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Average
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About
4.5
#1 of 1 cottage in Queen Elizabeth National Park
Location
4.8
Cleanliness
4.6
Service
4.8
Value
4.6
Pumba Safari Cottages is a safari lodge by Queen Elizabeth National Park located by Kyambura on the escarpment overlooking the park. Here we have a magnificent view out over the park. Seeing beautiful sunsets over the savanna and often spotting elephants in the park below. Come relax at this cosy safari lodge with friendly service and tasty meals.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
This is a great lodge on the budget side. I received a very warm welcome and then was shown my banda. It was very clean and had an amazing view over the Savannah. I saw a magnificent sunset from my balcony, monkeys playing and elephants below! The staff were so friendly, food was fantastic Unfortunately, I was guaranteed hot water (needed when covered in sweat, sunscreen and deet) but did not have any. The staff kept insisting there is hot water and spent two hours going back and forth. As it was late and I was exhausted, I finally just took a cold shower. The next day they moved me to another room on a solar heater, however I still had only cold water. They did take a bit off my laundry bill to try and compensate. The wifi was only in the restaurant and very poor. I couldn’t actually load anything. This didn’t bother me too much as only quickly check emails and news while on a holiday. Charging was available from 7-10 pm and 5-8 am. If they can sort the hot water, than this place is a winner!
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Date of stay: December 2019Trip type: Traveled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Anna T, Public Relations Manager at Pumba Safari Cottages
Responded Jan 3, 2020
Very lovely message to us and great to read thag a lot worked out well for you and great the monkey and othet wildlife showed up... its a pitty foe the wifii that it can be on and off but for the water its possible to get it fine tuned although the great Rain season has almost brought us to our knees. we are confident after that time a thorough move to get it set worked out...
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We really enjoyed our stay at Pumba Safari Cottages. It's up on the ridge overlooking the national park with fabulous views inviting you to sit on your verandah to take in the scenery. It's so peaceful and relaxing.
The room was very comfortable and decorated with care. There are lots of nice little touches that show the owners want their guests to be happy here.
The restaurant has views onto the trees which was great for seeing the birds. If anything is not available you can just ask and they will do their best to provide it. I would highly recommend this hotel and it will be at the top of my list for a return visit.
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Date of stay: September 2019
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Woodland Lodges, Owner at Pumba Safari Cottages
Responded Jun 21, 2024
Dear Tgrafton, Warm greetings from Pumba Safari Cottages. Thank you for the great feedback and We are pleased that you enjoyed your stay with us, and we are pleased for the special touches, Comfortable rooms, great view and different species of birds. Looking forward to welcoming you again for another memorable stay. Thank you and enjoy the rest of you day.
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The accommodations were clean and comfortable. The food was always expertly prepared and tasted great. The staff was always pleasant and eager to please everyone meeting our every need, no matter what. Sometimes we had to leave early in the morning they would have our breakfast ready and have our lunch packed for us.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Traveled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Woodland Lodges, Owner at Pumba Safari Cottages
Responded Jun 21, 2024
Greetings from Pumba Safari Cottages. Thank you for sharing the beautiful feedback. We are delighted to hear that you enjoyed you stay with us and pleased that the staffs made your stay memorable with expertly prepared food, excellent staffs, and clean and comfortable rooms. Thanks for the feedback and we are looking forward to hosting again. enjoy the rest of your time.
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We spent three nights here and we can highly recommend Pumba Safari Cottages. Justus and Abel have been great hosts, making us feel like we were the most important guests. Since it is a small lodge, it is very personal. The hosts were always open for a chat and information on the life and culture in this area of Uganda.
First we had a cottage in the back, but we were moved to a cottage with a never ending view onto Queen Elizabeth park. You could even see elephants from there. The beds were comfortable. Water was hot after a few minutes.
There is a set menu, but it was very delicious. Before we came here, we stayed some nights in a high end lodge in Bwindi, but the food tasted much better in Pumba.
I would also recommend to do a community walk (we did it with Justus) to learn about local farming.
Overall it was one of the best lodges we stayed in.
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Anna T, Owner at Pumba Safari Cottages
Responded Jan 7, 2020
Superb to read about your three days which seem to be the minimum for such a super encounter with Abel and his counterpart Justus.. we can understand the cocoa farming around gives the best to add to the private Elephant garden bellow your cottage. thanks for the honest review again.
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Convenient location - 10 minutes from Queen Elizabeth NP entrance and same to Kyambura Gorge for the chimpanzee trekking, which I thoroughly recommend. The first thing that strikes you about this place is the view. It certainly has the 'wow' factor. Most of the lodges face towards the National Park. I arrived and I was lucky enough to have an elephant or two foraging in the valley below and monkeys hanging out on my terrace. I got a beer and relaxed on the terrace simply to enjoy the moment. It also makes for a beautiful sunset. The lodges are simple, comfortable, clean and have nice hot showers. The staff, I have to mention Scarlett in particular, are very friendly and attentive. Food, like most of the lodges here, is locally sourced or homegrown. As it was the low season and due to Covid, my guide and I were the only two staying here. Food was between a choice of two options. Understandable. The perfect place to unwind after a day in the Park and admire the savannah in all its glory.
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Date of stay: May 2021
Rooms
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Woodland Lodges, Owner at Pumba Safari Cottages
Responded Jun 21, 2024
Dear Chrismrich, Thank you for the fantastic feedback. We are thrilled for the memorable stay with us, Excellent location with endless views and we glad that you sotted monkeys and elephants, delicious food prepared by our professional chefs. Looking forward to welcoming again.
