Robin Pope Safaris Press Reviews

Travel: Zambia
The Scotsman
27 February 2010

Donald Walker meets many Scotsmen on his trip to Zambia, staying at the Safari Houses. "The safari house at Chongwe combines luxury with a touch of the Flintstones. Host Brendan – whose wife is from Crieff, good grief! – offered assurance that the ground floor bedroom was perfectly safe, despite the lack of an outside wall, leaving it wide open to passing elephants and hippos" ... "The impressive house (Luangwa Safari House), run by Robin Pope Safaris, has the feel of a castle and looks out over a lagoon where a waterhole is frequented by herds of elephants and journeys of giraffes. "

The perfect classroom: learn photo tricks on Zambian safari
Condé Naste Traveller
25 February 2010

Jenn Selby extols photo safaris with David Rogers: "Award-winning photographer David Rogers has spent the last 15 years of his life capturing stunning scenes of the South and East African landscape at hundreds of different locations. Now, he has teamed up with the renowned and extremely exclusive Robin Pope Safaris to offer his expertise on wildlife photography in the world's biggest classroom: the South Luangwa Valley of Zambia."

Explore Africa's hidden treasures
The Star (South Africa)
February 2010

Winnie Graham compiles a list of choice destinations: ROBIN POPE SAFARIS, in Zambia’s 10,000km2 South Luangwa National Park, is dominated by the Luangwa River with a lagoon system and riverine woodlands. It offers excellent game viewing, both on foot or by vehicle, including elephants, some of the continent’s best leopard viewing, lion, buffalo and,more recently, a resurgence of the wild dog population plus more than 400 bird species.

There are three 12-bed bush camps, a couple of luxury safari houses and two- to five-day walking safaris with a mobile camp. Robin Pope Safaris recently opened a luxury lodge on Lake Malawi, Pumulani, and offers a bush and beach experience.

Wild Kingdom
Private Clubs, USA
November 2009

Jim Morrison goes on his first African trip and around every corner on the dusty trail another remarkable experience awaits. He sees more different animals than he could have imagined and is reminded of a quote from British travel writer Brian Jackman: "Everything in Africa bites, but the safari bug is worst of all."  Jim also provides a summary of Zambia's National Parks

Chongwe River House and Luangwa Safaris House
Architectural Digest
November 2009

Two one-of-a-kind guest retreats in Zambia are outfitted for roaming or relaxing.  Architecture and Interior Design by Neil Rocher. Text and photography by Tim Beddow.

From the ground up
Travel Africa Magazine
Autumn 2009

While traditional tented camps continue to have a certain allure, the standard lodges of the past – simple, comfortable bases for safari explorations – are increasingly losing out to chic structures that have become attractions in their own right. One of the leaders shaping  the accommodation evolution is designer Neil Rocher. Are his concepts derived  from successful commercial models  found elsewhere in luxury travel market?  No, they are born from the very  African soil on which they are built.  By Matt Phillips.

Zambia Safaris
Daily Mail
17 September 2009

Duff Hart-Davis recalls "Elephants, baboons and a walk on the wild side in stunning South Luangwa"

My own private Africa
Tatler
June 2009

Staying on private estates in Africa is the smart way to travel. Lisa Grainger tracks down the biggest beasts and highlights Chongwe River House - "There's no other lodge like it in Africa.. It's nutty, It's eccentric, a cross between a Flintstones cave, a Gaudi sculpture and a thatched African homestead..."

The Plain Truth
Travel Zambia
May 2009

Liuwa Plain is the stuff of myth: a remote, little-visited corner of Zambia that is reputedly home to one of Africa’s greatest animal gatherings. For years it was off the safari map. But now, with the help of some enterprising conservationists and operators, adventurous travellers can find out what all the fuss is about. Stephen Cunliffe took up the challenge."

The loneliest lioness
Metro, London, UK
22 April 2009

Meet Lady Liuwa, last of her pride, who's been alone for nearly 8 years.

Safari breaks: Beauty and the beasts in amazing Africa
Daily Mail, UK
18 March 2009

PRIVATE SAFARI: CHONGWE RIVER HOUSE, ZAMBIA
This unique house accommodates up to eight guests in eccentric ethnic splendour.
Custom-built around rough branches, it claims there isn't a straight line to be seen.
Apart from great style, Chongwe boasts excellent staff: a private chef will discuss each day's menu after you've plotted safaris, boat and fishing trips with one of your two guides.
And if you're worn out, you can always retire to your swimming pool.

