HKTraveler

Thank you for such a detailed review! Never been on an African safari before but this is definitely on the list now!

DSI

Definitely Odzala. We cancelled our portion of Uganda last summer, regretfully. After 3.5 weeks all throughout Africa I couldn't muster another few days, but in looking back, I regret it.

Kagehitokiri

great report as always!

how would you compare to other private reserves and concessions in parks?

interesting wilderness no longer manages ROC
was there new luxury gorilla camp somewhere..

KI-NRT

From an experience standpoint, unlike the vast majority of concessions/conservancies/private reserves, not only does Tswalu own the land, but they have one small lodge and that's it. Most others have multiple camps (Linyanti, Chitabe, Jao, Abu, Naboisho, Olare Motorogi), or are much smaller tracts of land.

Aside from that - since Tswalu owns both the camp and reserve, they are necessarily more maniacal about preventing poaching. In Botswana's concessions, land is leased by the camp owners for 15 years, with part of the proceeds being allocated toward conservation.

Overall, however, well managed locations tend to offer great experiences that are well preserved.

Regarding the new gorilla camp, I'm guessing you are referring to Bisate Lodge in Rwanda. It's managed by Wilderness Safaris. It had not yet opened at the time we went gorilla trekking in 2014, so we stayed at the very serviceable Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge (bhrubin did as well.)

threepointkid

Ever since reading this trip report and others, I have been captivated by Tswalu and its uniqueness. With one safari trip under our belt and a 2nd one booked for the summer of 2024 (Silvan + Londolozi), I wanted to consult this forum to get some insight on an ideal pairing with Tswalu for what would most likely be a 2025 trip. My first thought is to go to Londolozi for a 3rd trip which I think makes a lot of sense. If we wanted to try something new instead or in addition to Londolozi, any thoughts? Is incorporating Singita Pamushana worth the thought? Or perhaps Botswana? This forum continues to be a wealth of knowledge, so any ideas/suggestions are welcome and I will appreciate it all. Thank you in advance, I look forward to any ideas.

KI-NRT

Londolozi (or Singita) + Tswalu is a great combo. That said...

I'd be tempted to recommend Botswana instead. Combine an Okavango camp (there are a great number of wonderful ones, including Mombo, Duba Plains, Jao, Vumbura) with either the Linyanti Concession if later in the Northern Summer (Zarafa, King's Pool) or Jack's Camp in the Makgadikgadi Salt Pans for an amazingly varied itinerary. Jack's Camp is quite different from Tswalu and it doesn't have quite the variety of wildlife. However, it's pretty darned impressive and you will also get the Meerkat experience at Jack's.

The benefit of S. Africa is that it's the only malaria-free safari destination. However, since you will have already done Sabi Sands two times by then, I would lean towards a different destination altogether. We haven't been to Pamushana, but people we know and trust have all told us that it's somewhere "different," but is an overall inferior safari experience compared to some of the finer locations in Botswana, Zambia and the Mara Conservancies.

Pausanias

Not so sure about this . . . there is definitely malaria in Mpumalanga province, the main safari area.
https://www.fitfortravel.nhs.uk/dest...africa#Malaria

Ericka

If it’s malaria free you’re looking for, both Tswalu and Morukuru fit the bill. Both are in South Africa and are easily accessible from one another. And they have different game viewing experiences and plenty of luxury. My trip reports for both are on this forum.

threepointkid

Thank you for the excellent ideas. I’m now intrigued by the idea of combining Tswalu with Duba/Vumbura and Zarafa/King’s Pool like you listed. Having not been to Botswana this is very compelling for me. Londolozi is a place to always revisit, but since I can only make these types of trips every other year at the most, it’s best to see a diversity of properties, all of which from what I can tell are of excellent quality. I appreciate your feedback! Any future Africa trips for you? Your reports are always so helpful.

KI-NRT

We're planning on 3 trips next year. Mara (Mara Plains and Angama Mara), Zimbabwe (Rukomechi and Camp Hwange) and - maybe - Camp Nomade in Zakouma National Park in Chad.

A4K

I don't have the experience to give you advice on where else to go I would just say consider the travel to get there as it is a two hour flight from both JHB or Cape Town and driving is not really an option. We did stay at Tswalu in 2021 and had a fantastic time. It is very different from Sabi Sands in that it is not really game heavy, but rather nuanced and I think more diverse. For example there are only two lion prides in the entire reserve so you don't get a new big game sighting around every corner like you do in Greater Kruger. I think it made us look a lot more at the little things that make up the ecosystem that is the Kalahari.

What really made the stay for us was having a private vehicle, you can do what you want when you want. Night drive and stay up all night to find the nocturnal? They do it for you. Drive 3 hours to the end of the reserve just to see the entire landscape? No problem and they will even pack you dinner. Our favorite drives were just wandering aimlessly and seeing what we run into as opposed to seeking out specific game. One night we turned a corner and saw a pack of hundreds of Oryx on the run, I will never forget it and to me that was way cooler than sitting around watching a lion eat a zebra for breakfast. Traditional safari lodges can feel like such a strict schedule, at Tswalu you are on your own schedule.

If I can answer any other questions for you I am happy to do so.

Ericka

Yes I think this is why Tswalu combines so beautifully with other lodges. It’s not Big 5 focused. It has this striking landscape and amazing creatures and experiences you can’t have anywhere else.

Passportinonehand

Tswalu has recently launched Loapi Tented Camp, which consists of 6 completely individual safari tents for those wanting ultimate privacy.

More info and photos here: https://tswalu.com/our-camps/loapi/
More photos have been posted on their Instagram page (post of 1 July) - but it seems I can't link to Instagram posts here.

Looks pretty amazing i have to say!