5 Day South African Safari
I know this post is quite delayed so I apologize to those who have been anxiously awaiting to hear about our South African safari! Also, if you want even more Safari content be sure to check out our vlog here.
We flew from Cape Town (CPT) to Hoedspruit airport via Air Link which was about a 2 1/2 hour flight.
Our driver was waiting for us at the baggage claim then we began the 1 1/2 hour drive to our safari lodge.
The journey felt like our first game drive - we saw so many animals - including the one animal Fred and I needed to conclude us seeing the “Big 5” (we saw 4/5 in Kenya back in 2023) a rhinoceros! We not only saw one, but also a mother and her calf! It was an incredible sighting and the perfect welcome to Timbavati Nature Preserve.
We stayed 4 nights at Thabamati Luxury Tented Camp. One of the most asked questions I get when Fred & I talk about our trips on safari is “Did you use a travel advisor to book this trip?” and the answer is “No”. Fred and I do all the planning ourselves with extensive research ahead of time. We began planning this trip in February of last year, even though we knew we were targeting to travel in the last few months of the year.
This trip was a little different from our previous safari in Kenya (which you can read about here) in that we were joined by one of my best friends, Sadie, & her husband Nolan. Neither of them had been to Africa before and it was so exciting to share the experience of safari with them on this trip.
There are a few reasons we chose to stay at Thabamati:
We loved that this camp only had 4 tents (which comfortably accommodates 8 guests). Having an intimate camp is great because you get a more personalized experience.
Thabamati is located in the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve. Although camps located in a private reserve can tend to be more expensive, it is for good reason. Unlike the camps located in the Krueger National Park where there can be dozens of other vehicles during your daily game drives, being on a private reserve means the number of trucks allowed is extremely limited. This is not only a better experience for you as a tourist, but also for the animals.
We had read reviews online about this camp and couldn't find a single negative review! Everyone had said how kind, welcoming, and hospitable the staff was, raved about the delicious food, and each guest was in awe of the sightings on each game drive.
We had just a few minutes to drop off our bags to our tent after arriving and then went straight out on our first game drive. I spent the few minutes we had to take some photos of the room, therefore I wore my travel outfit (a dress & sandals) for our first drive, but there were zero complaints.
We drove for a bit then our guide, Charlie, found us an amazing spot for our first “sundowner”.
If you’re not familiar the term “sundowner”, it refers to the time during an evening game drive on Safari when you have an opportunity to get out of the truck to watch the sunset while you enjoy snacks & a drink.
Dinner on our first evening was INCREDIBLE. One of the few dishes we had yet to try from our list of “foods to try in South Africa” was Kudu and luckily for us, that is exactly what the chef prepared for dinner. It was delicious and so tender. Our dessert of the night was a traditional South African dish called “malva pudding” which is made with apricot jam, flour, sugar, and milk, resulting in a spongy and moist texture. It is typically served warm, often with a cream sauce and accompanied by custard. We ate every bite of it and ensured to give our compliments to the Chef!
Our first full day on Safari began bright & early at 5AM. Each morning we met our guide in the reception area for a quick coffee and then it was straight to the truck for our first game drive of the day. We were lucky that our first 2 game drives we had the truck to ourselves before the other guests at camp checked in later that day.
Our first sighting of the day was of a beautiful leopard in a tree. Second to giraffes, leopards are my favorite animals to see on safari as I think their print is just stunning!
Usually within a few hours of our morning drives we would stop to have another coffee (with Amarula 😉) and some muffins. This particular morning was extra special because there just so happened to be giraffes nearby.
Our guide also pointed out this very cool lizard on our way back to camp.
As I mentioned, the staff at Thabamati truly went above and beyond during our stay. They even surprised us with a cake & champagne at breakfast this morning to celebrate Fred & Nolan’s birthdays. It was incredibly kind of them to do this!
Also, the amount of food you are served at every meal will definitely ensure you do not go hungry. Before they bring out your main breakfast entrees, there was always a spread of toast, yogurt, fruit and fresh juices.
Another delightful touch is the spa services they offer which can be done inside the comfort of your own tent. Both Fred and myself enjoyed massages and they were incredible. The perfect way to spend downtime between game drives and refresh your back from all the sitting in the truck each day.
Another question Fred and I are asked when we travel is what equipment do we use to take photos and film our vlogs. For our vlogs, we mostly just use our iPhones, but for photography we use our Sony A6400 camera. We also bought a new lens for this trip. I have linked everything here.
My go to drink for sun-downers was gin & tonic. It’s not usually something I drink but the array of local South African gins had me intrigued and I fell in love with a blood orange one. I am still mad I didn’t look for it at the duty free before we left South Africa as I have not been able to find it here in the US.
After our sundowner that evening, we got to hang out with a resident leopard who our guide called ‘Bizaan”. At first he was just sitting on the side of the road then eventually, he made his way up onto a tree. I was so happy we had some quality time with him because he is truly handsome!
On our third afternoon, Fred and I joined our guide for a “bush walk”. This is basically a safari on foot and I am so happy we were brave enough to do this activity. We saw a few elephants and got quite close to them. My heart was beating so fast, but we had full trust in our guide to keep us safe. I’m not even sure if these photos do it justice but we were approximately 100 feet from these two massive male Ellies!
Our final evening on safari did not disappoint. We had a sighting of some male lions with full bellies and then with a beautiful elephant who was drinking at a water hole.
The sunset this night was also beautiful.
Even though this was on our second safari, I can confidently say it will NOT be our last. I really hope that you enjoyed this post and that it has inspired you to want to take your own African Safari. When I tell you these are life changing trips, I truly mean it!
