Timbavati or Klaserie Game Lodge Options

Old Jun 28th, 2016, 12:44 PM
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Timbavati or Klaserie Game Lodge Options

I am trying to narrow down possible options for lodging in Timbavati or Klaserie for end of April 2017 and am hoping for some feedback. The plan is to spend 4 nights in either Timbavati or Klaserie, followed by 4 nights in Sabi Sands.

Who we are: I like to think of us as a young-ish married couple, although maybe not so young after all as we will be celebrating a milestone anniversary while there.

What we are looking for: We are interested in a tented option for Timbavati - I think we have settled on Arathusa for Sabi Sands where we will go after Timbavati, so we would like something with a different feel than Arathusa which I have seen described as more of a "lodge" feel. We are also looking for a camp that does not permit young children on game drives - preferably none under 12, but would consider none under 6. We are definitely looking for quiet, and ideally would like something with a romantic vibe. Our other main consideration would be view of nature from the accommodations and the quality of game viewing - one of us is a biologist by profession, the other of us has an undergrad degree in biology, and this aspect is important to us.

Options I have looked at:

- Tanda Tula - would be my dream option from the perspective of the "look" of the camp (love the tents!), however, I am not sure I can justify the price, which is more than I would ideally like to pay and would be at least $2,000 CAD more (for the 4 nights) than Simbavati, and $3,500 more than nThambo. But, if someone thinks there is something about Tanda Tula which would make it worth the extra price, please tell me!

- Simbavati Hilltop - I like that their policy seems to be max 6 pax per game drive, and no kids under 12. However, I have read some reports that seem to suggest that the game viewing there might be significantly less than in other areas. I would appreciate any information / feedback on this issue.

- nThambo - the budget option, and I like the look of the tents. Is the lack of air conditioning likely to be a factor in April? I understand that is considered the end of their summer. Also, I can't seem to find any information on their game drive capacity - there are 5 tents, so are all 10 people (if camp is full) crammed into 1 truck?

I would appreciate any feedback on these choices, or any other suggestions you might have!
travelgirl2_99 is offline  
Old Jul 13th, 2016, 03:25 AM
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Sounds like great fun!

We're looking at a similar trip for march. However a bit more low budget.

We're thinking africa on foot (the budget brother of nThambo - the latter will give you a bit more luxury)

Then Shindzela, amazingly good value for money. I don't think there is any safari camp as well priced as this one. And it gets very favorable feedback from those in the know. It's a tented camp so maybe worth looking at (it's in Timbavati). But you might be looking for a tad more luxury than this (they allow children as of 10).

And then in Sabi Sands we're a bit lost. With your budget I'd book Nottens for sure! In your case I'd change my timbavati to Shindzela and free up some budget for Nottens. Everyone raves about how good value they are. (they allow children as of 6 though).

Anyway, my two cents on this budget would be Shindzela and Notten's!
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Old Jul 17th, 2016, 04:53 PM
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My wife and I spent 3 nights each in Gomo Gomo in Klaserie and in Arathusa in Sabi Sands in May. We liked both lodges, their watering holes and their staffs. I think that Arathusa is a good choice for you.

I'm not recommending Gomo Gomo for you since it allows children and is not tented. What I wanted to tell you is that the area around Gomo Gomo in Klaserie seems to have suffered more damage from the drought than the area around Arathusa in Sabi Sands. The area around Gomo Gomo also seems to have had a lot more uprooted trees due to elephants. Probably as a result of these factors, the game drives at Gomo Gomo were not nearly as productive as those at Arathusa. On the positive side, we saw wild dogs only in Klaserie.

Since Gomo Gomo is very close to Timbavati, my comments may also apply to nearby areas in Timbavati.
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