Totally rebuilt between 2004 and 2006 the bandas are spacious and airy and have been designed to capture even the slightest breeze - at seven degrees south of the equator this is an important consideration - of course there are strategically placed wide-blade ceiling fans to assist nature if required. This feeling of spaciousness is accentuated by the fact that the main suite area has no front wall or windows, but is totally open on to the front verandah of each banda. For those a little nervous of sleeping with just a mosquito net between them and the 'great outdoors' there is an ingenious arrangement of a curtain made out of tenting material, complete with gauze windows, which can be drawn across at night and securely fastened. The verandah itself reveals what must be one of the most magnificent views in Africa - a wild, unspoilt, wilderness stretching out to the far horizon liberally sprinkled with a wide variety of ‘big game’!
The bandas have been designed as a comfortable home away from home for intrepid travellers and to be planned as a sophisticated haven where guests can relax in privacy in order to enjoy the 'holiday' part of their safari. So you will find huge comfy chairs big enough to curl up in, a truly 'king-sized', mosquito netted double bed, a Zanzibari day bed to while away the odd hour in the afternoon when it is too hot to go into the bush, a proper writing bureau (with post cards supplied), ‘Persian’ carpets and even a tripod mounted telescope for private game spotting.
A separate dressing room with ample space to unpack and store clothes and belongings, including a personal combination security safe, leads into a spacious fully equipped bathroom with twin wash hand basins, a high flush W.C. and a spacious open-air shower where it is possible to shower and view big game at the same time. The bathrooms are supplied with Charlotte Rhys toiletries, shower gel, shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, and soaps as well as a hair drier and his and hers bathrobes and slippers.
For the 2019-20 season plunge pools and individual sun bathing decks were constructed alongside each banda allowing guests to sunbathe privately and enjoy a cooling dip whilst enjoying uninterrupted game viewing.
Your Banda
Banda is an East African term for a permanent 'solid structure' erected to give protection from the elements and the animals, as opposed to the impermanence of a tent. Bandas were erected in or near the National Parks and could be rented from the park authorities on a kind of self-catering basis, where guests provided everything, even their own sleeping bags.
The bandas at Beho Beho couldn't be more different! Yes they are solid structures built out of local stone and palm leaf thatch and do indeed provide shelter from the elements - but they are also a comfortable haven from which to enjoy the delights of the true African bush of Nyerere National Park.
