 | Mali Reviews | Tips 1 - 10 of 37 |  |
After six nights of rough camping, the hotel seemed the utmost in luxury.
Situated on the outskirts of town but within easy walking distance of the centre, the hotel is a haven of peace and tranquility. Said to be the best hotel in Mali, the rooms are airconditoned, and have TV and most importantly: running hot and cold water in a spotlessly clean bathroom.
There is a thatched roof bar and the restaurant served the best meal we had in Mali - real good quality steak and a yummy chocholate mousse!
The swimming pool is very welcoming and there are sunbeds scattered arond the patio with waiter service.
I must mention a very funny story at this point: We had spend six nights roughing it and all were very very pleased to be staying in such unashamed luxury. When we got up the first morning, we noticed that someone was camping out under a mosquito net on a sunbed by the pool. Thinking it was one of the staff, we were very surprised to discover it was one of our group: he had been unable to work the airconditoning in the room, and finding his room-mate's snoring too much to bear, decided it was better to sleep outside! Leave a Comment Theme: Hotel
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We started our trek into Dogon Country from Sangha, staying in the Campement Sangha.
Rooms in a couple of accommodation blocks were mostly en suite, but basic. Don't leave anything on the floor - the bathroom was 4 inches higher than the bedroom, no sill or door and the floor sloped towards the bedroom. Hence we you had a shower, the entire bedroom became flooded.
Reasonable restaurant and you are able to leave stuff here safely while you go off on your trek which is very useful. Leave a Comment Theme: Pension/Guesthouse
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The last night of the trek, we pitched our tents on the Tigou Plateau. Although the ground was incredibly hard (rock), I slept surprisingly well. The villagers entertained us with dancing until the early hours of the morning (well, it probably wasn't any later than 10pm, but we'd been up since 5am and trekked for 15 miles, so snoozed off before they did.)
Toilets were - well, non existent. One rock for number ones, one rock for number twos. We weren't even able to bury the evidence in the sand as we usually did. (if you saw someone walk off with a spade, you knew where they were going) Leave a Comment Theme: Campground
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On the outskirts of town, in a quiet neighbourhood, Hotel Mande has great views over River Niger.
Accommodation is either in little rondavels, or in the main buildings. Rooms vary in quality from mediocre to very good.
There is an excellent restaurant on stilts over the river - great for a colling breeze, but beware of mosquitos. There is also a very nice pool.
There is - supposedly - internet acces in the hotel, although it was not working when we were there. Leave a Comment Theme: Hotel
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On the edge of town whilst still being within walking distance of everything, Hotel Colombe offers comfort for the weary traveller.
A downstairs bar and rooftop restaurant with views over the streets of Timbuktu, as well as a small shop by the reception.
The rooms were more than adequate with comfortable beds and en suite bathroom with hot and cold water. Leave a Comment Theme: Hotel
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The Campement consists of a few small traditional mud rondavels and some larger accommodation blocks. The rooms are basically a bed in a mud hut, with nothing else! There are mixed ablutions blocks, rather unclean and unsavoury. Electricity is erratic.
The highlight of our stay here was meeting Michael Palin, who was also staying at this place while filming his series Sahara. He is a thoroughly nice chap in real life, and every bit as funny as he is on TV!
The garden is a great spot for birding.
There is a reastaurant with mediocre food - they will provide you with a sandwich for a picnic if you ask.
Laundry is available - if you don't mind your knickers hanging next to the restaurant!
There are post cards for sale by the reception - some of the few post cards I saw in all of Mali. Leave a Comment Theme: Pension/Guesthouse
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From Bamako we travelled with our truck to the south. We camped at the road side.
It was our first night in the brousse. We learned to make noise for chasing away the snakes, when we had to go to the ''open air toilet'' behind your tent during the night.
We didn't look out very well this first night and put our tent on a very small termitary. This was the first and last time we made this mistake. Leave a Comment Theme: CampgroundComparison: least expensiveDirections: On our way from Bamako to the border with Cote d'Ivoire.
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A couple of days spent here after the Dogon treks or days spent eating laterite dust(thats the red stuff that gets in everywhere)are well worth while. Run by a very friendly lebanese family, rooms are clean, a/c that works and a very good service at the restaurant . The rooms are in an annexe that lies in the street opposite and thus are away from the bustle of the main street.
One of the rare hotels in Mali that actually has HOT running water, and the big plus-a swimming pool that is kept spotless. Leave a Comment Theme: HotelPrice: US$20-40 » Currency ConverterComparison: more expensive than averageAddress: on the main street of Segou that leads down to the jetty.Phone: 00 223 32 01 45Website: www.promali.org/aub-ind
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The night before our visit to Djenne in 1989 we camped at the Bani River, just at the crossing place, where the piroques would leave.
It was Christmas Eve. And we had the most breathtaking sunset and tropical evening, you can imagine before Christmas.
From this camp-site it was very easy to take a piroque very early in the morning. In the evening we spoke allready with the boatsmen about our early departure the next morning, so we could be in time in Djenne. Leave a Comment Theme: CampgroundComparison: least expensiveAddress: Bani RiverDirections: Near Djenne
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In Mali, you will find some cheap, small hotels or guesthouses. It's also not uncommen to stay in a house with a familly, as the maliens have a very well developped hospitality!
As a bus journey can tend to be a long lasting event, you have alsao sometimes to sleep next to the bus in the middle of nowhere... Leave a Comment Theme: OtherComparison: least expensive
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on July 30, 2004
on February 15, 2005
on December 27, 2007
on September 17, 2002
