During the winter season the bar package is probably not a good deal. We were collected from Jo'burg airport by shuttle and taken overnight to the Holiday Inn Airport Hotel - 8am next morning we left in the Sebetana bus to tour Pretoria's sights. And the best thing for us as a group was, if you don't ask, they definitely cant help. Arriving to cold towels from staff at the Lodge, we were greeted by a collection of Kudu and impala from the dining area - then lunch! The food is good for omnivores, but vegetarians/vegans are in for a more mixed experience. Sebatana Private reserve is one of the best and most unique wildlife experiences in South Africa. There was crazy amounts of food, and it was all amazing. Traduzioni in contesto per "Sand Reserve" in italiano-inglese da Reverso Context: Sabi Sand Reserve o contattaci per richiedere ulteriori informazioni. Does Sebatana Private Reserve offer any business services? This is a MUST see and the best I have ever attended. I have been to a lot of "tribal (native)" nights over the years and had quite low expectations. The reserve is situated in an idyllic location, we have all gotten memories for life. I didn't purchase any drinks package as I only drink limited alcohol and am not a fan of sugary drinks (mocktails etc). The reserve was in idiliic location, with memories that will last a lifetime. We were a group of 21 in total, all coming from Norway. Does Sebatana Elephant Lodge have airport transportation? It would be perfect with a few more days, so there was time to digest all the impressions and enjoy the swimming pool etc. Hermanudorings Road, Vaalwater 0530 South Africa, There were so many amazing things about this holiday but be careful of their advertised additional trips. 5 star luxury lodge in South Africa sold through travel agents world wide on a group package basis. The rooms were lovely and beautifully kept by the staff, we were in Warthog and were woken by baboons each morning. Knowledgable beyond what you would expect and attention to detail - superb. This allows you to focus on the "big 5" when you travel to the other game parks.The three trips to other game parks were all great and a necessity if you want to see the "big 5". Sebatana Private Reserve is a wildlife paradise with a unique collection of 3 seperate 5 star lodges, Rhino, Elephant and Lion. Our room was so beautiful with a walk out, private porch we could sit and watch the river and animals. Antonia was a lovely addition to the team. Newmarket also failed to inform us that extra trips and drinks packages could be purchased prior to leaving the U.K. as other guests had been informed. We bought a few drinks and 3 wine bottles and paid more for this for 7 days than the price for the package, so that is a must. This comical sighting was captured on an Africam trail camera that is placed at Naledi Game Lodge in the Balule Game Reserve. Yes, Sebatana Private Reserve offers an airport shuttle for guests. Savour South Africas magnificent wildlife on this once-in-a-lifetime, full-board holiday, based in the four-star Elephant Lodge, with its own sweeping private game reserve. All three lodges are full service lodges with all amneties included, ensuring a personalized experience for all. by others who saw it as inauthentic and food was terrible and hard to eat with fingers. The safari trips started early in the morning, and we went early to bed in the evening. There is also a kettle in the room The bathroom had plenty of space and lots of storage. Are there opportunities to exercise at Sebatana Private Reserve? The food was wonderful, plentiful and piping hot. Please see our partners for more details. Sebatana has a three different 5-star lodges with a total of 34 rooms divided between them. After a bumpy ride we arrived in breath-taking surroundings. The staff permanently smile and are happy all the time! The food was delicious and nicely presented all of the time, the lodge itself you could not fault very clean and our room was amazing . My sister and I have not long returned from our amazing holiday in Elephant Lodge. The reserve is home to one of the richest populations of wildlife in South Africa with more than 75 different mammals, including the Big Five. The guides deserve the biggest shout out for me. We saw 3 of the big five no buffalo and no leopard sadly , but we saw lion , elephant , rhino We also saw a mum cheetah and her 2 cubs as well as giraffe, crocodiles, impala , warthog, wildebeest, as well as much more . Incredible Trip with amazing staff and facilities. The pool is very cold (we were there in winter) The food was out of this world. Sebatana Private Reserve is a wildlife paradise with a unique collection of 3 seperate 5 star lodges, Rhino, Elephant and Lion. This was a problem for most. Amazing safari lodge. Left a sour taste in what was otherwise a wonderful experience. A very privileged experience to do. Our tour was booked through Tripadeal Australia and 12 of the 14 people on the tour was Australian. Plenty of varieties of antilopes, zebra, wilderbeast, giraffes etc. The food was lovely, although there was little choice for vegetarians, which in todays world feels disappointing. We stopped half way for champagne and sandwiches, again cared for by a few other guides from the Lodge. Good game reserve for photosafari with knowledgeable and nice guides. Does Sebatana Private Reserve have an airport shuttle? Also the staff were genuine and a happy family to spend our time with. My only regret that I am not still there. This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. A