Tswalu Kalahari Reserve

I stayed at Tswalu with my husband and some family members — three couples — for 4 nights as part one of a safari experience (we later went to Londolozi). Every moment at Tswalu from the time we arrived was absolutely incredible. First, the rooms are beautiful. It’s truly a luxury experience. Each room looks out onto a piece of the reserve — we were in room 7 and had an excellent view of the watering hole. We just spent hours sitting on the back patio watching wildlife go by. Housekeeping did an impeccable job as well. It felt like There was some sort of small surprise every time we returned to the room — a little chocolate and note on the pillow each night, things were organized on the desk. If we took even a tiny bit of peel from the lemon at the bar, they refreshed it. They had such clear attention to detail so things always felt clean, neat, and luxurious. Second, The staff went above and beyond to make sure we had the most special, curated experience possible. Everyone was so friendly and so willing to work with our needs / preferences. Every staff member greeted us with smiles every time they saw us and were always checking in to see what we needed or wanted. This extended also to the food service. They were willing and ready to whip something up pretty much any time of day, and would go off menu as long as they had the ingredients. Everything we ate was yummy. We had dinner one night at Boscia House and it was my favorite meal of the whole trip. Every course was a dish and flavors I had never tried before, and the staff at the restaurant really made it feel like a special experience. It is small — seats only 8-10 people it seems like — so it was extremely intimate. We loved it. And on the food, there was plenty of it. We started our safari at 5:30am, with light breakfast options put out at 5. During the morning game drive, we usually had a stop for coffee and more light snacks. We then returned usually around 9-10am each day and could have a full hot breakfast. Lunch was also served, and then at 4pm there was high tea and light snacks before the 4:30pm game drive. Again on the second game drive, we had a stop for drinks and snacks — a little sunset happy hour — and we returned for a full dinner later. There was so much food we never got hungry or had to think about our meals. The reserve and the safari experience were by far the best part of this already incredible stay. Each of the three couples had our own vehicle with our own tracker and guide. Our guide, Andries, explained that they usually tried to avoid running into other vehicles in order to make each person’s safari feel like a unique, isolated experience. However, since we were together in a group, the three vehicles did a great job of communicating and linking up for our drink / snack breaks and for a few big sightings. Yet, they each took a separate route to get wherever we were meeting, so I think each of us couples felt like we had a unique experience. We always had plenty to share and talk about from the day over dinner. Andries, our guide, and Athi, our tracker, were both incredibly knowledgeable, patient, and friendly. They had answers for all our questions. They communicated about what they were doing so that we could stay looped in on the tracking process. They spotted things I couldn’t even see with the naked eye. They both had a lot of education in their fields and were excited to share it. They were also just generally great to talk to and spend time with. I felt like we developed a great connection with them even over just a few days. They were both such genuine and open people. I feel very lucky we were paired with them. I can’t speak as much on my own experience with the guides and trackers for the other two couples — Viyani, MC, Ben, and Ivan — but from speaking with our family members, I know they felt similarly about their experience. Tswalu was a bit of a slower paced safari. We sometimes took a few hours to track a specific animal (but would always see many other things also along the way) and usually we would come across just one or a handful of that specific kind of animal. This was different from something like Londolozi, which we experienced later, where we encountered herds of animals. This is maybe not for everyone, depending how you imagined your safari experience. However, for me personally, I loved this pace. I enjoyed the tracking process, it felt like we were putting in the work and effort — and I enjoyed the payoff of finding an animal after all that. Every single animal encounter felt special and unique. Our longest tracking time was when we spent about 3 hours looking for a mother cheetah and her cubs. But the morning spent tracking was so cool — it was awesome to see the trackers from the three different trucks at work, in the zone, touching base with one another. When we did finally find the cheetahs, we were able to get out and even walk up to them. It was really special. It worked out nicely to pair the slow pace of Tawalu with the more densely populated safari experience at Londolozi. Our agent said some people do Tswalu second as a wind down, but I thought it was actually a perfect way to start. By the time we got to Londolozi, we had seen many of the same animals, but were then just impressed by the sheer number and frequency of them. It was a nice build up. Our total trip was 2 nights in Johannesburg, 4 in Tswalu, 4 in Londolozi, and then 3 nights in Cape Town. If you have time and funds allow for two safari experiences, I highly recommend this pairing. However, if you only have time for one and you are ok with the slow pace, I definitely recommend Tswalu. Our days there were my favorite part of the entire trip.

Outstanding from start to finish. We spent three nights in this, understated, stylish lodge. The rooms were spacious, comfortable and warm. The staff were fantastic. Friendly, efficient and attentive. Food was excellent. The landscape is stunning and there is enough game to keep attention. The guides were very knowledgeable. As well as game viewing, we were able to learn much about the flora, fauna and ecology.

I can not say enough about our stay at Tswalu. I managed a group of 14 travelers from the US and we were all blown away by our experience at Tswalu. The staff, the accommodations, the food and the Kalahari Desert. The staff - from the guides to the trackers to the hosts to the catering staff to the housekeeping staff to the Tarkuni management - all of them were so on it. We all felt so well taken care of plus they genuinely seemed vested in our excitement and enjoyment of the resort

Our guide (Michael) , tracker (Jackson), personal chef (Ace) and personal house manager (Z), were all AMAZING! I miss them all so much! They went above and beyond for us! The house was huge and beautiful! The massage therapists were FANTASTIC! The food was great! The only thing I didn’t like was how far all the animals were; you have to drive a long way before you see any. But they were very active once we found them!

Firstly the accommodation. Stayed at the Motse and all aspects were superb. Wonderful staff, great food and overall a totally relaxing experience. Game viewing was, however a different experience. Tswalu prides itself on being the largest privately owned conservation area in South Africa. Unfortunately there are not enough animals in this area to make game viewing a positive experience. For example only two black maned lions at present - If you can find them. I have travelled all over Africa and must have done well over 30 safaris. This was the worst due to the unbelievable paucity of wildlife, I was put off by the high cost (plus single supplement) initially but felt I'd go on what was possibly my last safari in order to see some of the less common animals. However, when seen, thanks to the expertise of the tracker and guide, the animals were at a significant distance and certainly not possible for good wildlife photography. I give 2 to the game viewing because of the meerkats, otherwise wildlife was scarce. This was in spite of an incredible tracker and guide who made the most of every situation. So, if you want an extravagant but wonderful hotel stay, this is the place for you. However until more wildlife get introduced this is neither a wildlife or photo destination.