Mandy Kruger - 5-Day Private Lodge Kruger Safari

Excitement awaits you as you board a flight from O.R. Tambo international Airport in Johannesburg to Hoedspruit Airport inside the Greater Kruger National Park. You will be met by you Jewel of Africa Safaris tour guide who will transfer you to Phelwana Game Lodge. Your accommodation for the next 4 nights will be in a luxury tent or bush villa, with own private veranda and splash pool.

Check in and enjoy high tea before you meet with your ranger who will share great pointers on how to spot wildlife in the bush. After your briefing, you will set off on your first bush walk or game drive on the Reserve. Enjoy the sights and sounds of the bush and look out for giraffe, buffalo, zebra, wildebeest and impala to name but a few.

Arriving back at the lodge as the sun is setting, imagine sipping a sundowner drink on the deck; looking at the amazing African sunset over the majestic Drakensberg Mountains before dinner is served. Enjoy a glass of superb South African wine with a cozy campfire in the background, while your guide points out the Southern Cross star constellation.

We depart early today for a sunrise game drive in the Manyeleti Private Game Reserve. This reserve forms part of the Kruger National Park, Timbavati Nature Reserve and the Sabi Sands Nature Reserve and has excellent game viewing opportunities! This reserve is private and exclusive and only rangers in 4x4 vehicles may drive here and we have the opportunity to go off-road to get the perfect close-up photo.

We return to the lodge at around 11am for lunch and to relax before our afternoon game drive starts at 3pm. This is Big 5 country so make sure your cameras are charged and at all times - expect the unexpected!

We will be back at the lodge at around 7pm and you will have the opportunity to freshen up before dinner is served!

You might have heard that South Africa is a world-in-one-country and today we will bear witness to this as we depart after breakfast to visit the breathtaking Panorama Route.

The Panorama route is a beautiful winding road situated on top of the magnificent Drakensberg Mountains which is the largest mountain range in South Africa.

Highlights:

- God’s Window is a beautiful viewpoint on the edge of the mountain range.

- Lisbon Waterfalls and the Berlin Waterfalls are two beautiful falls with an interesting history.

- The Blyde River Canyon is the third largest canyon in the world and the biggest all-green canyon in the world.

- Bourke's Luck Potholes is where two rivers meet and a truly spectacular sight!

We will enjoy lunch in the lovely little tourist town of Graskop at the famous Harrie’s Pancakes and we will return to the lodge before sunset.

The day starts early as you depart on a full day safari in the world-famous Kruger National Park – where nothing is impossible! Your guide will tell you to expect the unexpected. The whole day is devoted inside the Kruger Park with your private guide in your own private air-conditioned closed vehicle.

Explore this vast 2 million-hectare wildlife haven, roughly the size of Wales, in search of the Big Five today - Lion, Elephant, Buffalo, Leopard and Rhino. Our guides are experts in showing you the hidden intricacies of the animal species, birds, trees, insects and all aspects of the fauna and flora. Enjoy breakfast and lunch at one of the many stopovers.

We return to the lodge as the sun sets over the African bush. Freshen up and enjoy some more of the world famous South African wines while reminiscing about the day’s amazing sightings before dinner is served.

We check out after breakfast and make our way to the nearby endangered species center for a tour of the facility. The Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre is a unique African wildlife facility focusing on conservation and the sustainability of rare, vulnerable and threatened species.

HESC houses a number of animal species including rhino, cheetah, African wild dog, lion, African wild cat, Ground hornbill, Sable antelope, to name just a few. Visitors can view the resident animals in close proximity, in a habitat simulating what they would experience in the wild. Guests are also afforded the opportunity of watching rare African vultures feeding at the Vulture Restaurant.

Afterwards you will be transported back to Hoedspruit airport for your flight to Johannesburg remembering all too well the amazing experience you had the last 5 days!

You may leave Africa,

but Africa will never leave you!