I read the reviews on Trip advisor before going to Antbear and I decided to book for four nights.
I had never had this kind of holiday experience before where you were expected to eat and socialise with other guests.
Some people love the idea of a communal breakfast discussing with others what you are going to do with your day and relish the idea of another get together over dinner to discuss the days events.
Now I know that I find that situation forced and uncomfortable.
That’s not because I’m shy, I can chat away with the best of them.
It’s just that I like to choose my company and I like to have the space to be alone or to have a quiet meal with my companion at the end of a day.
I found it impossible to break away from the crowd and would have liked an option to join in or remain to one side for meals.
I found the meals basic and meagre.
The meals were probably sizeable enough after a day of physical activity if one had stopped and had a main meal at mid day but I and my companion found ourselves still hungry after our meals and there were no offers of seconds.
One evening for example Lasagne was on the menu but what arrived was so thick with hard cheese I really couldn’t tell what else it was made of. There was no other option and I could not eat it. I would have liked more choice of menu.
Quirky and Rustic are also ways you could discribe accomodation at Antbear.
Now I know I would rather things worked simply, but well , and I like a bit of luxury especially at these prices.
On the rustic, we stayed in the Cave, which has a magnificent view of a valley and mountains.
It really is the best view from any place I have ever stayed in and to take full advantage of this scene, the front of the cave is all glass.
There is a big double bed inside, two very low and uncomfortable chairs, a fireplace and a Jacuzzi and a wardrobe with two hangers designed to look and operate like a bank vault.
To go to the toilet you have to go outside onto the porch and turn right, locate the door, open it and run your hand along the wall to locate the light switch.
This was a problem for me especially in the dark as I am afraid of spiders.
At night wall spiders came out to hunt, I have been told they are harmless to humans and that they are useful considering the other insects that were crawling and flying around.
Also when I put on the light inside the cave this attracted more insects which flew in and the one window to the cave had no flyscreen.
One night getting ready for bed something landed on my back, all this did seriously disturb me and my sleep. I kept imagining things crawling up the bed and onto me.
Everyone else seemed to find my difficulties funny when I went to breakfast and I was told this is what you can expect in Africa.
It rained very heavy while we were there and water dripped through the roof onto the porch, soaking the hammocks and the toilet and shower areas.
On our third night there was no water coming from the taps and we were unable to have a Jacuzzi, brush our teeth or flush the toilet.
Water was restored in the morning but it was a dark chocolate brown.
We were told they were doing their best to fix this and that it was safe to use but we decided to leave one night early.
There are wonderful things to do in the area but Antbear feels more like a base from which to do these things rather than a place in which to relax.
When it rained we were unable to sit on the wet hammocks on the porch and the cloth chairs were to low to get comfortable and sit inside looking at the view.
I decided to have one lazy day and stay in bed reading, but the woman who came to clean the rooms would come down the steps to the cave turn the corner see me in bed and run away. I didnt have a feeling of privacy, there were no blinds or curtains to draw and it was two way glass.
I would have generally liked more choice in what to eat, who to eat with, in places to sit and relax with or away from the crowd.
I would have liked the hammocks to be dry, the water to have been on and clear and for there to have been flyscreens on the window and door of the cave. Oh and not to have to go outside to the toilet at night.
We were still charged for the fourth night as we had booked it but we were given a reduction on the second room we had booked but cancelled at very short notice as my friends mother could not come.