No distractions, just splendid isolation
The Independent, UK
5 October 2008

To experience the African wild, you need to forget the outside world for a while. Adrian Mourby travels to two new retreats in Zambia and Malawi (Pumulani).

Honeymoon Safaris
Westchester Weddings
26 August 2008

Dave Donelson finds Five Glorious Getaways in the Heart of Africa and says "For rampant romance, take a honeymoon where luxury is elemental, the nightlife howls, and the wildlife is really, really wild" and " At Nkwali camp you can spot what may be the most graceful animal on earth." (find out which)

Roam a New Range
National Geographic
September 2008

With neighboring Zimbabwe in turmoil, Zambia has emerged as the newest player in southern Africa's safari triangle. It shares Victoria Falls' thundering whitewater and the Lower Zambezi's hippo-studded canoe trail. But it's South Luangwa National Park that rivals Botswana's Okavango Delta, South Africa's Kruger National Park, and other celebrated wildlife haunts.

No one knows the Luangwa Valley better than Robin Pope — the Zambian-born bush guide was leading trips before anyone here had ever heard of adventure travel. In keeping with his unconventional — and acute — bush wisdom, Pope advises clients to come during the "Emerald Season," a six-month stretch beginning in November when spectacular thunderstorms roll through, swell the Luangwa River to its high mark, and leave the land a brilliant green and the sky an intense blue. Birds break out in breeding plumage, and elephants, zebras, and warthogs form nursery herds. Witness the local life cycle unfold during an eight-day floating, walking, and 4x4 safari. Candlelit dinners and South African vintages are served up nightly at Nkwali, the Pope family's 14-guest homestead.

Exclusive Liuwa Plains Safari
Travel World News
1 August 2008

Many travelers to Africa have heard of "Liuwa Plains" - the vast open grasslands in the far west of Zambia, but very few have been there.

Now Robin Pope Safaris in the South Luangwa, Zambia, is providing an opportunity to visit this immense wilderness. The Liuwa Plains is an enormous wilderness area, brimming with birds and home to huge numbers of animals such as pelicans, zebras, tsessebe, buffalo, hyena, cheetah and many more.

The landscape is completely flat and the skies vast – here you really are in the middle of wild, remote and isolated lands.

Ooh, wicked
The Times
June 22, 2008

Robin Pope made his name as Africa’s hardest-working walking-safari guide, but we always knew there was a touch of hedonism about him. On Tuesday week, he opens Pumulani lodge. It’ll be positively decadent: 10 luxury villas overlooking the clear, warm waters of Lake Malawi. Great diving and snorkelling, with clouds of indigenous fish, but we suspect most guests will be be found sipping cocktails in the infinity pool.

The Hedge Fund Club Magazine,
June 2008

Lucia Van der Post writes: "at Luangwa Safari House lunching under the huge ebony tree you are part of the drama of the bush. Out of the wilderness, long lines of elephants frequently come down to the marsh and lake (lagoon) in front of the house to drink."

"Chongwe River House looks over another sort of scene entirely – the Chongwe River, a tributary of the great Zambezi which is itself accessible a mere 10 minutes by motor boat (which comes with the house). Without moving from the sun deck you can see most of the vast menagerie of Africa’s wildlife at play. "

Work in a safari camp = cheap holiday
The Times
June 7, 2008

Serving guests rather than being one was a role reversal for Cath Urquhart - but a cheaper way to see Africa.

"I first visited Robin Pope Safaris in 2006 to interview Jo Pope about her work supporting local schools and jobs in this impoverished part of eastern Zambia. Jo and her husband, Robin, run a lodge on the banks of the Luangwa River. The main camp, Nkwali, sleeps 12 in six chalets, while parties of eight can hire Luangwa House, half a mile away down a bumpy track. It's an enormous safari house built three years ago from ancient leadwood trees and stone, with a thatched roof. "

"On this visit I had returned as a caterer, overseeing the cleaning and cooking at Luangwa House for wealthy, potentially demanding guests. My reward: time off each day to enjoy game drives and bush life. For a travel writer, accustomed to staying at some of the world's best hotels, it was a major role reversal - as a host, could I meet the standards that I would expect as a guest? "

Read the full article

Bush Babies
BA High Life Magazine
May 2008

Lisa Johnson reveals the best hideaways for great game spotting:

Robin Pope's Safari Houses in Zambia, have also been a well-kept secret with those in the know for the past few years. Guests can stay in a fully-staffed designer house with private pool and extensive grounds, as well as having guides and transportation 'on call' so that they can tailor-make their own experience.

