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Superlative unbeatable wildlife viewing
We chose Mala Mala Rattrays because of its reputation for amazing wildlife viewing and we were not disappointed! Mala Mala has the Sand River running through it and abuts Kruger National Park. It is a huge private reserve (I believe it is the largest of the private reserves in the area) comprising 33,000 acres. Only vehicles from the Mala Mala camps are allowed on the reserve and they are allowed to go off road (unlike Kruger). There were never any more than 3 vehicles allowed at a sighting and we were frequently the only vehicle present. We chose to stay at Rattrays because there are no more than 4 people in each vehicle. The khayas are huge and luxurious with his and her bathrooms, plunge pool, and deck overlooking the Sand River. Mala Mala's motto is "It is all about the wildlife" and if you are interested in seeing the "Big Five" and more, this is the place for you. We were not disappointed! Highlights of our 4 night/5 day stay with our fantastic ranger, Greg Baldwin, were seeing a leopard dragging her freshly killed impala along the ground to a tree (our first night drive!) and the next morning (our second game drive) sitting among a pack of wild dogs as they consumed their kill and fought off a hyena. We experienced the excitement of following the dogs off road and watched them run down another antelope. The rest of our game drives were also wonderful and we had many leopard sightings, elephants, cape buffalo, lion, rhino, hyenas, warthogs, giraffes, mongoose, jenet, wildebeast, baboons, vervet monkeys, zebras, vultures, raptors, different types of storks, and a wide variety of antelope. I suspect that going during the dry season enhanced our wildlife viewing as the animals were mostly concentrated around the river. It is unbelievable how close you are able to get to the animals, just don't stand up in the range rover and you will be just fine. We appreciated the care the rangers took to minimally disturb the animals while we were observing them. You will be very very busy and we barely had enough down time to download our pictures between the early morning game drives, bush walks, meals, and night drives. Others have complained about the food which is served buffet style (we liked it just fine, we did have better food at other places during our trip to South Africa, but no place could beat Mala Mala in terms of the quality of the wildlife viewing and level of service and hospitality). If you want fantastic wildlife viewing that is unbeatable, come to Mala Mala! Yes, staying at Rattrays is expensive, but worth every penny!
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Review about South Africa by vsalcreek
The wildlife was abundant and we experienced a very high level of customer service and hospitality at every place we visited in South Africa.
One of the best holidays we've ever had! 5 stars!
We had an amazing holiday! AndBeyond safari lodges were fantastic. We were blown away by the high standards and superior service. Everyone remembered our names, and all staff were wonderfully friendly. Nothing was too much trouble. The accommodation in Exeter River Lodge was a real highlight. A truly stunning suite, and although it was a bit too cold to use the private plunge pool (we missed the 40C day and had 25C weather for much of our stay), we did enjoy sitting outside watching the Nyala, warthog, monkeys and lions wander by. This is absolutely the place to go if you're on honeymoon or want a romantic getaway.
The AndBeyond game rangers and trackers were excellent - both at Exeter River and particularly at Ngala, where I'm sure because of our tracker (Fanny) we seemed to see more wildlife than anyone else! Rhino, lion, several leopard (incl. cubs), buffalo, dwarf mongoose, cheetah, wildebeest, African wild dogs and pups, hyena and pups (they were surprisingly cute!), elephant (incl. lots of babies), yellow-billed hornbills and lots more.
Additionally the food was an unexpected highlight of our stay in the AndBeyond lodges. Every day we were impressed at the spread and quality of the food. We asked for many of the recipes and ended up buying their recipe book. Really, it was divine! If there was any criticism it would simply be that there was too much food and it was too irresistible - we came back weighing 1-2 kg heavier than before we left :-)
The staff were incredibly helpful and welcomed us warmly and professionally with airport transfers from the remote airport (where part of the Ngala rangers role was to chase any animals off the airstrip!). The short flights (10mins) between lodges were definitely the way to go (saved a 2-3 hour drive through uneven terrain). We really didn't want to leave when our guide and tracker returned us to the little bush airport (well, runway) for the final time.
We then had 3 days at Royal Chundu in Zambia to see Victoria Falls. Royal Chundu River Lodge was amazing! It was a bit of a treck to get there - an hour's drive from Livingstone, mostly along an unfinished and very bumpy road. By the time we arrived we were feeling slightly motion sick and starting to wonder whether it would all be worth the long drive there. But it absolutely was! When we stepped out of the car and into the resort it was the most serene and peaceful place, instantly dissolving any doubts we may have had. There was an infinity pool overlooking the Zambezi, the restaurant tables also overlooked the Zambezi. There was a welcome drink waiting for us and a beauty therapist ready to give us a shoulder massage whilst we completed the paperwork. The chef at the Royal Chundu was amazing - he trained under a 2 Michelin star chef and I have to say the evening food was divine - both in presentation, innovation and taste. And the room was amazing! Both Royal Chundu and Exeter River were stunning places to stay - probably the nicest places we have ever stayed at before.
