Mmatsebe Tented Camp — Hotel in North-West District

Our three night stay at Mmatsebe was a highlight of our trip to Africa (Namibia and Botswana). Top of the list of reasons are the staff, every single person we met made us feel so very welcome and it seemed they could not do enough to make sure we enjoyed our stay. Taps, Simon, Kenny, KT and everyone else were outstanding! And our guide Major, well…..his humour and his knowledge of all things was amazing and made every safari drive a wonderful experience. We even got to see a leopard strolling around the bush one afternoon…so lucky!|The location of the lodge on the waterways of the Delta was the reason I selected Mmatsebe (along with the great Trip Advisor reviews) and we were not disappointed! We took a 10 seater plane from Maun…a 25 minute flight to the airstrip (great views of the waterways) and were picked up by our guide Major for the 25 minute drive to the camp. The lodge is situated in front of the waterways and has everything you could want. Our tents were very comfortable, spotlessly clean and well outfitted. The bed was super comfy and bedding is plentiful to keep you warm during the chilly nights with the help of a bush baby (hot water bottle) added at turn down. Breakfast is a buffet of fruit, yogurt, fabulous homemade breads and muffins and you can order a hot breakfast as well….shoutout to the chefs! Lunch is buffet style with a nice selection of hot and cold. Supper is served from a set menu. The food was top notch….my son enjoys a hearty dinner and staff were quick to offer a top up when he needed a little more. During the day, you can sit on the large patio with a refreshing beverage and enjoy the hippos, water buffalo and birds. And not to mention the elephants. One afternoon while guests were in their tents during siesta, we were all delighted to have three male elephants wander through camp munching their way through the vegetation, within 8 feet of each of our tents! Major, and I’m sure all guides, had schooled us on appropriate behaviour when so close to these magnificent beasts and we soooo enjoyed watching them. Another highlight was the mokoro safari on the waterways of the Delta. We had one in the late afternoon one day and Simon kindly arranged another for us the next morning…..amazing!!! |Wifi is available only in the wifi lounge but reception is strong and the lounge is comfortable with cold water available all the time (really nice to disconnect a bit for a few days). |I’m sure I’ll think of more I could have included in this review but I hope readers will have enough to decide to include Mmatsebe as part of their adventure in Botswana. |Thank you Mmatsebe!|Kim and...

Key highlights: Wonderful setting, nice sightings incl. Wild dog pups, lion cubs playing. professional and competent guide

Negatives: several misses by the lodge manager. Awkwardly short Mokoro excursion.

Overall, lots of potential to be a really awesome experience.

Game drives: 7/10 we had a good guide called Major (Matumbo) and had several special moments but were let down by the Mokoro canoe experience which was outsourced to another company at a location downstream from us. It was only 1.5 hours where 30 mins was spent by the inexperienced guide going over things quite slowly. (A lot of focus on elephant skulls which our guides already informed us of..and couldn't answer our question well ) We didn't actually cover much distance at all in the water or see any interesting animals aside from a frog in the reeds. Before we knew it, it was time to head back to the starting point. My other companions thought it was fine though .. I suppose I just had higher expectations for the Mokoro which was an Okavango specialty.

Location: 8/10 beautiful place facing a small stream / waterway north of the khwai river.

Asthetics: 9/10. Beautifully curated in common area.

Rooms: 7/10 beautiful tent with gorgeous view of the small waterway. Elephants, hippo, buffalo, waterbucks visible at times. some rooms had glass doors and some just had a sliding mosquito screen. We were here in early July. It was very cold in the mornings and our faces were freezing between 2-5am. We couldn't keep the cold out as there was no option to seal the door. Lodge manager told us that we could cover our face under the blanket. Lol. Thanks. Also strange that we had to borrow a hairdryer. 9 tents. 1 hairdryer. Floor in toilet gets wet from shower area.

Service staff: 6/10 Moses and Chef O are great. skilled and v professional. Kenny had good energy. I had several issues with one of the lodge managers which I have given direct feedback to the lodge and also our agent. Will spare the painful details.

Food: 9/10 lovely food and tends to have 80% local food with exception of breakfast. Chef O did a great job. Portions for dinner kept small but upon request they can...

Mmatsebe is a nice tented camp in the Okavango Delta. The food was delicious, and the large deck, overlooking the water, provided a nice place to view wildlife right from camp. We watched elephants and Cape buffalo there. The staff was friendly and took good care of us. Our tent was spacious with a comfortable bed, mosquito net, and ensuite bathroom. We would have appreciated having internet access in our tent or at least in the common area, rather than just in the internet pavilion, which tended to be hot.| Our guide, Victor, was excellent. He was interested in what animals we wanted to see and did his best to find them for us. My husband and I were amazed at the breadth of his knowledge of the animals and plants of the Okavango Delta. Not only did he know where to find them but, as we asked questions, he humbly shared fascinating scientific details. We jokingly said he was a walking encyclopedia. We saw a multitude of different animals but were most happy about seeing two male lions, a leopard, and two cheetahs who'd just made a kill. Victor seemed to have natural intuition about animal behavior, and he repositioned the vehicle just before the cheetahs drug the carcass right to where we were parked. We were delighted to have such an up-close view of these elusive animals. Victor is obviously a natural for his job, and you'll be fortunate if you get him...