Lake Placid
The Guardian
17 May 2008

One to Watch
Harper's Bazaar
March 2008

Lydia Bell reports: "Safari Legend Robin Pope has opened a new lodge in Malawi, the perfect place to relax after going walkabout this summer. Pumulani has 10 rooms and private decks for watching the birds and sunsets. "

Safari for beginners
Food and Travel
Feb/Mar 2008

Brian Jackman introduces this vast and vivid land, and highlights Nsefu camp. "Like most of Zambia's camps and lodges, Nsefu is owner-run, in this case by Robin Pope, Zambia's best known professional safari guide. Nsefu's cosy thatched rondavels come with shady verandahs and en-suite showers and wide-screen views of the Luangwa River. Why not combine a stay at Nsefu with a walking safari accompanied by an armed ranger? "

Into Zambia
Sunday Times
27 January 2008

Close to the Victoria Falls [at Chongwe River Camp], Karen Robinson finds herself even closer to an elephant nearly in the room. "Since our arrival in Zambia five days before, we had been as close to the wildlife of Africa as it’s possible to be while still enjoying good food and wine, comfortable rooms and attentive service. At Robin Pope’s establishments in the Luangwa valley, that’s pretty close. I didn’t even have to get out of bed at Nkwali Camp to see the Luangwa river, gleaming like mercury in the sunlight and home to more wallowing, grunting, snorting hippo than I could count."

20 Style Destinations for '08
Sunday Times
20 January 2008

"MALAWI: Robin and Jo Pope helped put responsible tourism on the map in Africa. Robin is one of the continent’s most respected guides, and their safari camps in Zambia’s South Luangwa are just gorgeous."

"Still, a beach option would be nice. No sooner said than done – in the shape of Pumulani, on Lake Malawi, which opens in July. The romantic 10-room lodge overlooks its own creamy beach. Safari in the morning, then dip your toes in the water and snooze all afternoon."

100 summer holidays for '08
Sunday Times
6 January 2008

"59: Branson goes there, Madonna goes there: Lake Malawi is becoming an unlikely celebrity playground. In July, Robin Pope, Africa’s leading safari guide, will open Pumulani camp on its southern shores: five hillside villas in spectacular surroundings, with fantastic scuba-diving to see unique fish species. It should make a cool addition to Pope’s famed walking safaris in the South Luangwa valley, Zambia. ... pricey, but, if Pope’s track record is anything to go by, you’ll get what you pay for."

Luxury Travel Magazine
January 2008

In their review of what's new, Luxury Travel Magazine highlights Pumulani Lodge.

One of the top 101 hotels in the world
The Tatler Travel Guide
2008

Chongwe River House is in Tatler Travel Guide’s 101 best hotels for 2008.

In 2007 Tena Tena and Luangwa Safari House were ranked among the top 101 hotels in the world by Tatler UK.

Luangwa Safari House ranked among the best 'Private Party' hotels:

"Zambia was in the spotlight this year with safari chief Robin Pope building two lodges. The first, Chongwe, is wonderfully eccentric, a sort of hobbit home. Luangwa, on the other hand, is a deeply elegant house perfect for friends or family. It sits on the edge of a seasonal lagoon close to South Luangwa National Park, one of Africa’s best game reserves: wild, out of the way, stuffed full of predators. Architect Neil Rocher, who had such success creating Shompole in Kenya, has merged the bush with the interior. Cathedral-style doors open onto a two-storey sitting and dining area. Thereafter, the house is exposed to the wilderness with a quartz-tiled terrace and plunge-pool – an ideal spot from which to watch elephants and giraffes at the lagoon. Each of the four bedrooms (two up, two down) has a different look – kill for the one with the copper bath – and its own terrace or verandah."

