African Stay

African Stay represents many hundreds of luxurious and unique safari lodges throughout Southern Africa, from those in the large world renowed game reserves to the lesser known private reserves.

South Africa is often called “one country and a world of contrasts” and nowhere is this better seen then when you leave the cities for the unique game reserves throughout Southern Africa.

Selection of Lodges

And it is equally true of the Safari Lodges in all of the Southern African Game reserves. When you stay in a lodge or bush camp carefully selected by African Stay, you will smell the perfume in the earth and hear the laughter of Africa in the wind. Experience the close-by roar of a majestic lion, hike through the dry savannahs and chill to the call of a giant eagle owl. Each destination has its own magic and wonder. Each Lodge offers you something special to its area and terrain.

African Stay - Safari Accommodation

So whether you are looking for luxury and exquisite accommodation in the Richtersveld’s mountainous desert or the rugged sandstone formations of the Kruger National Park, African Stay will find the perfect place for you.

If you’re limited for time, then just two to three hours drive from Johannesburg – City of Gold, you can be in the Pilansberg Game Reserve to the west and The Waterberg to the north.

Early morning game viewing in a hot air balloon is a unique and adventurous rush and at the end of it, a true African breakfast awaits you at your Lodge or set in the thick acacia bush.

The Waterberg has a number of safari lodges and camps that offer superior service and elegance. From your private deck you can watch the sinking African sun set the veldt ablaze in burning orange and reflecting off the sheer cliff tops and crags that are typical of this area.

One of the most wonderful game reserves offering superb accommodation, extraordinary service and unique safaris is Madikwe Game Reserve. There, you will find all kinds of luxurious and exceptional safari lodges in an ecological diversity that varies from vast plains to the dense jungle forest that hug the Marico River.

You can decide to stay in a bush lodge with walls built of glass or in a bush camp where your only night-light is from a flickering candle. Perhaps you’d prefer a Lodge where each luxury suite has its own private plunge pool or a chalet that overlooks a water hole where elephants appear like silent grey ghosts at dusk to drink and move away as silently as they came.

Situated north east of the “friendly city” of Port Elizabeth – a part of the Garden Route, is the Addo Elephant Park. It was established in 1931 and here too you will be spoilt for choice.

Renowned for its rhino conservation programme is the Hluhluwe - Umfolozi Park. The lodges in and around this Game reserve offer a range of accommodation such as traditional Zulu thatched huts to luxury tented camps. Here too you can experience bush walks and adventures that include learning “elephant language” to the thrill of a night safari and game drive

Kwa Zulu is home to hundreds of bird species and most of the Safari lodges offer birding safaris with private guides.

In an hour from the astonishingly beautiful city of Cape Town, you can stay in a game reserve that offers the Big 5.

And as you go along the Garden Route with African Stay your safari adventure need not stop.

African Stay and its associated tour operators has tried and tested many Lodges in privately owned game reserves - each one offering the traveler something splendid and unusual. Imagine sipping a fine Cape wine and watching the Cape Buffalo wallow in a mud hole just below your verandah….or hiking with a ranger in absolute silence behind a troop of baboon….or watching in awe as a cheetah chases its prey. African Stay will find the most unique Lodge for you so that your trip will be a lifetime memory.

Once we’ve confirmed your reservation, we’ll tell you what the climate will be, whether or not you’ll need any specific medication (shots) for malaria and what sort of clothing to bring. If you have a restricted diet or require certain foods, African Stay will arrange for the Chefs at the 5 star Lodges prepare fine cuisine to suit you.

Throughout Southern Africa you can stay in unusual hotels offering personal service and boundless luxury. The mark of a boutique hotel or resort is superior accommodation and additional luxuries not always found in the large chain hotels.

Some of these hotels have linked in a loose association and so you can expect a high, yet similar standard of decor and cuisine. From Cape Town to Plettenberg Bay the choice of these quaint and luxurious hotels is exceptional and there are many that I have visited and all have impressed me.

However, these luxury properties are not restricted to the Cape – you’ll find them throughout the country and owners and staff will do their best to ensure your holiday with them is perfect.

As with the luxurious guest houses on African Stay’s recommended list, the boutique hotels and resorts are in general run by eccentric owners and quirky managers who will know their area well and will often happily act as tour guide if their time permits.

Because the boutique hotels are generally privately owned, they offer many specials during the off-season months. It’s important for me to mention that some don’t accept family bookings if the child/children are under 16 years old. But there are a few where the Hotel staff goes out of their way to welcome children and to this end have wonderful onsite activities for them.

If you want to be pampered and recognized we suggest you consider staying in one of these luxury hotels. Many boutique hotels offer onsite activities to suit the discerning tourist. Besides gourmet meals, they’ll likely have a spa and wellness centre: a gym and a library.

If you’re a keen golfer or if you are traveling to Southern Africa for a special interest tour such as the Battlefields, for game fishing or simply business, we strongly recommend a boutique hotel.

Please contact me for advice and recommendations and you can be sure that each one African Stay suggests, will have been inspected and checked by my company. As accommodation specialists, we endeavor to match you to the ideal hotel or resort so your stay is unique and memorable.