arrival as we were leaving too early to do it in the morning. Guide was knowledgeable and friendly. Dinner was outside with dancing and excellent barbecue. Even though we were leaving an hour before breakfast began, staff happily arranged for us to have a full breakfast and were charming. Staff were attentive and cheerful and really made us welcome. Wished we could have stayed longer.

Spent one night at Mvuu Camp and one at the Lodge (we didn't pay the full international tourist rate, by the way - couldn't have afforded to stay there if we had). We were on a holiday as a family, visiting old haunts as we used to live in Malawi. We loved Mvuu and had a great time. Had wondered what the differences between the Camp and Lodge would be. Basically the Lodge is aiming at providing you with an 'exclusive' experience. We liked both, but most of us preferred the Camp as it had more of a buzz about it. The rooms were lovely at both and the outdoor showers at the Lodge were fantastic! The food was pretty good - delicious scones and muffins for breakfast, but the desserts weren't quite as good. Frank and Danforth, our guides on game drives and boat trip and an early morning walk were knowledgeable and enthusiastic and informative.

We'd go back like a shot (but not at $500 a night for the Lodge!)

This was a surprisingly nice place to spend a few days.

The guides were amazing, possibly some of the best I have encountered in Africa. Friendly, very knowledgeable of the flora and fauna, and really good with kids.

The restaurant was basic, typical foods from the region ... don't expect cordon bleu.

The views were amazing, some of the best sunsets backdrops to the giant baobabs.

As a family of four, we had booked and paid for a river facing bungalow and we ended up staying in 2 x tents, as there was a conference on and the lodge they got the preferred accommodation. Although we raised the problem with management and then took on the booking office in Lilongwe, we were never compensated.

Classic safari lodge in an interesting national park. Approached via water (even if, like us, you arrive too late for the river transfer from Liwonde - we still got had to get ferried across the Shire River, in pitch darkness!), the lodge stands in a stunning position on the corner of the river and a small lagoon, populated by hippos, crocs and a stunning array of birdlife.

Liwonde is something of a specialist reserve. There is big game here (and it's at the heart of Malawi's black rhino re-introduction efforts), but it's not what it's all about. The manager Jim is a keen birder, as was our guide, Samuel, who quickly realised we'd safari-ed before, were just as keen to see a new bird as to watch lion or elephant, and made sure he tailored his guiding accordingly. I have an especial affection for the beautiful sable antelope, and this is a great park to see them in.

Walks and boat rides are all part of the experience as well as drives and you can do all three in one day, which I felt added to the value for money (a lot of camps it's two drives or nothing). They're also very happy to arrange the activities you want at the time you want to go - on our last day we drove, them were taken out to the nearby lake and ate a packed lunch on a boat in the company of a small herd of elephants, keeping cool in the shallows!

The (very long!) walk from our room to the main part of the lodge was a game walk in itself - monkeys, bushbuck, warthogs and birds including a good chance of seeing Livingstone's flycatcher.

As an experience, my only real criticism is that it was not really geared towards spending time in the communal areas - it always felt a bit awkward getting a drink outside of set dining times. The sleep quality rating is entirely down to the local, vocal, population of hadeda ibis!