The tented Bayethe Lodge was a real winner! Beautiful setting and amazing rooms. The main attraction--the animals--we saw the Big 5 and also spent 1 hour with 2 leopards!! Ask for Ben as a ranger. They were very accomodating for my wife's diet needs, but the food was hit and miss (the only drawback).

We spent 2 nights in Lobengula and it was unbelievable! The rooms are heavenly and spacious with beautiful decor and thatched roofs and are absolutely spotless.They have a gorgeous welcoming smell whenever you return from a game drive. The bathroom is huge and each lodge has a terrace with sun-beds and there is a pool also. We have stayed at many 5 star hotels and this room was by far the best!The service was first class and we were greeted with a warm drink when returning from each game drive. There are only 6 or so lodges so it is a very intimate stay as you share breakfast, lunch and dinner with your ranger and the other guests which is lovely as you swap stories about each others' game drives.There is a feeling of such tranquility when you're walking around the lodges! All of the staff were excellent and the service throughout was unbelievable - you can order food whenever you wish and the standard is wonderful! Regarding the game drives, our Ranger Ben was fantastic. He managed to find the Big 5 for us which was a challenge as Leopards are difficult to locate but he knew one was around due to the sound the monkeys were making! He spotted one the other side of the river with his binoculors - unbelievable! He has eyes like a hawk and can spot the animals so easily. Ben was determined to meet our objectives to see the Big 5, despite there being no obvious guarantees and he would do everything and go off-road anywhere in order to achieve this! The Game drives are at sunrise and sunset and it is essential that you wrap up with layers including warm jumpers and footwear/socks when it is dark as it gets very cold- despite high temperatures during the day. All in all, this was easily the best part of our trip to South Africa and we didn't want to leave such luxury! I would honestly pay to go to South Africa just for the 2 night stay at Lobengula !

We were orignally booked into Bushman's River Lodge but were upgraded to Eagles Crag which was a stunning place. The rooms were amazing as was the rest of the lodge. Each room had it's own private deck and pool which was great for relaxing in between game drives. Stayed 2 nights and had 4 drives. Graham our ranger was brilliant and got us our big 5 within our first 2 drives. His knowledge was outstanding and added to that was a lovely guy. All the staff were great, very friendly and helpful and kept us well fed and watered. The BBQ was out of this world.

Brilliant place and will definately be back there in the future.

We stayed in a tatched bayethe tent with all mod cons, plunge pool etc. Rustive luxury.

The reserve is huge with 5 or 6 lodges/hotels dotted around some 7 miles apart.........

We had three game drives, but missed the last one on the morning of our departure as we decided to have a lie in before our long trip home.

Six people share a Land Cruiser with the ranger driving fully armed. What we weren't told or had any knowledge of, is that we were expected to have supper/breakfast with our game buddies with the ranger at the head of the table - like school dinners. We were lucky we shared our two night stay with four chums who were lovely - what exactly happens if you end up with people you don't like or they don't lke you I really don't know, could be very awkward and embarassing.

The main lodge is huge and where meals are taken big squishy sofas to sit and read, there is an outside dining area. Food good but not amazing but given Shamwari's isolation, very well done - good wines. As a vegetarian there was just enough for me to eat.

The game drives were terrific - the first one started at 5.30 am ish, very exciting - everything is very regimented and there is always a snack, tea/coffee in the main lodge.

Don't drink too much coffee because each drive lasts a minimum of 3 hours and whilst we did stop a couple of times at night for a sundowner, the morning drive we didn't.

Saw amazing animals, white rhino, lots of elephants, giraffe, a baby hippo, cheetah - great. Be warned it is very very cold early morning and blowing a gale - the land cruiser is open sided and the wind just cuts through - I bought a beanie in the shop and one evening went out with 3 t shirts, a polo neck jumper, jacket and was covered in rugs, still freezing - came home with a horrible cold, so take warm clothes is my recommendation.

The weather wasn't great, a mixture of sun, wind, a little rain and light fog - we only stayed two nights and it probably would have been nice to spend another day - all inclusive and whilst not cheap I think an abolute bargain.

My husband and I both felt very privileged to have had such an experience - would we return, yes most definitely but we would go for the Eagles Craig next time as each of the lodges is totally different.

By the way, the spa treatments were wonderful according to my husband, he had three and said they were the best he had had outside of the Maldives.