Tena Tena ranked among the best 'Camps' hotels:

"Africa without the pillow menus, the rose-petal baths or the cellars overflowing with Pétrus. Africa at its most exciting, its most old-school – long may the desire for all things retro reign! This is Robin Pope’s first and best camp. Pope rules the walking safari, and he rules it from here in Luangwa – possibly the wildest wildlife sanctuary in Africa, with the most game and the fewest tourists. If you want infinity pools, cutting-edge furniture or one of those flipping pod baths, don’t come. If you want a tent pitched under a mahogany tree, if you want to fall asleep to the sound of frogs, owls and lions, to wake and see a python wrapped around the tree above you, to eat by a lagoon while a leopard appears out of the darkness, then head here."

Holiday Hotspots: Where to go in 2008
The Telegraph
31 December 2007

Mark Jones, under the heading "Where we'll be going", says: in July, the celebrated Zambian guide Robin Pope is opening Pumulani in July, a new lodge on Lake Malawi, set inside a World Heritage Site.

Best New Hotels for 2008
The Telegraph
31 December 2007

Nicky Holford draws up a wish list, and in Africa, selects:

Pumulani, Lake Malawi, Malawi "On the west side of the Namkumba Peninsula on Lake Malawi, Pumulani - opening in July - is in Malawai's only national park. There will be 10 guest villas, with an infinity pool, with fantastic views from elevated terraces."

Where's hot for 2008?
The Observer
30 December 2007

Amanda Marks, Managing director, fair-trade travel company Tribes, writes that "There's a lot of really good stuff going on in Zambia at the moment. It has always been known for its walking safaris but there's much more than that, from boating safaris on the Zambesi to excellent fishing. The lodges are fantastic, the guiding is wonderful, it's properly wild and a lot of tourism is done ethically, from safaris with people like Robin Pope and Norman Carr, to smaller operators - and the anti-poaching measures in Zambia are great."

The 53 Places to go in 2008
New York Times
9 December 2007

At #29 is Malawi: "Blame Madonna. Safarigoers tended to overlook Malawi, but that has changed since she began her effort to adopt a 1-year-old boy from this tiny African country that lies within the Great Rift Valley. Next July, the luxury lodge Pumulani is set to open 10 villas on spectacular Lake Malawi, home to rare cichlids and pied kingfishers."

Sambia Reise
Die Welt
30 November 2007
(also in Berliner Morgenpost)

Wolfgang Merkel writes: Sambia, das ist noch besser als bei Daktari.

Lassen wir den Geländewagen einfach mal stehen. AuchSafari-Bustouren sind in Sambia verpönt. Stattdessen wandern die Urlauber, begleitet von bewaffneten Rangern, zu Elefanten, Büffeln und Leoparden. Auch wenn es manchmal etwas Überwindung kostet. Denn wer will schon als Krokodil-Futter enden?

My Private Africa
Sunday Times
25 November 2007

So we’re all au fait with renting a cottage in the Lakes or a villa on the costas. How about trying it on a safari? Brian Jackman explains...

Aaronovitch on a family safari of Zambia
The Times
27 October 2007

In the company of lions, elephants, hippos, hyenas and countless exotic birds, David Aaronovitch and family get in tune with nature.

Leave your worries behind: Tourists are relaxing and relishing a wildly diverse continent
Boston Globe
26 August 2007

David Swanson investigates Africa Safaris, and discusses the myth that Safaris aren’t suited for families.

"Robin Pope Safaris in Zambia's South Luangwa National Park designs learning programs for children 7 and older. On guided nature walks, they are taught how to identify various animal paw prints and droppings and they learn to use spotlights at night to track game. On a visit to a village school they meet Zambian children, collect eggs from the hen house, and bake cookies in the camp kitchen."

