Shooting Star Lodge

The Namibia trip was fantastic!

Self-driving was brilliant, and the chronology of the itinerary was perfect (against the flow/direction most other travelers took).

As for specifics:

OKONJIMA
This place was the best!
Best service, best staff, best food, best experiences, best facilities.
We saw a cheetah kill, leopards, and white rhino (which we were not expecting).
If you’ve never been you should go...If I ever go back to Namibia I will revisit.

EMANYA
The only (slight) disappointment.
Maybe because it was right after Okonjima, but the service was lacking, the facilities were a bit run down, it was the only place with mosquitoes in the room with no net and no spray. Food was marginal. Not sure if there are better options in the area, though.

OKAUKEUJO
Etosha Park was amazing. There was so much wildlife with so little crowds.
The Okaukeujo Camp had the best watering hole with animals coming in at all times of the night. A great experience exclusive to the camp.

DORO NAWAS
Beautiful place. Very private. Food and service excellent.
A nice stopping point on the drive.

SPITZKOPPE
An amazing place...How they laid out and built it.
Enjoyed exploring the grounds and the local area/sights.
The staff was on par with Okonjima.
2 days were perfect.

Ivin provided us with good advice/information/recommendations along the route, along with a cell phone and cooler for the trip. The car was perfect.
They represent Tourdust well!

Again, another great trip you put together...Thank you!

Earl W reviewing Northern Namibia Highlights - Self Drive on 17 October 2018

We both suffered but enjoyed it immensely. Just how it should be!!!!
Our route up the mountain, the Burguret trail is very arduous and certainly should not be used for people who are not very fit and experienced trekkers. It mainly followers animal trails through the forests and bog lands around the mountain. The Chogoria route down was great. The guide and porters were great. Wild camping means just that, really just what I wanted, but I have lived in Kenya.

Jonathan B reviewing Mount Kenya: Burguret Chogoria Traverse on 24 September 2018

All the accommodation was great especially having the family rooms, I think our favourite place was the maramboi tented camp - everything about it was spot on, the location and service was excellent!
The only negative feedback I could give was the amount of time spent in the jeep, I hadn’t quite realised how much travel there was! But it’s a minor point, Haji our guide was excellent and constantly pointed out things of interest along the way.

Sam S reviewing Tanzania Extended Northern Circuit on 24 September 2018

The trek was fab, really enjoyed it! Was definitely a challenge but one worth doing. Our Guide Mohammed was excellent, took care of our needs, patient and went at a suitable pace for us. Ali, the muleteer and cook made us the most remarkable dishes and such large quantities, we felt bad for leaving so much food.....was enough for six people or more.

The refuges provided us a great place to stay....the first one was very quiet only another couple staying there, whilst the next was much busier and was a fab way to meet new people.

We were really pleased we made it to the summit, it felt like a great achievement.

I don’t think I would change any part of it.

Thank you, to you and your partners in Morrcco, will recommend you to anyone who wishes to follow in my footsteps.

Louise D reviewing Climb Mount Toubkal on 29 August 2018

Speke's camp was absolutely ideal - small and personal, with great hosts. We'd definitely recommend the "tented safari" experience to others. The kid's didn't miss having a pool (too interested in Safari). Speke's camp give you your own landrover and driver/guide, which gave us great flexibility (much better I suspect than what is offered by some of the larger camps). Our guide was brilliant. See below for the review we just posted on rip Advisor.

I think the only negative of the trip was getting through Nairobi airport (multiple security checks, and they ask you to "board" two hours in advance, which in fact means going into crowded transit lounge with no facilities), but there's not anything anyone can do about that

It's also worth saying that Peponi really is a unique experience. It's a proper East African institution, with all the locals dropping into the bar. It's the perfect antidote to anyone wanting to get away from the soulless all inclusive resorts which could be absolutely anywhere in the world (which seem to be a bit of a feature of Zanzibar). Lamu is still amazingly undeveloped.

We stayed at Speke's camp for 4 nights in August 2018 - a family of two adults and two children. For us it was the perfect location to experience the Mara. The camp is only a short drive outside the main Mara reserve and is in an amazingly picturesque location, set by a small river in the shade of trees. Wildlife roams near (and sometimes through!) the camp. You get to feel very close to nature when you have a buffalo rooting up grass just outside your tent in the middle of the night!

The camp itself is small and has a very personal feel to it. There are only eight or so guest tents, so you get to meet everyone passing through. One of the great pleasures was getting to chat to other guests over the evening meal or round the camp fire, swapping stories of the day's sightings. If you do want a little more privacy, then it's absolutely fine to eat in your own group.

Whilst you do sleep and eat under canvas, it is an extremely civilised experience: the beds are comfy (with hot water bottles provided to ward off the chill of the evenings); there are bucket showers which sound much more primitive than they really are; the communal area is very elegantly laid out; tea is brought to the tent before setting out on early morning game drives, and the food was fantastic.

