Kariega Homestead: Our full report

The Homestead in the far north of Kariega Game Reserve is located in South Africa’s malaria-free Eastern Cape.

It’s a private villa which is usually booked for exclusive use by an extended family, or perhaps by a group of up to 14 friends. With your own private ranger and chef, you can enjoy complete flexibility and your private space here.

Kariega Homestead has five en-suite bedrooms, each sleeping up to two travellers in a double or twin-bed configuration. There’s a little desk and mirror, some wicker armchairs or a bench, and a wardrobe, all on wooden floor. Each room at Kariega’s Homestead is equipped with a ceiling fan. Their en-suite bathrooms vary, but most rooms have a shower and some have a bath and a shower. All have a wash basin and a toilet – and one was memorably tiled like a chessboard.

There are two additional rooms which share a bathroom, so that the Homestead can take up to 14 people if requested.

Most of the bedrooms have doors which open out onto a long narrow veranda stretching along the angular building and overlooking its garden.

The open-plan main area comprises a fully equipped kitchen reminiscent of an old farmhouse kitchen, a lounge with a flat screen TV and a dining area. In the corner between the lounge and the dining area, you’ll find a fireplace. Next to the long wooden dining table, glass sliding doors open out towards a roofed outside sitting area and the garden.

A few steps over the lawn from here is the Homestead’s rectangular swimming pool, lined by sun loungers and umbrellas. There’s also an outdoor boma for cosy evenings around the campfire at Kariega Homestead.

The main areas as well as the bedrooms at the Homestead in Kariega Reserve feature wicker furniture and are dominated by browns, oranges and some dark green hues. Although its design is very consistent, we felt that this private villa really needs a refurbishment when we last visited in May 2013. Furniture and textiles are very dated, as is the building design and layout.

As the Homestead in Kariega comes with its own private guide and chef, all activities and meals can be scheduled according to your needs and wishes. Game drives are as well possible in the area as walking safaris. In January 2017, we became aware that the guides leading walking safaris at Kariega are not equipped with firearms except when looking for white rhino. In general, we have concerns about walking safaris being conducted in areas where there are high densities of big, dangerous game. Hence we recommend that our travellers don’t go on walking safaris here unless a guide who is both suitably qualified and suitably armed accompanies them.

Note, however, that Kariega Game Reserve will not provide you with a real ‘wilderness’ experience as the game here is fairly restricted by many fences and the guides use their radios extensively to locate certain animals. For more comments on how the reserve is managed and safaris here, see our Kariega Reserve page.

Our view

The Homestead in Kariega is a comfortable and relatively reasonably priced private villa in South Africa’s Eastern Cape, although we felt that it would benefit from an extensive upgrade. When exploring the malaria-free Kariega Reserve from here, sightings of the ‘big five’ are very likely, however, the reserve won’t appeal to those seeking true ‘wilderness’ as wildlife is extensively managed here.

Chris McIntyre

South Africa expert

Geographics

Location: Kariega Game Reserve, South Africa
Ideal length of stay: Two or three nights should be sufficient for some game-viewing in Kariega Reserve.
Directions: Kariega’s Homestead is accessed from the same entry point as the Main and Ukhozi lodges – although it’s actually on the west side of the road rather than the east side. The reserve is traversed from south-east to north-west by the R343. So from Port Elizabeth, head north on the N2 towards Grahamstown until the tarred turnoff of the R343 about 10km before the city. Turn right onto the R343 here and then follow the signposts.
Accessible by: Self-drive

Food & drink

Usual board basis: Full Board & Activities
Food quality: As the Homestead comes with its own chef, meals can largely be tailored to your wishes.
Dining locations: Indoor and Outdoor Dining

Special interests

Private villas & houses: Kariega Homestead in the Cape is a safari house for exclusive-use by up to 14 travellers. Compared with other private villas and houses in South Africa it’s a relatively affordable option – though fairly basic. Expect a private chef and guide.; See ideas for Private villas & houses

Children

Attitude towards children
Property’s age restrictions: There are no age restrictions at Kariega’s Homestead.
Generally recommended for children: Private villas are generally well-suited for families with children as they offer a private home away from home. Parents don’t have to worry about other guests when their kids are noisy, and meal times are scheduled to your needs anyway. In addition, some families might like that Kariega Reserve isn’t too wild – and free of malaria.
Notes: Parents should keep their children supervised as game risks do exist.