Discover Sabi Sand Game Reserve
About Sabi Sand Game Reserve
With its ample size (65 000 hectares) and prime location adjacent to the world-famous Kruger National Park, the Sabi Sand Game Reserve offers an entirely unique luxury private safari experience. The two reserves share a fenceless boundary, so wildlife can wander freely. The game viewing possibilities are unparalleled. Alongside the Big Five (lion, leopard, rhinoceros, elephant, and buffalo), the reserve is home to hundreds of mammal, bird, amphibian, reptile, fish species, and more.
Leopards are the reserve’s greatest claim to fame. Normally shy and elusive, these big cats are frequently spotted by visitors across the reserve – particularly on a morning or late-afternoon safari game drive.
Beyond the vast grasslands and woodland savannah, the Sabi and Sand rivers run through the reserve providing water to a diverse and abundant variety of wildlife. The rivers also create the riverine vegetation that provides such an excellent habitat for the wildlife.
The exceptional hospitality, luxury accommodation, and fine African cuisine add to the experience, giving you an entirely unique African safari adventure that will linger in your memories forever. In terms of quality and diversity, the game viewing and wildlife encounters in Sabi Sand Game Reserve are among the best in Africa, and in the world.
Maps of the Area
The fastest and most convenient way to reach Sabi Sand Game Reserve is by air, from Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport. Our team will assist you in finding the best scheduled or charter flights. Charter flights get you directly into the reserve, and scheduled flights are via Nelspruit’s Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport (for lodges in the western sector), Skukuza Airport (southern sector), or Hoedspruit Eastgate Airport (northern sector).
If you choose to travel by road, the drive from Johannesburg on the tarred N4 highway is approximately 450 kilometres (280 miles). The reserve has three access gates: Shaw’s Gate, Newington Gate, and Gowrie Gate, each of which serves different safari lodges and all of which are open from 5am to 10pm daily.
Flora & Fauna
With no boundary fences separating Sabi Sand Game Reserve and the Kruger National Park, wildlife is free to roam in a vast natural woodland savannah. This is one of the world’s richest wildlife areas, with a well-earned reputation as perhaps the best place in Africa to see leopards. These big cats are notoriously elusive, but the ones at Sabi Sand Game Reserve have grown accustomed to safari vehicles – and some of the reserve’s safari lodges even have their own resident leopards.
One of the reserve’s advantages is that its highly skilled and experienced field guides are allowed to venture off-road to track animals during safari game drives. Sensitive off-road driving is practised, allowing for close-up animal sightings.
Visitors may encounter lion, hyena and various antelope species. The reserve’s waterholes are known to attract elephant, white rhino, giraffe and warthog, while hippo typically reside in the Sabi and Sand rivers.
From wildebeest grazing in the short grass, to zebra enjoying the medium-height grass, or elephant and giraffe browsing the tall trees, the reserve’s herbivores and omnivores have a vast and valuable food source in its thousands of plant varieties. Good news for “twitchers” (birdwatchers) is that the reserve is home to more than 300 bird species, which are found throughout the area.
Sabi Weather
It may seem like the sun always shines at Sabi Sand Game Reserve, but the area does have distinct seasons – and each has its unique benefits. October to March are the hot, rainy and humid Summer months, with average daytime temperatures around 32°C (90°F). While afternoon storms are normal, all-day Summer rainfall is rare. The dry Winter season runs from April to September, bringing cooler days and – because water is scarce – abundant thirsty wildlife visiting the reserve’s permanent waterholes. Vegetation thins during the Winter, which also makes animals relatively easier to spot. While Winter mornings can be cool (9°C/48°F), afternoons are typically cloudless and pleasant (25°C/77°F).
Safari Information
Discover Adventure at the Sabi Sand Game Reserve
Speak to our on-the-ground team to find out more about the Sabi Sand Game Reserve’s wide range of safari lodges and tour options.
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