wanderlust – Page 5 – WanderwithFaith

Every traveller has different needs when it comes to lodging.Depending on budget, length of stay and one’s personality, some places will do the trick while others would not. My stay was short yet it involved crossing a border (Zambia). Though Botswana is a neighbouring country, I was going there for the first time as a solo traveller.

Booking

I reserved a room on booking.com and the payment was done when I arrived at the premises.I was supposed to be in the chalets but because I am enjoying genius level 2 on booking.com, I did attract a discount and a room upgrade.Instead of being in the chalets, I enjoyed the double room.

Location

https://maunlodge.com .Maun Lodge is located in Maun town in Botswana. A town where most tourists frequent. It is a town on the Thamalakane river and is the jumping off point for the Okavango Delta which is a habitat for vast wildlife.

The closeness to a water body adds serenity to the place

Airport pickup

Few times I have been adventurous enough to jump on a taxi from the airport to where am lodged but sometimes you skip that adventurous self and try the safest way which is to be picked up by your hosts.Nothing is completely safe but you just have peace of mind knowing your hosts are taking care of your transport to the lodge and the good part is it was a free service.The driver and the welcoming team had smiling faces which was a plus!

Room Service

The environment of the lodge was welcoming and there was thorough cleaning done by the staff.The sink, shower, toilet were sparkling clean and they did offer those extras.The room had a safe and television with a number of channels though I wished for more channels

Work out time!

I was impressed that the lodge did carter for the active bodies like mine.I of course didn’t use all the machines.The treadmill is my fav!

Food?

Most food I had ordered was well prepared and presented and you had the option in the restaurant to enjoy it indoors or outdoors.

On the whole this lodge offered more than I expected and on a scale of 1 to 10, it was an 8.I would recommend it !

The older it gets,the more touristic value it seems to have

The Old Fort of Zanzibar is a beautiful historical feature found in Stone Town, Zanzibar.This feature also goes by the name The Arab Fort.If you ask me….this old fine piece of work is actually a ‘ tourist puller’.One of the much talked about touristic places in Zanzibar.

This feature was built by Omari Arabs in 1699.It was used as a prison.It is now used for film festivals though in the 20th century it was used as a depot.This piece of touristic work is now being used as a centre for cultural activities like curio shops.

On the left are curio shops ….sorry not clear 😜

The Fort is essentially a square of high brown walls with merlons,protecting an inner courtyard.In the courtyard there are some remnants of earlier buildings including those of a Portuguese church and another Omani fortification.

This place is now used for entertainment like live dance and music shows held mostly in the afternoons and evenings.

This group was here for what appeared to be workouts 🤔

“The destination is what you should focus on and not the journey….” WRONG! Enjoying the ride is part of adventure.Having been to Tanzania four times but to Zanzibar twice ….I must confess flying to the island was a lovely experience and happened so fast. But taking a ferry was an experience I wanna share.

For those who love ‘microwave’ experiences and how everything should be fast, fast, fast😁

Taking a ferry to Zanzibar as a solo traveller was a pleasure.For starters, I had to book for the ferry online but this worked more like a reservation because I wasn’t charged in advance.There should be one or two companies with ferries to and from the island but I am recommending you use Azam Marine just because I loved the first experience: https://azammarine.com

The ferry starts from Dar es salaam like indicated on the online reservation that comes to your mail when you use Azam Marine website and it also reflects if that particular time is free or there is availability.

Be sure to stick around for “boarding time!” alert but before that do visit the Azam Marine offices and show them your online reservation and try appearing there at least two hours or so before departure then they will hand you your ticket after your payment.

No two ways about it….if you aren’t a local, it’s $35 for you

In an event that you appeared way too early, they could actually even book you for an earlier time than you initially reserved.Note that during peak seasons you should avoid arriving late or you may lose the spot to an early bird.

It took about close to two hours enjoying the view, light waves, company of others…..lots of pictures to take even of other ferries going their way.

You know you have arrived when you see that sign post meaning “Welcome to Zanzibar”. It was a solo trip made easy because I read articles like these before the trip and met helpful people too.

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Tag: wanderlust

Maun Lodge Review 📍🇧🇼 Botswana

Ahh…so that’s the Old Fort of Zanzibar

Fly or ferry to Zanzibar Island?