don't have as nice of infrastructure. Kruger is much different from them.

If you're interested in walking safaris, you might be interested also in Kruger's Wilderness Trails. They're 4-day/3-night walking safaris inside of Kruger. The accomodations for these camps seem a little nicer than the ones shown in the Transfrontiers website and are cheaper. I know you mentioned your wife wasn't as interested, but if she changes her mind, keep it mind!
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 04:38 PM
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Oops, I forgot to include the Wilderness Trail website: http://www.sanparks.org/parks/kruger...ss/default.php
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 07:58 PM
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Agreeing with what Gritty writes.
PP - have you been in Kruger? (We have in 2006, 2007 and 2009).

And, so, what camps have you chosen???

(And SV agree also about the walk with lion thing).

Regards - tom
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Old Jan 10th, 2010, 11:33 PM
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Wow! So many reactions. Did not expect that...

-----
@Spassvogel; I know about all this, but if you dismiss every reserve in it's totality for one particular thing that you don't like, then you might as well stay home.

Instead of staying away, I'd rather support the lodges that do it the right way, like the ones I've chosen, and support them. The more people do that, the bigger their budget. The bigger their budget, the more other operations will be "bought out" or discouraged. Or perhaps rather encouraged ..to go the same way.

As far as I can tell, trophy hunting should be minimal in the reserves I go to this year, as most operators do as much walks than drives in their area. Something they wouldn't do (I think) if wildlife was under stress from hunting.


-----
@Tom; I tried to stay away from expensive lodges as much as possible. Elephant Plains is only about half the figure that most Sabi Sands lodges put on their website.

I only started looking at the more expensive lodges when I got a reply from EP saying that their "rondavels" were already fully booked. I then looked at their "luxury rooms" and saw that still only one lodge is about the same as that figure (Arathusa).

Just out of curiosity, I set my limit higher (about R3000 pppn), and then I again started finding some others. But you're right; there may be more.

But to be honest, I'd never go to Notten's, Djuma, Kings Camp, ... even Arathusa was "too much" in my eyes.

Luckily, the non-availability issue for EP was resolved by switching our days spent in Pungwe with the ones in EP.

I know there's lots more lodges than I noted down in my "report". That's what I said from the start; the lists are far from complete, but I hope it's a good starting point for anyone else who is considering a safai in/near Kruger. And I hope it is clear now that there is more than Sabi Sands.

The lodges I chose are mentioned in my posts:
Africa On Foot - Klaserie GR
Shindzela - Timbavati GR
Pungwe - Manyeleti GR
Elephant Plains - Sabi Sands GR

None of these is fenced. The reserves I mentioned are all unfenced, and there is no fence either between these reserver and Kruger NP. The "lodges" you talk about that you saw near the SA highways are - I guess - not in those reserves but even further away from Kruger.

I would never visit a lodge that offers "lion walks". I would like to make it very clear that none of the areas or lodges I summed up do this sort of thing!

I would however, go to a fenced lodge, if it were worth it. There are a lot out there that do good work. And I know any one of those would like nothing more than to be able to join their territories with neighboring lodges offering the same wildlife experience. Thula Thula comes to mind. Nobody read that "Elephant whisperer" book yet? This guy has a small reserve, adopts some rogue elephants, and is succesfull in what he does. I'd gladly support a lodge like that. And by doing so I hope neighboring properties start thinking about going the same route.


-----
@ Gritty;

I know I was exaggerating when describing public rest camps. I said I was! I did that on purpose to make my point clear about rest camps. And that point is; you never know beforehand what you're going to get. It may be that toilets are clean, or it may not be. There may be baboons around raiding campers, there may not be. It may be crowded, or not. You may get lucky. You could get extremely unlucky.

We've done a private camping safari in Botswana, and we passed numerous public camp sites there so I know what I saw there. One was crowded, one had unfinished shower blocks, another was full of baboons, etc... It may be that the ones in Kruger are of the best, but judging from your reply it seems I'm right on at least one thing; the ARE crowded.

Note that I've visited Kruger before (in 2000). And yes, I know that you can stick to a 2-wheel drive. But that would mean staying on main roads. It would be far from the experience I consider to be a safari; driving on asphalt, looking at nature from behind closed windows... Last time in Kruger we spent an hour in a queue of vehicles, just to see one leopards tail. It was complete chaos! At that time, I did not know any better; it was our first safari experience. But now I stay away from that kind of stuff...

About Wilderness trails; thanks for the link. I found this info too, but forgot to list it above. I also found that transfrontiers.com website that offers similar stuff. But as I said; the mss thinks multi-day walks is a bit too much for her.


Ciao,

J.
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Old Jan 11th, 2010, 02:41 AM
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Hello J,

Once again, your post reflects the type of values that I believe should be intrinsic to "African" safaris.

I would've chosen the same lodges, but I hadn't heard of Shindzela (thanks for recommendation). I've always supported a lodge called Umlani in that area (same ethic and price bracket), and it's great to know of other options.

I've dealt with Pungwe for a number of years, and I think you'll have a great experience with them.

I must agree with you about the camp sites in Botswana though. I was there 6 weeks ago, and the same situation existed. Unfinished ablution blocks, no toilet paper, broken or missing toilet seats, animal encroachment, uncleaned refuse bins, broken or unserviceable refuse bins, no hot water (and in one case, no water, which made for "wonderful" experiences in the toilets at daybreak, particularly as the lights weren't working), over-crowding, no staff in sight to address problems. Quite a shambles.

And for all this, Botswana has "sold" all their campsites to private operators, and for the privilage of experiencing this disgrace, you now pay an additional US$50.00 per person per night (on top of the $20.00-odd you pay Botswana Wildlife).

@ Spassvogel:

I echo Pixelpower's sentiments. Although I agree with many of your values and posts on many issues, you cannot simply dismiss every single establishment or operator in an entire region (or country, as you've done in another post), simply because you disagree with certain practices by a minority. There are many good and honourable people and operations in South Africa and many others, and these folk need to be supported in their efforts in conserving our environment.
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