Sabi Sand & Kruger and their lodges
The Greater Kruger keeps its luxury in three places, from the lodges of the Sand River to a train on the Sabie. The three are the Sabi Sand Game Reserve on the park's western edge, where the original luxury safari camp was built on a bend of the Sand River in 1926 and a newer lodge stands among leadwoods and jackalberries; the bush north of Orpen, where a lodge on stilts takes the traditional safari camp to its logical conclusion; and Skukuza inside the national park, where a train stands still on a bridge over the Sabie River. We list four houses in three places, each collecting you at the airstrip, with a concierge behind every stay.
Luxury hotels in Sabi Sand & Kruger
4 hotels
Sabi Sand Game Reserve
The private reserve on the Kruger's western edge, whose lodges wrote the rules of the luxury safari. Unfenced to the park, it is leopard country on the Sand and Sabie rivers.
The neighborhoods
Sabi Sand Game Reserve
The private reserve on the Kruger's western edge, whose lodges wrote the rules of the luxury safari. Unfenced to the park, it is leopard country on the Sand and Sabie rivers.
Greater Kruger: Hoedspruit
The private reserves north of the Orpen gate, with the most private lodges of the region. The bush is open, the Drakensberg escarpment stands on the horizon and Hoedspruit's Eastgate airport lies forty-five minutes away.
Skukuza & the Sabie River
The heart of the national park, where the Sabie River runs with its hippos, crocodiles and elephants. Here stand the Selati railway bridge, the park's largest rest camp and an airport with scheduled flights.
Good to know
Which are the five-star lodges in Sabi Sand & Kruger?
Two. The five-star houses we list in Sabi Sand & Kruger are Royal Malewane, the lodge on stilts in the Greater Kruger north of Orpen, and Londolozi Game Reserve, the Varty family's camp on the Sand River in Sabi Sand since 1926. Two more houses hold four-star standing: Silvan Safari Lodge, among the leadwoods of Sabi Sand, and Kruger Shalati, The Train on the Bridge, at Skukuza inside the national park. Each has its own page, reachable from the list above, with a concierge behind every stay.
Which part of the Kruger should I stay in?
Sabi Sand for the classic private-reserve safari — no fences to the park, off-road driving, the best leopard viewing in Africa and two of the four houses; the Greater Kruger north of Orpen for open bush, fewer vehicles and the most private lodge of the four, forty-five minutes from Hoedspruit's airport; Skukuza inside the national park for the Sabie River, the park's rest-camp history and a stay unlike any tented camp. The reserves are two to three hours apart by road, or one airstrip to the next by light aircraft.
When is the best time for a Kruger safari?
May to September is the dry season and the best game viewing: sparse bush, animals at the water, cool mornings and warm days. October to April is the green season, with afternoon storms, newborn animals, birds and lower rates; the Christmas and Easter weeks book out first. Mornings are cold in June and July — bring a fleece for the open vehicle.
How do I get to Sabi Sand & Kruger — and do I need a visa?
Fly to Johannesburg, then a scheduled flight of about an hour to Skukuza or to Hoedspruit's Eastgate airport, or a charter to the lodge's own airstrip; every house collects you on landing, and the drive from the airport is fifteen to forty-five minutes. By road it is five to six hours from Johannesburg. Citizens of the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Brazil, Argentina and Chile enter South Africa without a visa for short stays; everyone else should check with the South African consulate before booking. Transfers are the lodges', never the concierge's.
How do I reserve a stay?
Search your dates on the hotel's page to see reference rates, then send the concierge a request. The concierge confirms exact rates and availability with you before anything is booked, and any payment and its timing are set out before you confirm.