The only slight disappointment with the Zambia trip was that the Vic Falls were very dry when we went (mid-late October), as the rains hadn't started yet. So it was a little like looking at a regular waterfall. So the views from the helicopter ride were not the stunning gush that we had hoped for, and there was no roar of water from the falls. But being in low season did mean we got to swim in Devils Pool - right on the edge of the falls, which was very very good! Apparently you can't do that in high season as I guess there is too much risk.
This trip has honestly been one of the best holidays we've ever been on, which is saying a lot as we are both well travelled. We can't recommend enough the lodges we stayed at: Exeter River Lodge, Ngala Lodge and (in Zambia) Royal Chundu (River Lodge). We also thoroughly recommend Ute Sonnenberg of Roho Ya Chui for organising this amazing holiday. She was enormously helpful and even added a wonderful personal touch of collecting us at the airport when we returned from the safari. She truly helped to make this trip so great.
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50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A great experience in Zimbabwe
My wife and I had a wonderful time in Zimbabwe - Mostly because of our exellant Guide Josseph Moyo- I highly recommend African Coast travel.
The best Safaris
I have booked 3 safaris with Mark and Celeste. They provide absolutely the best safari experience. They answer every question and are very knowledgeable about all aspects of the safari experience. Plan to continue booking with Taga Safaris again and again.
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50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Beyond Amazing!
Let's get the mundane stuff out of the way. The lodging, food and bar were outstanding. The staff was friendly and eager to please. The safari vehicles were open and as comfortable as one could expect. Our Ranger was extremely knowledgable and was great at getting us in the best position for photos while being respectful of the animals. As a private reserve, we had it all to ourselves. Most of the time, we were the only vehicle in sight. At most there would be one other vehicle (this is carefully controlled). That is HUGE! Great for viewing/photos and great for the animals.
Now on to the good stuff: The wildlife.
The abundance and variety of wildlife was astounding. The Sand River flows through the reserve and draws the wildlife to it. As we were being shown our room (all with a view of the river) a herd of elephants came down for a drink. It just got better from there. Our first morning game drive gave us the Big 5 before we stopped for lunch! Before the day was over we had also seen cheetah and wild dogs to round out Africa's Super Seven. Our evening game drive that day ended with a lioness and her three week old cubs on one of their first ventures out of the den. Absolutely amazing! I would return to MalaMala in a heartbeat.
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50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Hwange National Park by BiJian Fan
Hwange NP has a landscape of typical African savanna, it is rather easy to find animals at the waterholes in dry season.
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50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Matusadona National Park by BiJian Fan
Our camp is on an island of lake Kariba, great place for birding and fishing. A good break of travel pace. To see the animals from water gave us a different perspective.
CH
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great Safari experience at Kruger
Dear Safari friends
The tour with Thale & Ryan from Wild Planet Safari was awesome. They made us feel welcome and home from the first minute. They just cared for everything pick-ups, transfers, food and of the best camping spaces available. The tents provided were big enough to stand upright and very spacious. Their knowledge about the animals, birds, trees and plants were overwhelming. I never expected to see so many lions and rhinos - and Ryan even spotted cheetas for us - even though they were far far away. We saw lots of things we would never have seen while driving by ourselves. Being able to look at lions while they were feeding themselves with a buffola was a great experience.. especially seeing how people may react seeing something sensational like that.. Thale is an excellent chef and she spoiled us with delicious meals. And as they were baking own bread with a bread maker carried around in the van.. we did not even miss delicious bread! We enjoyed the trip very much - going home was very hard! But as we missed wild dogs and leopards ... there is always a reason to come back ;-) .. - I will for sure be back sometime to share another tour with you! Thank you very much Thale & Ryan.
BE
65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
It was a wonderfull holliday with a lot of new experiences. I do not complain about anything.
I think our group had the best guide of Matoketours,Martin. He is very kind and could answer almost all our questions concerning the way how people do survive in Uganda, the agriculture, there culture etc. The lodges were also very good and the working people there were very kind and polite, distinguished and nice.
Thanks again for offering me and also every one who likes to learn other cultures this way of travelling! I'd want to have next year the same expierience of Tanzania!
Thanks. Liliane.