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Review about Okavango Delta by EmilyW
The Okavango Delta is a beautiful place and if you can go on a game walk you will feel transported to another world. However, I would not recommend going in March. We saw no game, but enjoyed a 3-hour hike among the grass looking at animal tracks and interesting bugs.
US
Well managed but limited game in March
I enjoyed my drive through the park with our hired guide. We saw many impala, hippos, elephants, baboons, etc. I am not a "birder" so I cannot intelligently comment on the birding, but I did see and enjoy many interesting and unusual birds like the lilac-breasted roller. Unfortunately the lions, zebras and giraffes were difficult to find and it was pretty quiet overall. I understand that this was mainly due to the time of year. I personally enjoyed a boat cruise on the Chobe River that went by the park, more than the game drive, due to the beautiful scenery. I was grateful there didn't seem to be self-drive tourists and everyone on the road was very respectful.
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35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Convenient location from Nairobi.
We were able to see most animals pretty easy. the park is very close to the city and is easy to get to, however from a scenery aspect you can see the city from most places. When selecting a guide make sure they have a land cruiser or similar, we had a small van and we got stuck in the mud for almost three hours. We had limited time so the National park worked well. If you go I recommend the Elephant Orphanage it was a nice stop.
MY
Review about Lake Nakuru National Park by Ludoc007
National park very close to city. Good birding but not many game aniamals
US
Gombe National Park
Gombe is beautiful, the scenery and waterfall very picturesque. If going, please know that the chimps do migrate and follow the food source. For example, when there in April, the chimps are at the top of the mountain. The hike is very strenuous and takes several hours. At other times of the year, the chimps are much lower in the mountains. The guides live and work there and are very knowledgeable. We were not able to see the chimps. But, visiting Jane Goodall's research center was very interesting.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Kruger National Park by thewildlifephotographer
Kruger is fantastic for wildlife but becoming too crowded and hectic to enjoy the experience. It's a good place to visit for first-timers but tick it off your list and head somewhere more adventurous next time.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Elephants and hippos galore!
Recently we went to Queen Elizabeth (QE) for the second time in eight years. It's one of Uganda's classic parks and a staple of wildlife tourism. Although my experience of the park is highly suggestive, I can give a perspective. I've been to Murchison, Mburo, and Kidepo several times, and each park has its strengths and weaknesses.
We approached QE from the south where you get a breathtaking view of the park from atop the escarpment. From there on, though, the road deteriorates severely. The tarmac main road through the park toward Kasese is liked a bombed-out runway, really disappointing for Uganda in general. My thought was that those responsible should be ashamed at how they've let the place go downhill. Another example of that is the tourist center inside the park. It's old. It's outdated. It's kind of pitiful. It looks like the park authorities haven't invested a dime in the place since it was built decades ago. Meanwhile they have made millions of dollars off it. That doesn't bode well for the management of the park. This makes me really sad. President Museveni boasts about making Uganda the 'Switzerland of Africa' but his government can't manage to maintain one of its greatest natural resources.
We did one game drive, in the morning. When we got to the gate, there was no one there. I honked, yelled, and looked around to no avail. So we opened the gate ourselves and started our game drive (we later paid at the tourist center but could have easily done our drive and left without paying!). In terms of animals, we didn't see much variety: hippos, elephants, warthogs, and waterbuck. That was about it in the wooded area that we were in. But we did see some cool things like three hippos running across the road in broad daylight, and later a hippo soaking in a mudhole, also in broad daylight. Almost every loop we turned down, we came across elephants. It seemed like they were everywhere. This made me a little jittery as I've been charged a few too many times.
Mid-morning we went to Mweya peninsula where we paid our dues and took tea at Mweya Lodge, which by all appearances is a very lovely place (too bad we can't afford it!). Even as someone who just goes in and out of amateur birdmanship, I could tell that the place was teeming with bird diversity.
Our lodging was the The Bush Lodge, a very pleasant luxury tented camp on the south side of Kazinga Channel. We were pleased with almost every aspect of the place. Lots of birds around. We saw a giant forest hog among the tents on the first evening and heard hippos around the clock. The food and accommodations were very much worth what we paid. One downside was that the local town was just up the channel, and its sound carried down to the camp for much of the day and night. So our experience of hippos and hyenas was mixed with discos, Muslim calls-to-prayer, and the incessant noise of heavy trucks crossing the bridge.
Later in the day we took a boat ride from The Bush Lodge, using local boatsmen instead of the companies. I really like injecting money in their pockets instead of the wealthy tour companies. The flipside is that the boat itself was a bit of a clunker, emitting noxious fumes for two hours that gave me a terrific headache! But our guide was knowledgeable without being annoying, and even the driver was a pleasant chap who also knew his birds. We saw hippos and hippos and more hippos, around every bend in the river. We also saw buffalo, elephant, bushbuck, warthogs, and several dozens species of birds.
So all in all it was a mixed-bag type of safari. Some animals we saw lots of, others none. The park has no zebra or giraffe, which is kind of a bummer. Lions were around but we didn't see them, nor leopards (much to my chagrin as the leopard is my 'holy grail' of wildlife). It was disappointing to see how neglected the park seems to be, from the condition of the main road to that of the park facilities to the fact that no ranger could be found at a main gate. It's like they are taking the park and what is provides for granted. That cannot be sustainable. Still,it's a lovely place, and any time one gets the chance to see those great animals and the teeming birdlife in the wild, it's a privilege and one I'd never want to complain about (apart from minor human-related quibbles).
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Tsavo West National Park by mwangee
Tsavo West is quite vast. And wildlife is scattered making it not easy to spot. Shetani Lavaflows and the nearby extinct volcanoes make the trip there worth it.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Kakamega Forest National Reserve by mwangee
Apart from monkeys and birds, you won't get to see a lot of other wildlife. In the right season, butterflies fill the forest with colourful beauty.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Waterberg Plateau Park by Nicholas Olesen Photography
Waterberg Plateau Park has beautiful scenery, but wildlife is difficult to spot without staying at a private reserve. I only spent one night here and, having been to Etosha National Park, I was there for the scenery and not for the wildlife.