Reviews of Sandibe Safari Lodge
(94%) From 71 travellersThey do not necessarily represent the views of Expert Africa.
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Sandibe Safari Lodge review
Fab and groovy. Cannot fault it.
Our guide, KK was brilliant. Our drives along the border with Moremi were magical with animal life at every distance from near to far.
Wonderful braai in the middle of a salt pan. Murray, the Exec Chef was great and the food excellent.
Saw two honey badgers, porcupine and civet. And leopard!
The camp has a really good atmosphere. Very laid back but really comfortable.
Sandibe Safari Lodge review
Wonderful camp, amazing structure of your room and restaurant/lounge area.
Made to feel an individual and spoilt rotten.
Food of very high quality and lots of it.
Great to have a tracker as well as a guide and once again we were extremely lucky to have th ejeep to ourselves as we were able to learn a lot from our tracker and guide, this made so muchof a difference to our stay having one to one time with our guide/tracker and got to know them very well.
Nice little touches when we had sun downers in different parts of the park in fantastic locations.
Also, Nice to have different experience to be out when it is dark .
Definitely recommend staying here.
Sandibe Safari Lodge review
This lodge is outstanding in every way, but with a price tag to match.
Game viewing is incredible and a significant step up on the other two lodges we stayed at (Xaranna and Savute under Canvas) with larger herds and many more elephants -- and hence predators to match.
Breakfast and lunch were excellent, but sometimes the dinner was over fancy without the culinary skills to pull it off.
Sandibe Safari Lodge review
Perfect lodge with modern amenities.
the new design is impressive and the accommodation units are spaced well apart for privacy. the rooms were smaller than at Mombo or Vumbura but were well furnished and the decor was very in keeping with local designs and styles.
there is a good walk to the rooms placed furthest from the reception area and you can only walk this alone in the daylight. Baboons and elephants do frequent the camp area and walkways.
Little underwhelming
This was the only camp that failed to fulfill our expectations. The architecture and layout of this place was fabulous, with the boma and eating areas designed to use the beautiful backdrop of the location. However on our visit we found the standard of food better at other camps and although the staff were attentive, a few were a little inexperienced and some requests took several attempts to correct. The Management however, were highly trained and very personable.
For us, however, it was the game drives that were disappointing. We spent most of the time racing from one location to another looking for the big cats - quite often without success and became a bit boring, but perhaps this is what most guests want? On the first drive we hardly slowed down let alone stopped to look at anything else and trying to spot birds in the trees or bushes was a non starter. Asked guides the following day to slow down and stop more, which in fairness they did and we saw more game, including Leopard!
The afternoon drives ended with approximately 45 mins night viewing but we didn't see much. This got us back to the lodge late most nights so didn't have time to change or freshen up before dinner and getting up early the following morning didn't make for leisurely evenings. Most guests okay with set up but it wasn't for us, all felt a bit rushed. This was the only camp where our guide didn't join us for meals and discuss what we might like to see and do for the day if possible.
A guide from another camp told us 'if you go too fast you might leave the good things behind'. Couldn't have said it better.
A truly African experience
I don't know quite where to start..... having been on a number of private Game Park safaris(all fenced) in South Africa, this experience was streaks ahead in quality of lodge; service, activities and sheer abundance of Game viewing and overall African experience.
I cannot fault this Safari Lodge at all...... to see 7 different Leopard sightings in 2 days is extraordinary let alone the herds of Elephant; a pair of male Lions roaring at each other ; rare Wild Dogs and Cheetah....
By far and away, our Ranger and Tracker were the most charming, informative pair I have encountered on 4 different Safaris.
Despite the remote location everything planned by Expert Africa went seamlessly....
Sandibe Safari Lodge review
The camp is very well located. Food was excellent.
The manager was not a good one, probably to many people in the camp but he paid very few attention to us. I don't think he is good for the job.
Wildlife was very good but 6 people in a car is crowded.
We asked for a private car or a car with 4 people (extra payment of course): declined
Not a high standard camp.
Expert Africa comments
The camp was really sorry to hear that these travellers did not experience the usual attentive and warm service that they aim to provide. Mitigating circumstances took up much of the lodge manager’s time over this period, but they acknowledged it should not have affected these travellers and they are very sorry that it did. They have assured us that this issue has been addressed. The private vehicle had already been booked by other guests, and this was not clearly explained to these travellers.
The most awesome safari experience
From the moment we arrived and were prevented from reaching our room by a bull elephant on the pathway, it was clear that this was going to be a special place. The design of the main area of the camp - like being inside a giant whale - is stunning, and the rooms are like a luxury hotel, while clearly enhancing the sense of being in the bush.
Every room has a large private pool to cool down in - we saw a passing hyena on our first dip, and an elephant on our next. The service is faultless, the food is fantastic and they have thought of every conceivable way of adding that extra touch - for example, there is nice freshly brewed coffee on the morning drive, not instant coffee.
Add to this the spectacular wildlife - wild dog hunting, plenty of leopard, one with fresh kill, another with a small cub, a cheetah with tiny cub, lion, rhino, elephant, wattled cranes, bat eared foxes, and so on - and this really does represent one of the truly memorable safari experiences. Our guides were outstanding - Jonas and Trust.
Sandibe Safari Lodge review
Excellent in every respect. The guides and the staff were all great.
We would return in a heartbeat. We loved it.
We saw everything we could imagine!
Having had such a personal experience at Little Vumbura we found the size and set up at Sandibe a little impersonal. Stunning buildings so cleverly designed. However the organisation seemed to push the guest apart rather than together e.g. separate tables at each meal as norm.
The wildlife was extraordinary! We saw lions, leopards, wild dogs, hippos, elephants, zebra and giraffe - all with lots of young. Hyena, Jackal, Hippo, various antelope including Sable.
The concentration of animals was totally beyond all expectations. Wildlife stories that we could follow in episodes through morning and night drives. Wild dogs with 14 puppies, also hunting as a pack. Mother leopard hunting and hiding her kill. Loosing one of her 2 cubs only to be reunited with it a day later. Our guide was SK - really professional and knowledgeable.