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We spent two nights in Pumba enjoying the amazing views of the sabana, kyambura George, eleohants in the evening... With the most wellcome staff and food around. Lovely alphonso and prossi, wisihing to back soon again
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Date of stay: March 2021Trip type: Traveled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Woodland Lodges, Owner at Pumba Safari Cottages
Responded Jun 21, 2024
Dear Gerardinhoo, Warmest greetings from Pumba safari cottages. We are pleased that you enjoyed our delicious food, excellent services and staffs. Your kind words mean a lot to us, and we are looking forward to welcoming you and more friends for another memorable stay in future. thank you for choosing our lodge, enjoy the rest of your day.
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Quite simply awful! (And beware of reviews less than 10 contributions as they are staff/paid.)
I researched where to stay in Queen Elizabeth park and chose Pumba, despite it not being recommended by my tour company. From start to finish it was awful. We arrived at 5pm and there was no-one at reception and the lights were all off. After five minutes two staff arrived and we’re still tucking in their shirts as if they had just woken up and got dressed. I was shown to my room which was basic, lacked any towels and had mosquitos everywhere (including inside the open mosquito net which was open above the bed. The restaurant wasn’t any better - had low lighting and was filled with mosquitoes. Wifi was only available in the restaurant with intermittent connectivity even there - and forget trying to use when others were there as this just caused it to totally fail. My room was the garden room which was noisy due to a room above where you heard the conversation as if the people were in your room. And the pillow cases had seen better days with stains on them.
My guide recommended we leave at 6am to catch sunrise in the game park. Unfortunately no hot water at that time and despite organizing breakfast for 5:45am there was no one available until we left at 6am (when staff arrived with pajamas on).
The only positive was the wonderful staff member called Catherine who was thoughtful and helpful.
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Date of stay: September 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Traveled solo
Room Tip:Avoid. No pool. Unsafe for solo travelers.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Anna Tragardh, Owner at Pumba Safari Cottages
Responded Oct 11, 2023
Dear Nicki, We are sad to read your reviews and false claims. We never pay for reviews or have staff write reviews! It is an awful thing to accuse a company of. Based on the review you wrote on Google it is quite easy to realize that your disappointment is due to a miss match between the budget level you have booked and what you came expecting. In your review on Google you write about our neighbouring lodge as the standard you wished for and that lodge is a mid-range lodge. You could have paid three times more and stayed with them. At Pumba Safari Cottages we are happily catering for budget travellers who wish for a comfortable stay with great value for money. You should have communicated which accommodation level you were wishing for to your tour operator and they could have advised you accordingly. Our team were there to check you in when you arrived and they had breakfast ready for you in the morning, you might be mixing your memories up with your experience at another lodge. We provide mosquito nets in all rooms and it is normal that these are not closed at check-in time (when you go to bed you close your mosquito net). Regarding wifi it is common practise on wildlife lodges to offer internet access in the restaurant area.
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The resort is a little tired and could use some TLC. That said, the service and kindness of the staff made up for this. We stayed two nights. Our first room was in a cottage behind the cabins and very small with some maintenance needed. The cabins on the edge of the ledge overlooking the Queen Elizabeth Park had amazing views and we requested a room change and they accommodated us the next day. Monkeys will be your neighbours and most likely to see an elephant in the park. Delicious food, wonderful service.
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Date of stay: February 2023Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip:Ask for the cabins with the view. Bring converter strip with you. Please note most properties in...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Woodland Lodges, Owner at Pumba Safari Cottages
Responded Jul 30, 2024
Hello ,thank you for choosing Pumba Safari Cottages as your Safari Destination ,we are happy you had a delicious meal and a glance at the monkeys and Elephants during your Stay . We sincerely apologise for everything that didn't go well and promise to do better next time.
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Pro- Best staff of anywhere I stayed! Food was good, they won best pancake (orange zest in the batter)
Cons- definitely a smaller room, although the shower was nice and hot. Lighting in the room was very dim, and it was a Very dark walk to the cabin after dinner. Would be nice if they offered flashlight/torch like some other locations. Overall, I would definitely come back because the staff was so wonderful- they made up for everything else!
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Date of stay: December 2021
Location
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Woodland Lodges, Owner at Pumba Safari Cottages
Responded Feb 13, 2023
Hello Michelle ,we are so grateful for your kind words. The staff at the lodge are very thrilled to hear of this. The pancake is always irresistible!! Lighting has been improved and there's always a staff escorting the guests to the room... The staff will definitely be glad to host you once again. Greetings
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We stayed here two nights, the lodges are located up on a hill and there Is a wonderful view on the landscape. The location is very cozy, accurate and well managed. We received a warm welcome by the staff that was very professional and demonstrated high care to the guests. The restaurant prepares delicious local dishes. Overall a great stay and we definetly recommend It.
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Date of stay: January 2024Trip type: Traveled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Woodland Lodges, Owner at Pumba Safari Cottages
Responded Jan 24, 2024
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with us. Our team is grateful for all the kind words and appreciation. It is our goal to provide a unique and professional experience to our guests and am glad we excelled. We look forward to hosting you again in the near future. We wish you all the best!
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Hi!
I'm glad you are interested in our Pumba Safari Cottages. We can help to arrange a car and guide for a game-drive. Please inform us when booking if you are interested so that we can contact a local guide to take care of you.
A car and guide for half a days game-drive ranges from 80-100 dollars and a full day 140-180 dollar (price depending on who is available). The park entry is then 40 dollar per person per 24 hours.
Kind regards
Management
Pumba Safari Cottages
There are more places to choose from in the Queen Elizabeth National Park area.
PRICE RANGE
$72 - $80 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
FORMERLY KNOWN AS
Kyambura Safari Cottages
LOCATION
UgandaWestern RegionQueen Elizabeth National Park
NUMBER OF ROOMS
6
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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