Amakhosi Safari Lodge & Spa

Where do I begin, to tell the story of an amazing weekend ☺ Perhaps...with the food, which is outstanding and on a par with the very best tasting menus at Michelin Star restaurants. Then there is the diversity of the bush - from beautiful river settings (and exciting river crossings), to ravines with the chance of spotting a leopard, to ridges from which you can see forever. You will definitely see 4 of the Big Five, up close and personal, and if you're lucky you could be treated to a leopard - the animals are in extremely good condition and well spread across the Park, which makes for interesting game drives and conversations with knowledgeable Game Rangers and Trackers who clearly love what they do. Oh, almost forgot to mention our ‘5 Star’ chalet - totally private, beautiful interior design, loads of space and a deck with a view of the river, for when you're lounging in your hammock. Trust me...you want to go to Amakhosi Safari Lodge

From the time we arrived until we left, all we experienced were genuine smiles from staff in all areas of Amakhosi. It is SO tranquil in this special part of the world - from the hammock on your patio, you can see animals grazing by the river and hundreds of birds singing in the trees. Our Ranger, Ralden, and tracker, Mandla were exceptional. Their knowledge of flora and fauna was brilliant, and they even got us into a position to see a mother cheetah chase and kill a Kudu in front of us and then called her 5 cubs to feast on the unfortunate Kudu (I managed to get the whole chase on camera). We saw 4 of the big 5, with only the elusive Leopard managing to keep away from our sites. The food was out of this world - definitely 5 star. So many different tastes and textures. We got to experience a very energetic Zulu dance in the onsite Kraal. The rooms were very comfortable and clean with all requirements taken care of. Thank you to the whole team at Amakhosi for an unforgettable stay. We will see you all soon when we come back

Fantastic location by the river, beautiful lodge, fantastic personell, great food and cool local dance show. And this is just the sourroundings. The gamedrives itself was unbeliveable. We had Ranger Kyle and Tracker Zackhele and thwy where a great team. Despite his age Kyle has a tremendous knowledge and interest for all animals, birds, trees, plants and snakes. Can't recommend these guys enough. In short words. VISIT Amakhosi if you can.

Stunning place, friendly and service-minded staff and excellent rangers/tracers for the safari. The lodge provides a high-end experience. The game park has all you can dream of. "The big five" plus loads of other animals. Not crowded as you might experience other game parks. We would love to come back to Amakhosi.

This was our first Game Drive experiences and we'll never forget this!!! We stayed for 5 nights and it's was really an experience of a life time! My 3 children, age 13 / 15 and 17 years old were so impressed of what we've seen! Our ranger Philip and tracker Jeremy did their u**ost best to find al the wild life! The a**osphere during each game drive was perfect. We've seen them all! The hospitality factor at Amakhosi is as their slogan; A King's Pride! The staff is very committed and are very friendly. The service level is really good. Every breakfast, lunch and diner was perfect! For a game drive resort Amakhosi is the place to be!!!!

The people, the lodge, the food, the game drive- it’s just fantastic and they never stop spoling you on every matter. We have vern visiting ten times, and it’s unthinkable to not visit this lodge when in South Africa

Just returned from our second visit at Amakhosi Safari Lodge - this time eight people for four days. This place is truly a little piece of heaven om Earth. Everything from booking to our departure has been smooth, professional and friendly. The Lodge is beautiful and tranquil with service and quisine being out of this world. Game drives are exciting Big five experiences with extremely skilled Rangers and Trackers. Always felt safe, even though we’ve had some very close encounters. Had the same ranger and tracker for all eight game drives which made the experience quite familiar. We will definitely be back for a third visit!

From arrival just in time for lunch, to our departure after a three night stay, we were made to feel like part of the family and were looked after like royalty. All staff members were always smiling and were friendly, "genuine" and accommodating which is not always easy to find. In particular we would like to thank King our ranger and Arrows our spotter who made our 6 game drives the best we have ever experienced, we have previously been on game drives in Kenya and South Africa but these were simply outstanding! King and Arrows were funny, relaxed and chatty and King was very knowledgeable and able to answer all of our questions. On our first drive we were lucky enough to see 4 out of the big 5 (including a leopard!) By the end of our 6 game drives we had even seen another leopard, this time right outside the lodge on a rock by the river. We also saw a huge alligator down by the river whilst eating breakfast one morning. Other staff members that stood out for us and we would like to personally thank were Zinhle, the assistant manager (wicked sense of humour!), and Sya and Nhlanda who made our meal times even more enjoyable with their fantastic service and friendliness. I would also like to thank Nhlanda who made my close encounter with the friendly giraffe who visited one evening before dinner, an experience that I will never forget and will treasure forever. Our lodge overlooking the river was fantastic, very luxurious with a very comfy bed and fantastic views. It was an easy minute's walk to the main bar/dining area which was lovely and had a nice homely feel to it. All food during our stay was of an exceptional quality and was always plentiful and beautifully presented. We didn't have any trea**ents at the spa but did make use of the swimming pool there which overlooks the river and was very relaxing. A massive thank you to you all at Amakhosi for making our stay/experience the best we have ever experienced, it was truly magical, please don't change a thing!

Amazing, Incredible, Wonderful! We spent 3 nights here and it was not enough- we wanted to stay longer. We were so sad to leave. The lodge and our river suites were beautiful. We enjoyed sitting on the porch and enjoying the natural beauty. The suite is spacious and the beds heated, The food was incredible. We had coffee, juice and cookies before the morning game drive. Then we stopped during the drive for coffee and mini muffins at an incredible location. After the game drive we had part continental breakfast buffet with a hot breakfast choice. A 2 pm high tea was followed by the afternoon game drive. Also with a cocktail stop if desired. Dinner after the game drive at 715. We had lamb chops, filet of beef and Kingklip fish entrees that were all so delicious. Cocktails were so reasonable but we were greeted on return from safari with a special cocktail. The tables for dinner were so romantic. We ate most meals alfresco. What we came for- the game drives, incredible. The reserve is green, lush and beautiful. We saw the big 5 on our 6 game drives. Our guide Pierre and tracker Mandel were so good. Pierre knew so much about the animals and the plants and trees. He could identify birds by their shapes and calls my friend and I were with another couple on the drives and they were so nice that they added to our experience. We saw so many animals including zebras, giraffes, lions, rhinos, buffalos, nyala, warthogs, kudo, leopard, impala, wildebeest and more and were surrounded by elephants. Our fellow guests also loved the lodge and compared it above other safari experiences. We saw amazing sunrises, sunsets and stars. On leaving the staff came out and waved goodbye. Everyone was so friendly, you felt like you were part of family. I would come back here in a heartbeat and could not recommend it enough.