Reviews of Manyeleti (From 4 Acclaimed Safari Experts)

Expert

Stephen Cunliffe –

ZA

Visited: Multiple times

Stephen is a travel writer and avid conservationist whose work appears in prestigious magazines such as Africa Geographic and Travel Africa.

10 people found this review helpful.

In the Shadow of the Sabi Sands

Overall rating

3/5

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The 23,000ha unfenced Manyaleti Game Reserve enjoys an enviable location sandwiched between Kruger to the east, Sabi Sands to the South and the Timbivati to the north. The Manyaleti area lacks the infrastructure and development of its more illustrious neighbours, but herein lies the charm of this lesser-known park. With only a smattering of tourist lodges, low visitor densities and plenty of Big Five wildlife, the Manyaleti is an exciting prospect for visitors looking for a good wildlife experience away from the maddening crowd and that won’t break the bank. The Manyaleti is unlucky in that it contains no major rivers and I have seen firsthand that the lack of surface water sometimes causes much of the wildlife to trek into neighbouring reserves during unfavourable times. It has also come from a legacy of poaching and animals tend to be a bit more skittish around game-viewing vehicles in this place. But, provided you pick your season and time your visit carefully, a safari to the ‘Place of Stars’ can be a productive and rewarding experience.

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Expert

Harriet Nimmo –

ZA

Visited: November

Harriet is a zoologist with more than 20 years’ experience. She has the privilege of working with the world’s top wildlife photographers and photo-guides.

2 people found this review helpful.

Undiscovered Kruger gem

Overall rating

4/5

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This little known private game reserve is sandwiched between Kruger National Park, Sabi Sands and Timbavati private reserves. The wildlife viewing is as good as its more famous neighbours – although as there are fewer visitors, the game is perhaps a little less habituated. With a little luck, visitors have a chance of seeing lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, buffalo as well as wild dog and cheetah. The reserve is unfenced and so game is free to come and go from the surrounding reserves.
There are a choice of lodges ranging from the sublime Tintswalo to the charming, off-grid, rustic Pungwe. I loved Pungwe for its simple, back to nature feel with elephants munching outside my tent at night.

During apartheid, Manyeleti was the only reserve accessible to non-whites – and since then it has somehow stayed in the tourism shadow. It is an undiscovered gem, poised for great things.

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Expert

Anthony Ham –

AU

Visited: November-December

Anthony is a photographer and writer for travel magazines and Lonely Planet, including the guides to Kenya and Botswana & Namibia.

2 people found this review helpful.

Manyeleti: Private Kruger Safaris

Overall rating

3/5

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Part of the Greater Kruger ecosystem, Manyeleti – which was one of very few reserves open to blacks during the dark decades of apartheid – has terrific wildlife that often wanders in from the national park to the east. That said, the slightly denser foliage can mean that you have to work a little harder here – it’s all relative – for your sightings than in some of the other private reserves along Kruger’s western fringe. But don’t let that put you off – prices here are much more reasonable than in, for example, Sabi Sand or MalaMala, and the birdwatching (over 300 recorded species) is excellent.

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Expert

James Bainbridge –

UK

Visited: July

James is a travel writer and author of many Lonely Planet guides, including senior author of the guide to South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland.

Dependable Lion Sightings & a Rhino Programme

Overall rating

4/5

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This 270km²/105mi² reserve may share borders, as well as free-roaming wildlife, with two of South Africa’s most exclusive private reserves, Sabi Sands and Timbavati, but it’s run by the provincial government. That means you can pay a conservation fee at the gate and drive in for a few hours of big-cat spotting, without having to splurge on a high-end safari lodge.

Kruger National Park is another predator-filled neighbour of Manyeleti, leading to a steady stream of thrilling sightings. Leopards in trees, lions chewing on a zebra carcass, hyenas fighting jackals over carrion, quietly grazing white rhinos, curious giraffes and playful elephants are all present and correct. The famous white lions of Timbavati sometimes wander through, and Manyeleti has a rhino conservation programme, encompassing dehorning, educating local communities and even battling poachers with drones and a Bat Hawk light aircraft.

I stayed at Tintswalo Safari Lodge, which is well recommended for a classic experience of the African bush, with just eight elegant suites and a maximum of six passengers per safari vehicle. Whether tracking a leopard through the veld or breakfasting among the acacia, Manyeleti proved to be a gloriously diverse part of lion country, its riverine forests, dry grasslands and open-skied plains attracting a range of predators and prey.

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Manyeleti Game Reserve

Expert Reviews (4)