The Sanbona Experience

Sanbona Wildlife Reserve is a very special place for those searching for a remote luxury wilderness experience. Spectacular scenery has one in awe of nature"s beauty. The reserve offers a huge 54 000 hectares of rugged landscape, fascinating geology, unusual vegetation and brilliant, diverse game viewing! It is the closest authentic Big 5 safari experience to Cape Town being approx 3hrs30min drive away. The diversity of game is excellent and I was fortunate to see a large selection during my 2 nights stay. To diverge a little, I shared the game drive vehicle with 2 other clients staying at Sanbona"s Gondwana Lodge. Monique and Simon were a young couple full of fun and laughter who worked on board a cruise liner and were here taking a break from their crazy lives. We experienced a wonderful sighting of a large breeding herd of elephants, we spotted the tawny and rare white lions, we experienced tracking down a cheetah on foot and found her with her 2 young cubs, and we spotted black rhino a number of times. These and many other species kept us enthralled.

With many years of game ranging experience, Richard showed great passion and enthusiasm towards nature and we were delighted to be the recipients of his excellent knowledge and expertise. I"ve always strongly believed that it"s imperative for a game lodge to have good knowledgeable game rangers because as clients you spend a lot of your valuable holiday time with them. They can make or break your experience. Sanbona Wildlife Reserve, as do the other Mantis Collection properties, understands this.

Sanbona Wildlife Reserve offers a choice of only 3 lodges within this 54 000 hectares, limiting the number of game drive vehicles traversing the reserve and therefore adding to that remote exclusivity it offers. All the lodges in my opinion are wonderful and all offer a completely different experience. Tilney Manor, with only 6 suites, offers privacy and tranquillity with a wonderfully welcoming staff complement seeing to your every need. The huge and beautifully appointed suites offer space and complete luxury and the manor house a touch of history supporting old photographs of the original farm owners. Tilney Manor is the oldest of Sanbona"s lodges with Dwyka Tented Camp and Gondwana Lodge being relatively new additions.

Gondwana Lodge is the child friendly lodge with 12 suites cleverly appointed to suit families travelling together. It offers a "kids on safari" program allowing the adults of bit of time to relax, unwind and enjoy the tranquil surroundings. The kids on safari program offers a great selection of kids entertainment including a games rooms, an outside play area and documentary DVD"s.

Dwyka Tented Camp is also very luxurious, situated at the base of a fascinating rock cliff where majestic Black Eagles (Verreaux Eagle) nest. Each of their tents is a separate unit with its own private balcony and plunge pool offering complete privacy. Dwyka Tented Camp offers an atmosphere of pioneering adventure and therefore seems to attract guests that appeal to the adventure. Each of the camps is surrounded by an electric fence making it safe to walk around the lodges at any time of the day without an armed escort.

Sanbona Wildlife Reserve offers complimentary transfers to the lodges from the main gate. The drive is approximately 45min to 1 hour and is on a dirt road. The road is very accessible by car, though it can be a bit corrugated and possibly a little too rough for low-lying sports cars. I would recommend the transfer as it adds to the all round hospitable service one gets from Sanbona. This also prevents you from taking the wrong turn and getting yourself lost in 54000 hectares of rough wilderness!

All in all Sanbona Wildlife Reserve offers a fabulous experience, one I would gladly recommend.

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