What really makes the experience however are the wonderful hosts. Both Adrian and Veronique made a real effort to get to know us and ensure we were well looked after; and it's certainly worth picking Adrian's brains on the history of the region (it's not called Speke's camp for nothing)

The final word must go to our wonderful guide/driver Ambrose and our Masai spotter Marco. It was a real privilege to have our own land-rover and to be shown the reserve by such knowledgeable and charming individuals. Ambrose is a proper naturalist, can identify a lilac breasted roller at 200 yards, and knows where to see the best wildlife without simply following other trucks. On our final afternoon, with 30 minutes before we had to leave the Mara Triangle, we had seen every animal and bird that was on our wish list (including a live Cheetah kill), but had not seen a rhino. Marco saw a speck on the horizon, Ambrose drove like the clappers and as a parting gift we were able to see this most elusive animal up close. Notwithstanding all the awe-inspiring nature, I think my wife's personal highlight was driving the land rover back to amp along the dirt track through herds of zebra and ambling giraffe. A truly amazing experience all round.

Jonathan I reviewing Laikipia & Masai Mara Safari on 24 August 2018

Everything was exceptionally well arranged and the whole trip, from checking in on line and printing out the outward journey boarding cards from home, until return to Heathrow, was completely seamless.

Although arriving slightly earlier than scheduled, we didn't have to wait before being collected at Nairobi by Elijah, our guide and Samuel the driver. On being told that we had hardly slept at all on the outward journey, they took us to a small B&B place they use (sorry, I've forgotten the name of the place) and we were able to rest/sleep for some 3 hours before setting off on our adventure. This was very much appreciated by us as that first day was full on after that.

They looked after us really well and both were very knowledgeable and good company and were flexible to our needs, with nothing being too much trouble for them.

The accommodation you picked for us was spot on. We were particularly taken with Sunbird Lodge (I could have spent the whole week there if it were not for being on the move due to the nature of the trip), which was quite informal and extremely friendly. We then moved on to the Maji Moto Eco Camp, where again everything was fine. Having stayed in similar places before, at my age now, the one night suited well and I was surprised when Dan was so taken with the place that he would have liked to stay another night! I think the camp fire might have had something to do with it. The visit to the school was also well worth it from Dan's perspective.

On then to Ilkeliani and I concur with what you say about it being so well priced for what it offers, that it is a good recommendation. This was slightly more formal at mealtimes than Sunbird Lodge but nevertheless, the staff were equally friendly. As adults, both my husband and myself enjoyed the food although the feedback I provided on their customer satisfaction questionnaire was that perhaps the evening meals could possibly have slight variations for children. We didn't see any signs of the suspended footbridge and as we didn't ask about it, I don't know whether it's still there or not.

I have to say that the beds in both Sunbird and Ilkeliani were very, very, comfortable.

The Mayfair Southern Sun was again a good choice although I think the room we had was perhaps a standard twin room. There were two what I call "three quarters" sized beds, i.e. larger than a single but not quite a double bed size, which meant it was a bit of a squeeze for 2 persons in one bed.

Both the Giraffe Centre and the David Sheldrick Wildlife Sanctuary were ideal additions to the itinerary. We had a 10 year old who was reluctant to leave Kenya!

Martha Ann Eileen C reviewing Maasai Family Adventure on 14 May 2018

The walking in the mountains was a fantastic experience, helped by our perfect guide Ibrahim. He was intelligent, kind, cheerful and looked after us very well. He could answer all our questions on flora, fauna, geology, history and local culture. He walked at a steady phase that suited all and made sure everyone was happy. We could not have asked for more.
Our favourite place to stay was the Azzaden trekking lodge where we were welcomed warmly with slippers, dates, milk and a hand wash. The food was excellent and the breakfast was very impressive. The hospitality of Mohamed was second to none. The view from the balcony was amazing and when it got dark the stars came out in their millions. ( we did however not manage to find out in which bed Daniel Craig had slept).
When we reached Kasbah Toubkal the weather had turned cold and wet so we could not enjoy the roof terrace and the outdoor area.
Riad Tzara was excellent and Naima, Khadija, Abdul and Mohamed looked after our every need. We had dinner one night on the roof of Dar Hanane where the view over the city was great. We also liked the cozy roof terrace in Riad Tzara where the perfect temperature was in the afternoon after escaping from the noises and fumes of the Medina.

Inga O reviewing Atlas Valleys & Villages Comfort Trek on 27 February 2018

Both our guides were fine, did a good job, walked at a good pace for our group. Kept a close eye on us on the last night and helped me keep going even when not feeling well. Only thing i would say is that they weren't overly friendly. Felt a bit like they spoke to us enough to sort of do their job and make conversation but sort of expected that they might be a bit more friendly and enthusiastic. Might have been due to the fact we were two girls though? Didn't really stop us enjoying it, just would have been nice! 4/5

Considering your on a mountain the food was good and there was a lot of it. Though this became a bit of a problem as we felt so much pressure to eat it, not once did we finish all the food that was provided, and felt bad about the waste. Perhaps the cook needs to be more open to changing the portions of food he cooks depending on how much people eat! 4/5

All the information from tourdust through booking was excellent. We had plenty of information to help decide the route and to prepare for the climb. Though we were advised to take water purifying tablets, but actually they already purified the water. And walking poles were an optional extra however we were advised they were essential on arrival and had to rent some. 5/5

Emily D reviewing Kilimanjaro Lemosho Route on 11 December 2012

Our guide, Frederick was excellent and very knowledgeable, definitely a 5. The meals were great and the quantity of food slightly overwhelming on occasion! The service and effort put into presentation far exceeded out expectations

James I reviewing Kilimanjaro Lemosho Route on 04 August 2012