Blaire's Been: South African Safari
After my time in Cape Town and Franschhoek, I went to the Eastern part of South Africa for six nights on safari! I split my time between three safari lodges and visited a few others nearby. I can talk about the differences of each safari lodge, and you can see my pictures below, but truthfully, the experience at the lodges are all relatively the same. These safari lodges each take on their own personalities with some being more traditional and some being ultra modern, so you need to determine what type of décor you gravitate towards most to help push you in the right direction of the safari lodge that’s perfect for you.
But as mentioned above, your day on safari is relatively uniform. Prior to going on safari, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I think breaking it out by what you can experience at what time throughout the day is most helpful…
5:30am - meet at the central location in the lodge for coffee and light bites like muffins and cookies before your morning game drive
6:00am to 9:30am - your morning game drive!
9:30am - head back to the lodge for breakfast
After breakfast - morning free time! Lots of people go back to sleep or look at all the amazing pictures you took during your morning game drive
12:00pm to 2:00pm - lunch is served!
After lunch - afternoon free time! This is a great time to relax by the pool or get a massage.
3:30pm - meet at the central location for snacks/coffee/tea before your afternoon game drive
4:00pm to 7:30pm - afternoon game drive
7:30pm - dinner at the lodge. Some lodges will give you about 30 minutes to freshen up before dinner.
As for the safari experience, I also had a misconception of what that entailed. You will basically be sitting in an uncovered vehicle. There are blankets and ponchos if it’s cold and/or raining, too. Here you will embark on a different adventure each day in search of animals. One thing that I couldn’t believe is HOW CLOSE you got to the wildlife. We were feet away from the entire Big 5 (lions, elephants, buffalo, rhino and leopards!). We saw leopard cubs, a lion eating a zebra, the elusive wild dogs, a leopard carrying a carcass up a tree, to name a few. It was truly magical seeing animals in their natural habitat!
Now here are some pictures of cute animals!!…
As mentioned above, I stayed at three safari lodges and toured many others. Each had their own personalities, décor and culinary experiences. I liked each for different reasons, and I am confident that any of my clients would have a wonderful time at any of these lodges.
andBeyond Ngala Safari Camp
This was the first camp I stayed at, and my experience started with a bang. In addition to the INCREDIBLE service at this camp, what makes it so special is that this camp + andBeyond Ngala Tented Camp (as shown below) are the only two that have access to a particular concession aka an area of land on which the animals roam. It’s so cool knowing you are one of the few who get to see animals in this particular area. And one cool thing to note that on this concession there aren't many watering holes, so the animals almost daily come to the pool at andBeyond Ngala Safari Camp! The rangers, trackers and staff here were exceptional and provided the absolute best first safari experience.
andBeyond Tented Camp
Like andBeyond Ngala Safari Camp, you are on a concession not able to be accessed by many people. I personally preferred Tented Camp to Safari Lodge because of their ultra chic accommodations, but there are only 9 tents on property, so it’s pretty small and sleepy. Another great thing about Tented Camp is that it’s in the middle of the concession, so your morning drive time to access the animals is very short!
andBeyond Kirkmans’s Kamp
After a couple of nights at Ngala, I spent two nights at andBeyond Kirkman’s Kamp. This old, colonial style lodge has tons of history. One thing to note is that it’s fairly flat around the lodge, so it’s great for either families or older couples. While I don't think it was the most chic safari lodge I visited, I must say that the staff was so extremely engaging and provided such an incredibly high level of service. My two days here were less about the glitz and glam and more about engaging with others.
Lion Sands Tinga Lodge
Tinga Lodge was the first for 5 stops we saw under the Lion Sands umbrella. I absolutely loved Tinga! The dark leathers and woods were breathtaking and automatically gave you a level of comfort. Out of the Lion Sands lodges, this is a great option for families, too. One feature I loved is the private pools in the accommodations!
Lion Sands Narina Lodge
Nearby to Tinga, Narina Lodge is the trendier, lighter and brighter sister property. I felt like the décor was Mykonos meets South Africa with the whites and light blues. This lodge definitely has the cool factor!
Lion Sands River Lodge
The River Lodge is newly re-built and is super cool! This lodge in the Lion Sands family has the most expansive common areas and is also the biggest. I loved the colorful décor, super fun chandeliers and big social pit in the middle of the property!
Lion Sands Ivory Lodge
The Ivory Lodge is the crown jewel of the Lion Sands property, and it was absolutely stunning! The modern décor was so sophisticated, the food was absolutely incredible and the design was ultra chic! Plus the service, location, people.. the list could go on! This property competes with the highest end properties and is perfect for a traveler looking for the best of the best!
Lion Sands Tree House
One really cool option that the Lion Sands properties have are two tree houses. You can reserve a tree house for one night for a small fee to enjoy an incredible, super romantic night under the stars! It definitely has the wow factor - I mean how cool is it to fall asleep with the sun while listening to animals!?
Sabi Sabi Earth Lodge
The last stop of my trip to the bush was at Sabi Sabi Earth Lodge. This ultraaaa modern lodge definitely was unlike any of my other stops. When you pulled up to the lodge, it looked like you were driving on a hill because the entire lodge is built into the natural environment and made to look like no building was constructed on top of the earth. The décor was pretty dark with grays and browns and not much color. It was definitely an experience! I felt like out of all the lodges I went to, this one promoted more time spent at camp than on a game drive. This lodge is definitely for a specific traveler and not for everyone!
Sabi Sabi Little Bush Camp
I actually loved Little Bush Camp so much! This small lodge only has 6 rooms and would be PERFECT for a family buy out. It was super cozy!!!
Sabi Sabi Bush Lodge
Sabi Sabi Bush Lodge is the biggest Sabi Sabi property. This lodge is unique… it even has a kid’s camp! With many restaurants and rooms, it’s not as intimate as other lodges, but it’s definitely great for families.
Sabi Sabi Selati Camp
The last camp I visited was Selati Camp. This is more old world and feels a bit more “mature” than other properties. I did find the rooms to be very cozy. This is a great option for a more sophisticated traveler.