DESERT & DELTA

Our Clients’ Reviews

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  Jamie Hamilton

  DESERT & DELTA

  

  Written August 2011

  The trip vastly exceeded our expectations - it was well measured and delivered on the promise: we fitted everything in without feeling rushed; every day we experienced something new and surprising; above all our guides and hosts were tireless in their enthusiasm for bringing Southern Africa to us, making us feel welcome and looked after. And, yes, we saw extensive wild life, ancient art and endless landscapes.  

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  What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

  In no particular order:

  Africa drinking at the waterhole in Etosha (Lions, rhino, elephant herds etc etc); asleep under the stars at Spitzcop; poling through the reeds in the Okavanga; laughter round the evening fire; the endless Kalahari plains; San bushmen .......

  What did you think of your group leader?

  JJ and Steph are inspirational. They ensured that everyones needs were looked after; were unfazed dealing with small emergencies (lorry issues; a badly sprained wrist) and kept us healthy, well fed and watered. But (as noted above) what was special was the way they brought Africa to us, not only the experience, but also its complex energetic cultures, its history (recent and ancient), and the small contribution we as tourists can make to the local communities and cultures through responsible tourism.

  Exodus are fortunate to have this team working with them.

  Do you have any advice for potential travellers?

  You do need a 3 season bag: it can get really cold in the evening.  

  Swakopmund (for us) was grey, damp and rather dreary - so if the sea mist is in, plan on a touristy day visiting the museum, Peter's antiques and the Village Cafe.

  The whole party were scheduled to arrive a day early (overnight in Windhoek) - this worked very well as it meant we got into Botswana in good time and without stress. Perhaps this should be the norm? (Reading problems others have had with connections.)

  Is there anything else you would like to add?

  We all felt that the two nights in Swakopmund were one night too many. And that we could have really spent that extra night in the Namib or possibly in the Nakluft mountains - avoiding the danger that the last couple of days could feel a little rushed. 

   
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  Alan Swetman

  DESERT & DELTA

  

  Written July 2011

  Great holiday on the ground in Botswana & Namibia BUT flight arrangments were disappointing (notwithstanding the fact that we queried the connection times before departure) and the brochure did oversell just how much could be fitted into some of the days.  I would recommend the trip but with reservations about the above points. 

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  What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

  The local wildlife was a key aspect of the trip for us and this was very good, we hoped to catch a glimpse of a Black Rhino and in fact saw 15 in a 24 hour period in Etosha, plus Leopard, several Elephant and great views of the more common species.  Must be said though that many locals expressed surprise at what the trip guide suggested we could see at the time of year we went.  Like to bird watch on holiday and identified over 130 species.

  The Namib desert was also fantastic and climbing up Dune 45 at dawn was a great experience.

  What did you think of your group leader?

  Excellent, together with the other 3 members of the 'crew' they gave us a great holiday, very knowledgable and hard working.

  Do you have any advice for potential travellers?

  The key problem for me was that we had to change flights at Frankfurt and the schedule allowed very little time to make the connections, we queried this when we recieved our schedule (so did the other people on the trip) but were told not to worry as this trip had been organised many times before and the fight times would be OK.  in fact they were not, we missed our connecting flights both ways and this effectively meant that we lost the first half day of the trip and couldn't do the bushmen walk, completely avoidable if we had been put on an earlier flight to Frankfurt.

  Also some of the suggested schedules for what could be done on some of the days in the trip notes were just impossible to achieve and should really be written in a more realistic format, would seem that they were written by someone with very little 'on the ground' experience for what can be done.

  Is there anything else you would like to add?

  This was a good holiday made by the ground crew and I would recommend it but the 2 very avoidable problems on the flight arrangements spoilt things a bit and I would recommend that anyone booking looks at this aspect very closely.  If we do other trips with Exodus we will almost certainly take care of our own flights.

   
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  Devyani Patel

  DESERT & DELTA

  

  Written July 2009

  A fantasticly run trip. A lot to cover in two weeks and some great sitings. 

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  What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

  Star gazing, sleeping under the stars, and the true traditional bush camps was the real african experience!

  Really emjoyed the Sand dunes as well.

  What did you think of your group leader?

  Linda, Chris and Francis were our leaders, they did everything possible and developed a great team spirit. Really enjoyed their company and ability to deal with such a large group, accomdating everyone.

  Food was beyond expectations, every day was a suprise and absolutely delicious, thanks to our cook Francis and he was very considerate in looking out for everyone's food requirements.

  Do you have any advice for potential travellers?

  Groups trips are always a gamble, but we lucked out with such a wonderful group of people, mix of ages and experiences and real team spirit.

  This was the first time I camped, so I did quite well, some of the camp sites were really nice with nice facilities. One drawback was that the trip at times felt like a bootcamp, with early starts at 5am almost every day, packing up the tents, and then being on the road for hours through the day.

  Time of the year is s also cold at night (some nights freezing at 0degree celcius). I would not camp in the cold in the UK, so be warned, it does get cold. 

  Is there anything else you would like to add?

  Trip needs to be extended a few days, so that not every night is a stop over with early mornings.

   
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  Alison Buchanan

  DESERT & DELTA

  

  Written July 2009

  Great itinerary to a beautiful part of Africa - Namibia and Botswana are stunning and this trip certainly packs in the best bits. 

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  What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?

  • wild camping in the Okavango delta - a magical place - especially enjoyed the mokoro ride (dug out canoe) to get there
  • amazing sand dunes at Sossuvlei - so much better than the pictures
  • seeing dozens of shooting stars at Spitzkoppe and all the beautiful sunsets
  • great game viewing at Etosha
  • my first ever skydive

  What did you think of your group leader?

  Linda, Chris and Francis were a fantastic team.  They worked together well, and made sure that we all had a great time.  This was the first time this itinerary had run in this format, and as such was a journey of discovery for them as well as us.  Plenty of communication and discussion of alternatives meant that we all got the best out of the two countries.   Thanks to Francis we all ate extremely well, with plenty of variety. 

  Do you have any advice for potential travellers?

  Embrace the 11 nights camping - it really is the best way to see Africa, but don't expect hot showers every day, campsites in Namibia and Botswana are a little more basic than say South Africa.  My two favourite campsites, on the Okavango and at Spitzkoppe had no showers at all (or even proper toilets!), but I loved the tranquility of both.  

  Winter in Southern Africa - ie May - Sept does see some real extremes of temperature, so be prepared to get very chilly at night and pack your thermas/very warm sleeping bags....but the plus point is that the daytimes are much more pleasant, which is great for being in the outdoors.   The sun will still shine a lot and the sunsets in the Kalahari are like nothing else I have seen.

  Be prepared for some very long travelling days - which in the winter seem longer because of shorter daylight hours.   Bring a really really good torch - even in proper campsites there was little ambient light (so fab for star gazing).

  Is there anything else you would like to add?

  This is a brilliant trip - we had a superb mix of people and all got on very well, which made the long travelling days seem much shorter.  But due to lack of daylight hours, we often arrived in campsites at dusk/after sunset and had to leave often at first light to fit everything in.  We all felt that we could have done with another 2 - 3 days on the trip to feel like it was less of a rush round Africa and would have liked to spend more than one night in a few places, instead of always being on the move.