Ellies at the Bottom of the Garden (link to PDF copy)
Financial Times How to Spend it
June 2007

Home of the walking safari, Zambia juxtaposes the excitement of raw African bush and night drives, with lodges for your exclusive use, says Lucia van der Post

The Hot List 2007
Condé Naste Traveller
April 2007

"Zambia has never seen the likes of Chongwe River House, and is unlikely to see it again. This extraordinary private villa was designed by Neil Rocher, who made his name with the Shompole camp in southern Kenya. The building is a free-form, undulating structure moulded around the organic shapes of twisted branches: a cartoon cave dwelling fit for Barney Rubble, with an LED-lit water feature and a tree trunk for seating in the living/dining room. In profile, the house appears to have sprouted sci-fi wings: soaring structures surrounded by fans of wooden spikes rise above the two upstairs bedrooms, which sit directly above two further bedrooms downstairs. There are no doors or glass in the windows; baths and showers are open-air. The house is co-owned by Robin Pope Safaris and Chongwe River Camp, on whose land it has been built at the mouth of the Chongwe River, a tributary of the great Zambezi. The house and lovely swimming-pool terrace face the Lower Zambezi National Park, with its dramatic escarpment backdrop, just across the river. The house is in effect a private safari camp with its own management couple, Garth and Lindsay Hovell, a chef, butler and guide. There are also fishing boats (Garth is a keen fly fisherman) and three Canadian canoes."

Five Best: Safari Villas
Independent Traveller (UK)
1st April 2007

Rhiannon Batten hightlights Luangwa Safari, House Zambia: "This stunning, four-bedroom house is set on the edge of a seasonal lagoon, overlooking elephant, giraffe and other local game. Built around 25 old leadwood trees, it is one of the most dramatic private safari properties. Rooms are arranged around an open-sided "great room", with squishy sofas and a huge marble table, looking out on to a terrace and pool. There is also a game-viewing deck, or you can perch on the upstairs balcony and survey the bush and the distant Chindeni Hills."

Vanity Fair
April 2007

Deb Tittle: "A Brit, Deb worked in France and South America before Africa claimed her for its own. She's now top guide with Robin Pope Safaris, the apex of walking safaris in the South Luangwa, Zambia. To experience the bush without the sound of the internal-combustion engine is sensational. You're unlikely to see lion or leopard - reassuring or disappointing, depending on your nerve - and to be with a young woman in the bush is rather different. It becomes a gentler place of small things."

The Last Real Africa
National Geographic Traveler
March 2007

World-famous wildlife photographer Frans Lanting and his wife, Chris Eckstrom, team up to bring you the real African safari. We're not talking fancy lodges and butler service. We're talking the real deal -- a chance to see amazing wildlife in its natural habitat and an opportunity to reconnect with the land. Zambia's lightly visited, wildlife-rich Luangwa Valley is a place with a powerful safari personality shaped by several generations of strong-willed and farsighted individuals living and guiding in one of Africa's great wildlife strongholds. Trust us, this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

October 2007: The Society of American Travel Writers announced the 2007 Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism winners. Among magazines, National Geographic Traveler won five awards, including the Bronze winner Christine K. Eckstrom, for her article “The Last Real Africa,” in the March-April 2007 issue of National Geographic Traveler."

To Find the Real Zambia, It Took a Village
Washington Post
25 March 2007

Bill Brubaker visits Kawaza Village, and the School, and also meets a traditional healer.

(Also published in the Miami Herald, 1 July 2007)

Wet and wild
The Times Online
18 March 2007

Everybody goes on safari in the dry season; but are we missing a trick? Mark Hodson visits Zambia at the ‘wrong’ time of year to see why wetter is better

East African Safari takes the long route
Chicago Tribune,
11 March 2007

Margaret Backenheimer recommends the South Luangwa Valley ("one of the finest wildlife sanctuaries in Africa"), and our Walking Mobile Safaris "Each day, naturalist-led hikes reveal the plants, birds and animals of the bush in the company of an armed scout to assure safety."

Lie Back and Think of Africa
London Evening Standard
25 February 2007

Jo Fernandez writes: " The Chongwe River House, in Zambia's Lower Zambezi, is architecturally fantastic — made from ferro (cement) walls and wild wood, it follows the natural lines of the branches used. Think The Flintstones meets design hotel, as inside nature mixes with silky interior touches: furniture carved from a fallen winterthorn tree, waterfall showers, taps carved from bone and wood, handmade copper baths and white marble basins. The main room on the ground floor is built over low bridges across the water, with views across to the deck and swimming pool, while the bedrooms are entered through tunnels. Just opened last year, the property has its own chef and there is even a private butler, on hand to deliver your morning tea or your evening G&T."

