Sometimes you find yourself in the middle of nowhere…. And sometimes in the middle of nowhere, you find yourself.
Escape to the Little Karoo and immerse yourself in a landscape where wildlife and flora leave you truly captivated. Just a three-hour drive from Cape Town, along the scenic Route 62, Sanbona Wildlife Reserve is one of the Western Cape’s premier wildlife destinations.
Sanbona, a malaria-free private game reserve, nestles in 58,000 hectares of towering mountains and wide-open plains. The reserve’s vegetation is split into two separate biomes – the Fynbos Biome and the Succulent Karoo, which are both globally recognised biodiversity hotspots and conserving them is therefore critical.
Animal species, which, long extinct and which were known to have once roamed amongst the San people have been reintroduced – large free-roaming and self-sustaining herbivores like elephant, rhino, buffalo and giraffe, and predators such as lion, cheetah and hyena. These along with birds, reptiles, diverse landscapes, geology, San rock paintings, fossils and the fragile beauty of the vegetation are all part of Sanbona Wildlife Reserve’s allure.
Boasting three luxury lodges and an adventurous tented camp, Sanbona promises something for everyone.
Dwyka Tented Lodge, with its identity rooted in the style of an African safari encampment, is surrounded by cliffs dating back millions of years. Nine luxury suites, each one, part tent, part cabana, look out over the riverbed to the towering rock face above.
Tilney Manor is more serene. A flat-roofed Cape Georgian-style homestead, Tilney looks out over the renosterveld to the Kleinberg mountain range. Simply built in the 19th century, it now offers six suites clustered around a swimming pool with a terrace offering magnificent views.
Gondwana Family Lodge has been built in a rural vernacular style. Its twelve suites laid out over two stories are suitable for families with children.
For those who want the real bush experience nothing beats Explorer Camp, an authentic tented encampment laid out among the Schotia thickets in a dried-up riverbed.
The Kids on Safari programme allows for many hours of exploration and fun – from treasure hunts, short night and day bush walks in a fenced area, insect catching and frogging and a visit to the Skull Garden, there’s all this and more to experience on a Family Safari!
The spirit of Sanbona lies not only in its commitment to rehabilitate the fragile ecosystems of the Little Karoo, but also ensures endangered wildlife and flora can be enjoyed for future generations. Being owned and operated on a not for profit basis means that your visit contributes to all current and future conservation efforts.
So, go lose yourself in the middle of nowhere, in a place where time stands still, and nature takes centre stage.
Contact: 021 010 0028
Address: R62, Montagu, 6720
Website: https://sanbona.com/
Pictures: Supplied
