8 independent reviews for Botswana value safari and Victoria Falls
Reviews for Botswana value safari and Victoria Falls
Jaime Montilla review 1 Apr 2023
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
The three days at the Pangolin Voyager on the Chobe River...no TV, phone or WiFi, just out in nature with great service and food on board.2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
If you like photography, doesn't have to be wildlife photography necessarily. go for it!3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
The people at pangolin Photo Safaris have a foundation to protect the Pangolin so that is a benefit.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
ExcellentJohn Hammett review 11 Oct 2022
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
Our time at Sable Alley, being at the lodge with the wildlife and great staff and especially our wonderful guide,Laps2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
Mosquitoes were not an issue at this time of year. Be curious when you go out for game drives. Don’t plan to see anything specific. Some of my favorite animals were ones I didn’t even know I would see.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
I felt like the lodges where are very conscientious and supported and employed fairly local people.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
We loved it and would recommend it.Roger Witton-Smith review 20 Jul 2022
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
The lovely we people we met throughout.2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
You will have time off in between flights/safaris etc so if you good bored easily take a book. Make sure you take cash and especially local in Botswana and if in US$ make sure they are small notes $10 and less.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
100% on the conservation side. Less on the environmental side.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
Ruth Anderson review 17 Sep 2019
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
Everything. Every day brought new experiences and new people to meet. Seeing animals in their natural environment was amazing. The passion and commitment of all the local people we met to protect their environment and the animal life was awe inspiring. Botswana is a country that will stay with you forever.2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
Pack less than you think you need. Bring a warm jacket for early morning and late evening safari.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes. The passion of the local guides and trackers was evident in how they cared about the animal life and the environment. The camps and lodges bring a lot of employment to the people of Botswana, which is very positive.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
The operator was a fantastic travel company to deal with, from the expert advice given in the pre-booking phase, to the level of detail and organisation that they went into for our 'once in a lifetime' trip to Botswana.It is a vacation that we will never forget.Read the operator's response here:
Thank you Ruth for taking the time to write your review and the lovely comments. We are pleased to hear you had a fantastic trip and Botswana lived up to
your expectations and more! We hope you will share your photos with us please and we look forward to helping you plan your next adventure.
Wildfoot Travel
Lynda Davey review 10 Aug 2019
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
Not sure where to start...it was just fantastic from start to finish. You don't often get the chance to sit at a water hole in the African bush watching elephants, zebra, giraffe and jackals having their daily drink whilst the sun goes down and enjoying a gin and tonic with plenty of ice and lemon!2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
Be prepared for lots of dust, if you go in the African winter take the advice on taking warm clothing and hats and gloves for the morning game drives, you'll need every layer. The facilities in the tented camps are very basic but for us that was part of the attraction. Days bumping around in the vehicle can be long so if you have a bad back maybe this is not the trip for you. We took some colouring pencils, exercice books and i made some book bags which we took and passed on to a pre school in one of the villages near to one of our campsites, make sure you take all items out of plastic wrapping. The biggest problem we encountered was the road border between Kasane/Botswana and Victoria Falls/Zimbabwe.....it was a nightmare!!! Be prepared to wait up to 4 hours in the sun, very little shade, take plenty of water, a hat or umbrella for shade and maybe some food and (very un British like) also be prepared to employ some queue manoeuvring tactics!!!! The wait is nothing special, it's just the way it is.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
We were told that the safari companies have started to invest in local communties. Our safari company has now started to sort the rubbish from the safaris into what can be recycled and what has to be disposed of by other means. They also now have a system whereby they filter water taken from a local source making it safe to drink which reduces the need for single use plastic water bottles. There are several locally owned companies that run these safaris so if you can do some research and try and book with one of these. Our safari company employed all local people but is actually South African owned so the vast majority of the profits go there.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
It gets a 10/10 rating from us and is probably one of the best we have done. There are not too many frills but we had hot water every night for a shower, hot water when we needed to do laundry, the food was very good considering the cooking was done on a camp fire and in a metal oven (including a birthday cake). The guide, Sam, was brillaint, how he spotted the animals from such distances is a complete mystery to us. The camp boys were excellent, nothing was too much trouble and they were all happy to engage with us and had senses of humour. The night sky was just indscribeable.......never seen anything like before. We were very fortunate in that there were only 5 of us on this trip and we all got on with each other. Look for safaris that only do a maximum of say 7 as we saw some vehicles that had 12 people in them and with that number you would not get the same experience we had.Lucinda Reid review 25 Jun 2019
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
The proximity and accessibility of the animals.2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
Be open to new experiences at each location; you will be delighted even if things don't seem immediately perfect.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
The properties I stayed at had gone to great lengths to install every reasonable environmentally sustainable improvement, and they hire as many local staff as they can, in some cases rotating them so everyone gets something. They are active contributors to their communities.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
Absolutely fantastic - I was so happy with everything I rate this my best vacation to date!Regina Zimmermann review 29 Nov 2018
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
The stay at the Ottball tented camp. One morning 4 elephants showed up and stayed about 40 min right next to the dining area. Unforgettable.2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
Take enough cash with you in local currency.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes absolutely.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
It was worth the money and can definitely recommend it!Sebastian Ludwig review 7 Jul 2018
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your vacation?
The flight between Camp Savuti and Oddballs Camp. The pilot flew very low so we were able to see the animals very well from above. Also, taking a shower and being visited by an elephant.2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this vacation?
Pack light and be prepared for cool temperatures in the morning.3. Did you feel that your vacation benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
All staff members in the camps were locals, even the managers. That gave the trip a good flavour. In general, the tourism in Botswana is based on sustainability.4. Finally, how would you rate your vacation overall?
On the last day, my wife got ill (bacterial infection) which ruined the next 3 days of our trip to South Africa. Everything until then was great and an amazing experience with the animals, the nature and the people we met.Holiday Reviews
You can trust Responsible Travel reviews because, unlike many other schemes, reviews can ONLY be written by people who we have verified have been on the holidays. In addition, we don't run these holidays ourselves - our only interest is giving you the best independent advice.