Those feet are made for walking
Sunday Times, Travel & Food. (South Africa)
January 28 2007.

Gisela Williams writes: "Tourism in once dirt-poor Zambia is booming on the back of the woes of its southern neighbor. Gisela Williams checks out some top lodges.

Go on safari in Kenya or South Africa and you’ll likely encounter rows of tourist buses armed with shiny zoom lenses all aiming at the same sleeping lion. It’s a different world in Zambia, and not only because its game reserves are as yet unspoiled by mass tourism. This is the home of Africa’s best walking safaris, and instead of driving for hours in search of the big five, you explore the bush on foot."

A refresher course in simple pleasures
The Sunday Times
21 January 2007

A safari trip to the wilds of Zambia evokes childhood memories for Sandra Howard

"Robin Pope is a remarkable man. He spreads such a sense of calm; we were out walking in the unspoilt wilderness of the South Luangwa Valley in Zambia, a handful of trusting guests, miles from the comparative safety of truck or Land Rover, prey for any passing kings of the plains, but feeling completely secure"

Sleeping under African skies
Sunday Telegraph
21 January 2007

Lisa Grainger returns to Africa in search of luxury safari camps that allow guests to bed down under the stars.

"Robin Pope, one of Africa's legendary guides, has been in the Luangwa Valley since the 1960s so he knows it intimately. His nine-day bush safaris are on foot, taking in wild grasslands, thick ebony groves, the Luangwa River and vegetable ivory palms with an armed guide, before hunkering down at night at a remote camping spot. There is plenty of time for star-gazing – camps are in the middle of nowhere, with sundowners and dinner taken under the Milky Way in beautiful parts of the country, and nights spent under mosquito nets, or tents, after moonlit bush showers under a tree."

The Complete Guide To: Luxury Safaris
The Independant (UK)
20 January 2007

"Seclusion is also offered at Robin Pope's new Palmgrove Bush Camp in Zambia's Luangwa valley. It's not as lavish as a boutique lodge experience, but this is as cool as bush camping gets, with proper tents, mattresses, sheets and blankets, bucket showers and a full bar and food service."

Giles Foden:
My Life in Travel
The Independant (UK)
20 January 2007

Sophie Lam asks Giles Foden, Where has seduced you?

"Africa. I remember going to a particular ebony grove in northern Zambia a few years ago. We had a wonderful safari guide called Robin Pope, who made us sit down and be quiet. It was a very moving if not eerie experience. One felt that human beings and animals had been coming to it for thousands of years."

Avontuur in Afrika
De Telegraf, Reis Special. 6 January 2007.,

Daphne Van Rossum writes: In het schitterde en onontgonnen ostelijk Zambia zij er op drie plekken door de plaatselijke gemeenschap landelijk gelegen lodges gebouwd, waarin je voor dertig euro per nacht letterlijk tussen de wilde dieren slaapt. Er wordt door de plaatselijke bevolking voor je gekookt en bekeerde stropers nemen jemee op een avontuurlijke wanselsafari en vertellen’s avonds bij de barbecue hun spannende levenverhalen. Alle opbrengsten vloeien netjes terug in de gemeenschapskas. Zo drag je tijdens je vakantie ook nog een steentje bij aan de locale economie. En dat je dan vanuit de bushcamps nog heel wat wilde dieren (o.a. zebra’s, buffels, impala’s, elanden en wrattenzwijnen) tegenkomt, is helemaal mooi meegenomen. Al kan een treffen met een paar pas bevallen olifanten wat minder aangenaam uitpakken…..

Weelde in het wild
Het Financieele Dagblad, FD Persoonlijk. 6 January 2007

Babette Verbeek writes:. “Zulke lieflijke beelden moeten door engelen met bewondering zijn aanschouwd tijdens hun vluchten.” Die verwondering, meer dan 150 jar geleden opgetekend door de ontdekkingsreiziger David Livingstone bij het zien van de Victoria Falls, slaat nog steeds toe.

One of the top 101 hotels in the world
The Tatler Travel Guide
2007

Tena Tena and Luangwa Safari House have been ranked among the top 101 hotels in the world by Tatler UK.

Luangwa Safari House is ranked among the best 'Private Party' hotels, and Tena Tena is ranked among the best 'Camps' hotels.

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