Sabi Sand Game Reserve

What the Sabi Sand Is

Landowners formally formed the reserve in 1948, and it has been run privately ever since. Fences that once separated it from Kruger came down in the early 1990s. Because only lodge guests can drive here, and rangers can go off-road to follow animals, sightings are closer and quieter than on Kruger's public roads.

What You Do There

• Two game drives a day, at dawn and late afternoon into the evening
• Guided walks with an armed ranger and tracker
• Time between drives at the lodge: pools, spas and long lunches

Leopards are the headline, and many of them are so used to vehicles that you can sit with one for an hour. Lion, elephant, buffalo and white rhino are all present, along with wild dog in some years.

Best Time to Go

The dry season, May to October, is the classic time. The bush thins out, animals gather at rivers and waterholes, and September and October give the best visibility. Winter nights from June to August can drop below 5°C. The wet season, November to April, brings afternoon storms, green landscapes, newborn impala from November and more than 100 migrant bird species. The Sabi Sand is a malaria area all year, with the risk highest from November to April, so talk to a travel clinic before you go.

Getting There and How Long to Stay

Most guests fly from Johannesburg's OR Tambo straight to a lodge airstrip on a scheduled light aircraft, or fly into Skukuza or Kruger Mpumalanga airport and transfer by road. We suggest three or four nights, which gives you six to eight drives. Read our guide to private reserves and no-crowds safaris for how the Sabi Sand compares with other options.

Where We Like to Stay in the Sabi Sand

Singita Boulders Lodge has 12 suites on the Sand River, each with a heated plunge pool, and sits in Singita's private part of the reserve. It suits couples who want the top end of the Sabi Sand.

Londolozi Varty Camp is Londolozi's original camp, where the Varty family started in 1926, and it is the one we suggest for families thanks to its Cubs program for ages 6 to 16.

MalaMala Camp sits on the Sand River with about 20 kilometers of river frontage and an unfenced eastern boundary with Kruger. It suits returning safari travelers and photographers who care more about the game than the decor.