SABI SAND GAME RESERVE
The 625 square kilometer Sabi Sand Game Reserve consists of a group of high end private game reserves. It shares a non-fenced boundary of 50 km with the Kruger National Park to its east and gets its name from the Sabie River on its southern boundary and the Sand River flowing through it. It is arguably one of the best Big Five reserves on the continent and known as the place 'where leopards fall from the trees', due to its high leopard density.
Wildlife
Sabi Sand is one of the best reserves in the world for seeing leopard, and on a three-day visit, most guests will get to see them well. For some reason they seem to be very accustomed to the safari vehicles and are not perturbed by them as they can be in other areas. Our Big Five sighting record time is 2 hours and 53 minutes, including a tea break.
Accommodation
The reserve is very popular, and as with many of the lodges we like, there are only a small number of rooms (some camps only have six rooms) and to have the best chance of booking the lodge that you want the most, six months' lead time is a reasonable guideline, though the most popular camps can be booked out 8 months in advance and earlier.
We recommend a minimum of two nights in one camp/lodge, and up to six nights in the reserve. The camps/lodges are on different concessions with traversing rights on some other concessions, but not all of the concessions on the reserve. It can therefore be interesting to change camp/lodge to access different types of terrain, landscape, and watering holes, or of course to combine different reserves.
How to get there
The closest airports to Sabi Sand Game Reserve are Nelspruit and Hoedspruit airport. For lodges located north of the Sand River, Hoedspruit is usually closer and for lodges located south of the river, it will be Nelspruit. Apart from those 2 airports there is also Skukuza airstrip in Kruger National Park, which can be used for lodges south of the river. And of course there are lots of private airstrips within the reserve, for scheduled and private charter flights.
And for those on a budget, or who simply like to travel overland to also see something of the land in-between the airports we can organise private or shared road transfers, which can also include the scenic Panorama Route.
Wildlife
Sabi Sand is one of the best reserves in the world for seeing leopard, and on a three-day visit, most guests will get to see them well. For some reason they seem to be very accustomed to the safari vehicles and are not perturbed by them as they can be in other areas. Our Big Five sighting record time is 2 hours and 53 minutes, including a tea break.
Accommodation
The reserve is very popular, and as with many of the lodges we like, there are only a small number of rooms (some camps only have six rooms) and to have the best chance of booking the lodge that you want the most, six months' lead time is a reasonable guideline, though the most popular camps can be booked out 8 months in advance and earlier.
We recommend a minimum of two nights in one camp/lodge, and up to six nights in the reserve. The camps/lodges are on different concessions with traversing rights on some other concessions, but not all of the concessions on the reserve. It can therefore be interesting to change camp/lodge to access different types of terrain, landscape, and watering holes, or of course to combine different reserves.
How to get there
The closest airports to Sabi Sand Game Reserve are Nelspruit and Hoedspruit airport. For lodges located north of the Sand River, Hoedspruit is usually closer and for lodges located south of the river, it will be Nelspruit. Apart from those 2 airports there is also Skukuza airstrip in Kruger National Park, which can be used for lodges south of the river. And of course there are lots of private airstrips within the reserve, for scheduled and private charter flights.
And for those on a budget, or who simply like to travel overland to also see something of the land in-between the airports we can organise private or shared road transfers, which can also include the scenic Panorama Route.
where to stay...
From our visits to Sabi Sand, we have first-hand knowledge of the camps and lodges and below you can find the ones we most commonly use. Those include mainly our favourites sorted from low-key to deluxe, which are usually smaller properties with very personalised service, but also some bigger places, if they are the best or only option available. Open, close, then open each tab again to display the images fully.
SABI SAND ITINERARIES
Below you can find Sabi Sand itineraries in 3 different price ranges with images of the different lodges in them, but these lists are by no means exhaustive. At the bottom of the page you will also find buttons leading to some combination itineraries with other Greater Kruger Reserves as well as other areas in South and Southern Africa and for bespoke itineraries, please contact us directly to discuss your project.