great time away from modern distractions. Management needs to listen to their guests. Asked politely if they could be attended toNo attention was paid to my request. by others who saw it as inauthentic and food was terrible and hard to eat with fingers. when paying over 9K for this holiday I expected a better service. Loved the giraffes, walking like a long-legged model and looking at us with the eyes with thick and long eyelashes beautiful! The location only 270 kilometres north of Johannesburg allows for smooth travel arrangements and easy access to the Reserve. We were apprehensive about doing a group organised holiday as we like our own space and we are both not great social butterflies. The group of people we were with(19 in total) too our guide Carel and Basil were fabulous, including the staff that fed us and kept us in drink and to all the other staff were out of this world. The bar staff were incredible, Patrick, Solly and Gillean were incredible and made the evening at the bar all the more enjoyable. The reserve is home to one of the richest populations of wildlife in South Africa with more than 75 different mammals, including the Big Five. A great holiday ! Our driver CAITLYN was absolutly AMAZING !!!!!!! toiletries and essentials needed as you are a few hours away from any shop etc. We recommend calling ahead to confirm details. "With no herd, they tend to be the most aggressive and unpredictable." Hermanusdorings Road, Vaalwater 0530 South Africa. Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more. more. The lodge, itself was clean and the staff made the holiday. The desserts were out of this world. WOW what a fabulous experience. Be careful to clarify what you are getting with your extra options. I will be back ! With more than 40.000ha in size this malaria free paradise offers guests a truly intimate experience. Yes, Sebatana Elephant Lodge offers airport transportation for guests. Some flexibility is needed to truely accomplish guests needs and wishes. Very first drive the track was blocked by an enormous bull giraffe! Would definitely return to Marataba. The managers, guides and all of the staff looked after us so well and after a week there, we were so blown away by how much we saw, and experienced. Some of the trips offered are very good. Natalie the chef couldnt do enough for you and catered for any dietary requirements. If you want a budget or starter safari experience, i would recommend this Lodge. For specific enquiries, we recommend calling ahead to confirm. Feedback from the others was that night Safari was terrible and finished late. See more questions & answers about this hotel from the Tripadvisor community. The water is bore water and no one on our group had any sickness. I have been to a lot of "tribal (native)" nights over the years and had quite low expectations. Does Sebatana Lion Lodge have airport transportation? Matswani Safari Lodge,a place to remember. TOP TIPS The early morning drives were very cold so pack a hat and scarf especially in winter months. Thank you to everyone at Elephant Lodge who made us feel welcome and contributed to our amazing experience! A very privileged experience to do. I reccomend to upgrade to an all inclusive bar package whilst you are there. Food excellent. So thanks to everyone who we spent time with you were all awesome . Sebatana Private Reserve operates four lodges: Rhino, Elephant, Lion and the newly-opened Leopard Lodge, which is our home base for the trip. Staff were amazing Sully the barman was 2nd to none. Sebatana Private Reserve is a wildlife paradise with a unique collection of 3 seperate 5 star lodges, Rhino, Elephant and Lion. We didn't take out the drinks packages as we don't drink alcohol, so just having soft drinks each day and paying for them worked out far cheaper than the. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our. Had an outstanding trip to Sebatana Private Reserve staying at the Lion Lodge. what i like about this place is because its side by side. We took the drinks package which is totally worth it if you like a drink as all prices are in Euros and extremely elevated compared to the rest of South Africa. Everybody in our group had nothing but praise for our stay at Sebatana. I won't spoil it by revealing some of the extra activities they arranged, just to say we laughed a great deal! Review tags are currently only available for English language reviews. When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site. Only other recommendation to the reserve is if the guides had a mic handset as we could not always hear at the back of truck what was said. I cannot praise the staff in the lodge enough for their great service, always smiling, helpful and on hand . Why did we not have pre-booked seats together? We enjoyed the chance to sample game meat and local dishes. Do your sums carefully. We were divided into 3 groups to explore the area with our own truck with guide/driver. Yes, Sebatana Private Reserve offers airport transportation for guests. He was with us day in day out and always eremained. extremely!!! What food & drink options are available at Sebatana Lion Lodge? John L. said this would be a trip of a lifetime and he was correct. Thank you to everyone at Elephant Lodge who made us feel welcome and contributed to our amazing experience!! Airport pick up and drop off is available for guests. Had the wow factor. We also drove with Jacques who has incredible eyes, he missed nothing seeing animals we would otherwise have missed. We recommend calling ahead to confirm details. Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our. Just returned after an amazing week at Sebanta Rhino lodge. What a wonderful holiday . . However remember its a bit of pot luck, these parks are huge and animals are not constrained to certain sections. We'll worth signing up for the extra tours and the drinks package. This is the version of our website addressed to speakers of English in South Africa. Yes, free parking is available to guests. The lodge features natural gardens, patio's and a lookout lounge overlooking the vast open plains of the Eastern Cape. So it meant uncomfortable nights where a cool breeze or cooler night night air could have made the difference between a perfect stay and a less than fully comfortable stay. Antonia was a lovely addition to the team. With more than 40.000ha in size this malaria free paradise offers guests a truly intimate experience. This was such an incredible trip and we will be taking in laws and others to this resort, in the near future. Whether you are a nature lover, a safari enthusiast or simply looking for getaway from the city, Elephant Lodge is the ideal choice for . Wow what an amazing holiday from start to finish. Enjoy your plush bungalow comforts . The food was so good and was lovely to try new things. Josh was our tour guide and he made our holiday, he has a great knowledge of the animals and wildlife. Upon arrival, I noticed the fly screen were damaged throughout the Giraffe chalet. more. Lion Cubs, a Big Cat Fight, the Wild Albino Elephant & Plenty of Leopards! Recommended gratuity was 80 euro which I had no issues with paying. It would have been nice if the guides had a mic handset, as it sometimes was hard to hear at the back of truck what was said. Now the trips we plumped for the full package at 349 euro pp . Despite all this I would recommend this reserve/lodge, esp if you get a good price. Also please don't expect to see the big 5 at elephant lodge as they only have an illusive leopard, none of the other big five,so you really do need to pay for the additional trips to see them . Loved the experiencetrulybut a few things lacking. During the winter season this gets _cold_ in the morning and the evening. I would definitely suggest this trip to anyone and I hope that one day I can make it back and do this again. He was excellent and very professional, and helped a great deal when needed something sorted out in the lodge. There are plenty of non "big 5" wildlife at Sebatana which are relatively easy to find. Our guide Basil was so knowledgable and went above and beyond to make sure we saw as much as possible. What are some of the property amenities at Sebatana Private Reserve? when paying over 9K for this holiday I expected a better service. All three lodges are full service lodges with all amneties included, ensuring a personalized experience for all. Some of the more popular amenities offered include free wifi, free breakfast, and a pool. FANTASTIC!! We had ostrich, warthog, impala, kudu, and wildebeest in some of the meals and it was all outstanding. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. "It's a solitary bull," notes our local guide, Carel Brown, as he pulls the vehicle to a gentle stop. See more questions & answers about this hotel from the Tripadvisor community. Where to start!!! All pricing and payments are in Euros and is paid using credit card. Everybody in our group had nothing but praise for our stay at Sebatana. Hope the leftovers were not thrown away.. We were advised not to opt for the drinks package and regretted that. What a wonderful holiday . Yes, Sebatana Lion Lodge offers an airport shuttle for guests. Left a sour taste in what was otherwise a wonderful experience. If you don't manage to do it before you arrive then definitely do it whilst you are there . The newly renovated rooms are divided into 3 different categories allowing for families of up to 5 to stay together in one room. One tip would be to pack all. The. Be careful to clarify what you are getting with your extra options. Josh was our tour guide and he made our holiday, he has a great knowledge of the animals and wildlife. Pack your bathers as spa and pool available. I also want to mention the guides that are with you all of the time . One cook is very good at making V-dishes. Also the staff were genuine and a happy family to spend our time with. Which languages are spoken by the staff at Sebatana Private Reserve? They were informative and made everything fun. I will be back ! Seeing the Cheetah, Elephants, Rhino, Zebras, Giraffes, Warthogs and any others was amazing and no fence to be seen. Located in the malaria free Waterberg mountains, just a short drive from Johannesburg airport makes it the ideal place for everybody from senior travelers to families with children of all ages. Especially upstairs where there was no air conditioning and the fan had but one speed. If you are looking for a once in a lifetime experience at a safari, this is the resort to visit. There are a lot of animals close to the lodge, we saw so many giraffes and impalas. The kitchen staff regularly sing which is very entertaining. Our guide was CASPER . With more than 40.000ha in size this malaria free paradise offers guests a truly intimate experience. There was crazy amounts of food, and it was all amazing. We had an amazing guide, Megan, and formed bonds that will last a lifetime. Top room amenities include a minibar, air conditioning, and a refrigerator. that we did not bother to take a photo after a few days. Sebatana game reserve was fantastic and this review does