We wandered around Juneau today for 6 hours. A quaint gift shop town. While it felt like being in a mall all day, it was fascinating at the same time. The big celebrity cruise ship was in port and the people swarmed the town from 11-3. We bought our gifts in advance, sent a postcard, ate a quick lunch, called on our cells to say good-bye one last time to our family, and then went to the hotel to board the boat. We enjoyed a nice interpretive lecture by a gal from the Huna community. We heard her sing some songs in Tlingit, share some old photos and artifacts. We then headed to the vessel next where the captain and crew were waiting to greet us.
We boarded the vessel, settled in to our cabins with nice down comforters, desk, DVD/TV and plenty of closet space for all our clothes. It was very nice and more spacious than I had expected. We explore the boat a bit, then went to the lounge for our briefing by the crew and our welcome drinks. Our mandatory coast guard drill came next and we donned our sporty life-vests on the rear deck together and next ate a late dinner. The food was delicious, but a bit small for our appetites. In the evening, we settled in to our cabin early to watch a movie and go to bed (while it was still light again).
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
1 day ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.