Dear Evaneos,
Unfortunately, we have no choice but to write this negative review regarding the services provided by your company for what was supposed to be the greatest trip of our lives: our honeymoon in Botswana. We understand that not everything can be controlled during such trips, but the mistakes made by your agent demonstrate a lack of knowledge about Botswana, particularly the Okavango Delta. Moreover, there was a severe lack of communication with both us numerous changes were made to the trip without our knowledge and the lodges/safari providers. It is disheartening that little effort was made to rectify the situation or plan a trip that met our requests.
We requested a 10-day trip to visit Chobe, Makgadikgadi, and the Okavango Delta, with stays in lodges within the reserves for game drives. We had a specific request for a certain 5-star lodge, acknowledging its higher price. However, one month before our departure, we were informed that we couldn't spend one night at the 5-star lodge due to it being allegedly full. No discount was offered, but we accepted the alternative lodge as we were super excited for the trip.
The first couple of days went smoothly until we had to fly to the new lodge, which was not the one we requested. We realized at the departure gate, without prior notice from the agency, that we were flying to a different airport, adding a two-hour drive to our journey. Consequently, we missed the planned morning game drive. The lodge they booked for us only offered full-day game drives, meaning we lost another 1.5 days of game drives.
Upon reaching our next location, we discovered that instead of staying in the Okavango Delta, we were placed in the city of Maun. We contacted the travel agent to express our concerns and the negative reviews we found, but changing anything was deemed too expensive. The reality of the place was disappointing. Our accommodation was close to a busy highway with constant traffic noise, planes flew overhead every 30 minutes, and the lodge had a noisy bar. Moreover, this location was a 2.5-hour drive from the nearest reserve in the Okavango Delta, making it impossible to participate in any activities upon arrival. We lost 2.5 game drives and missed the opportunity to experience one of Africa's most spectacular areas.
The following day, we insisted on a change to be in the Okavango Delta or closer to the Moremi Reserve. We were told such changes would be prohibitively expensive. Eventually, we were given the option to move to another lodge within Maun, but the price ended up being more than double what was agreed upon.
Throughout our travels, we noticed campsites near Moremi that were easily accessible by car, contradicting the claim that planes were necessary and expensive. We question why these options were not offered.
We trusted Evaneos with the most important trip of our lives, but the lack of organization, communication, and involvement was extremely disappointing. We are open to further discussion if you would like more precise feedback.
Jaime & Valentina