​Expert Reviews – Sabi Sabi GR

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Expert
Anthony Ham   –  
Australia 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.

Sabi Sand: Kruger’s Leopard Heartland
Overall rating
4/5

Sabi Sand is one of the best places to watch wildlife in Africa. It’s also one of the most exclusive. Coming here can be an expensive undertaking, with per-person, per-night costs rarely below US$1000. But if you can afford it, it is so worth it. The lodges here begin at luxurious and climb towards the lavish, the extravagant. Sabi Sand is renowned, too, for the quality of its guides – getting a job here is the pinnacle in the industry, thanks to the exacting standards and well-earned reputation for bush knowledge and wildlife nous. And, of course, it helps that the wildlife here is outstanding. Sabi Sand is known for its leopards and rightly so. It’s not that other species are not regularly seen – all of the key species are present and in abundance. It’s just that leopards can be so difficult to see elsewhere, whereas here they’re the daily currency of life on safari.

Expert
Ariadne van Zandbergen   –  
South Africa ZA
Visited: Multiple times

Ariadne is a renowned African wildlife photographer whose work is featured in many well-known guidebooks and magazines.

3 people found this review helpful.

Stark sophistication in the bush
Overall rating
4/5

Sabi Sabi has several lodges on their property within Sabi Sands. Selati, Bush Camp and Little Bush Camp all fall within the category of luxury classic safari camp. A style mostly used by this kind of exclusive bush lodges. Earth Lodge is a different affair. As the name suggests, the whole lodge seems to be sculpted out of earth. Stark sophistication is the theme throughout and although the lodge is in total harmony with the surrounding bush, it somehow feels like you could be on a ‘bush-set’ in Paris or Milan. I love the design, but talking to other guests, this isn’t everybody’s cup of tea. The food is innovative and possibly complicated. One of the things I don’t like about these kinds of lodges is the late dinners. When I’m on safari for a couple of weeks with pre-sunrise wake-up calls every day, an uncomplicated light dinner straight after the evening game drive would be more my thing.

Average Expert Rating

  • 4.0/5
  • Wildlife
  • Scenery
  • Bush Vibe
  • Birding

Rating Breakdown

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  • 4 star 2
  • 3 star 1
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  • 1 star 0
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