not reflect on their fantastic service. Are there opportunities to exercise at Sebatana Elephant Lodge? and more in matswani so that it can turn to a place of promise land. We have had memories we will never forget, thanks to you all! Checking in a BA we were astounded not to have seats together after booking as a party of 4 and Newmarket Holidays had previously stated it was not possible to pre book seats as this was a. group booking, so we assumed all guests staying at Sebatana would not seated together. Some of the more popular amenities offered include free breakfast, a pool, and an on-site restaurant. So it meant uncomfortable nights where a cool breeze or cooler night night air could have made the difference between a perfect stay and a less than fully comfortable stay. We all as a group felt pilenburg was a let down , we saw barley anything there and our guide seemed very uninterested in the whole drive, and seemed to just want to get us back before outer time was up , it takes 3 hrs to get there and 3 hours back but we got just short of 3 hours in the reserve, which wasn't long enough, ,considering it was a full day excursion we were back at 3pm but it was stated 5pm on our itinerary, we felt we were really missold this trip., I know its the luck of the draw what we see but the other game reserve was far better . The week just got better and better - only con I can quote was that booze prices are pretty high, as are the goods in the gift shop. We saw 3 of the Big 5, as well as Cheetahs, Crocodiles, Giraffes and Zebras. If you are looking for a once in a lifetime experience at a safari, this is the resort to visit. Trip of a lifetime! This is the version of our website addressed to speakers of English in the United States. For specific inquiries, we recommend calling ahead to confirm. The weather was perfect on our trip as we had no rain on any day. We certainly would not have attended if we had known this The animal life is amazing as are the staff. The program changes from day to day on a weekly cyclus enriching guests with the true African diversity. Most of our group purchased the non-alcoholic drink package. Improve this listing Property amenities Free parking Pool Hot bath Free breakfast Do your sums carefully. This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. I would highly recommend this lodge and have some amazing memories. We bought a few drinks and 3 wine bottles and paid more for this for 7 days than the price for the package, so that is a must. From the Hughes party of two from Lincolnshire, England, What can I say, the staff, food, accommodation were all amazing. Savour South Africa's magnificent wildlife on this once-in-a-lifetime, full-board safari holiday, based in the locally-rated four-star Elephant Lodge, with its own sweeping private game reserve. The food was fantastic! Questions: Why was the original advertised Virgin flight changed? I didn't purchase any drinks package as I only drink limited alcohol and am not a fan of sugary drinks (mocktails etc). ( Shared joy has double the happiness) also in difficult times it is nice to have someone to hold your hand and cry with you.my point of view is i will make shore that i turn my words in action where i realized that knowing is not enough;we must apply. Recommended gratuity was 80 euro which I had no issues with paying.I (and our group) would certainly recommend Sebatana Lodge! Great thanks to our guides Shumba, Carel and Megan, they were all fabulous. Own or manage this property? !One tip would be to pack all toiletries and essentials needed as you are a few hours away from any shop etc. View Hotels Further Information Itinerary changes Hotel transfer times Passports and visas Foreign Office Travel Advice Luggage allowance This allows you to focus on the "big 5" when you travel to the other game parks. Also a shout out to Caitlyn and Bazil who were also great. Saying that, the lodge was very nice, the staff were very nice and helpful, as always in South Africa. WHERE STORIES BEGIN - SAVE UP TO 15% ON ALL 2023/24 AIR HOLIDAYS - BOOK BY 28 FEBRUARY. If you don't manage to do it before you arrive then definitely do it whilst you are there . We took the drinks package which is totally worth it if you like a drink as all prices are in Euros and extremely elevated compared to the rest of South Africa. The rooms were immaculate and cleaned daily, refreshing in todays climate. The whole experience from being met at the airport and a smooth transfer to Elephant Lodge, where we were greeted with smiles and cold flannels. Thank you for one of the best weeks EVER!! Feedback from the others was that night Safari was terrible and finished late. I (and our group) would certainly recommend Sebatana Lodge! No TV, nor Radio but generous wifi, and the baboons are great fun to watch as is star gazing. Loved the giraffes, walking like a long-legged model and looking at us with the eyes with thick and long eyelashes beautiful! We had a lovely group at the lodges, we all got on so well and had lots of laughs! With more than 40.000ha in size this malaria free paradise offers guests a truly intimate experience. Initially booked to fly as advertised with my preferred airline Virgin, this was later changed to BA with no explanation. Special thanks must go to our rangers, especially Caitlin and Jacques, who were very knowledgeable and accomodating. The group of people we were with(19 in total) too our guide Carel and Basil were fabulous, including the staff that fed us and kept us in drink and to all the other staff were out of this world.