Shamwari Private Game Reserve
User Reviews (14)
South Africa ParksImpressive
As a photographer it was a perfect experience for shooting wildlife and the big five. We had a fantastic experience, even if it was long time ago i still remember the perfect organisation to let us make the right click with ours camera. All with friendly and perfect service from the staff of Shamwari. If you like to make the right click in front of a Lion ....go there fantastic guides are waiting you.
Alessandro
IT
As a Photogrpher, it was a perfect driving trip for shooting wildlife
We had a very fantastic experience, it was longtime ago, but i still remember well all the details. Impressive scenery, perfect and friendly accommodation and food and very competent guides that help us to discover the big five for make the perfect click with ours camera.
Thanks Shamwari Game Reserve
FR
Email Nils Axel | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A fantastic experience
My wife and I spent three fantastic days at Shamwari Game Reserve in April 2017. We came close to lots of beautiful animals, including all the big five, but also many others, during two three-hours safaris each day. The weather was great, the guide (Stef) was excellent, the accommodation was superb, the food was very good, and the service was perfect. We are dreaming about going back as soon as possible. You can find a few of the pictures we took at https://www.flickr.com/photos/nilsaxel/sets/72157683166837055.
Email Annie8488 | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
3 days of superb closeup interaction with wildfire and scenery.
The experience at Shamwari was the highlight of an already brilliant trip to South Africa. Everything about it was was just great. Of course what made it special were the game drives with out experienced and knowledgeable ranger , Jonathan . Each day a bit more of the beautiful scenery and the wildlife in it unfolded fir us. We were so close to amazing animals without feeling we were disturbing them. Jonathan told us enough to increase our own knowledge and had humour which made it fun too. I really appreciated the fact that only 2 vehicles are allowed close to an animal at a time. Conservation and animal welfare is important to everyone there. The accommodation was excellent and the food too. The staff took care of everything you might wish for with a feeling that they really wanted to make your day special. The combination of being in your group eating together and being on the drive together meant you got to know others and share your experience but also you had time to yourselves. I know we paid a bit more than we could have for some other reserves but it was well worth it. I cried when we left! That doesn't happen after a usual holiday!
Email Colin | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
A place for someone who is looking for an excellent safari experience
Our children had been worried when the brochure described the accommodation as "tented". They needn't have been worried, not many tents include a very comfortable double bed, a good side bathroom (though an outside shower was a surprise) and its own plunge pool. The "tent" was extremely private being set in its own wooded area, the only visitors being the nyala and wart hogs which unconcernedly wandered past.
The ranger we had for the game drives was top-notch. He and his fellow rangers obviously kept track of all the animals on the reserve and we saw a good selection on each drive. However he was also very knowledgeable about the environment as well, stopping to show us interesting plants, birds and smaller animals as well as the "big five".
The only downside was the restaurant in the evening, service wasn't all it could have been and the food presented wasn't what I would have expected from somewhere with Shamwari's reputation.
If you want an excellent safari experience then Shamwari is definitely the place to go, but go on the understanding that the restaurant service might not be of the best.
Email kate | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
shamwari
just wonderful the accommodation and other visitors were great
Email Gareth and Chris Davies | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Everything we hoped for and more.
We stayed at Bayethe lodge - quite a drive on rough-ish tracks from the main road (a positive!)
Our ranger was superb - great knowledge and personality, also properly respectful of the animals. Organisation of game drive programme was very good and we were able to get close up experience of elephant, zebra, giraffe, black and white rhino, hippo, lions and cheetahs.
Accommodation and food was very good with plenty of opportunity to spend time with fellow guests at meal times.
Staff were friendly and helpful.
Weather was great - warm/hot during the day, chilly mornings and evenings.
Overall - fantastic experience.
Email lakelly94 | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An unforgettable experience.
I went to Shamwari Game Reserve for two weeks on the Shamwari Conservation Experience. The guides were brilliant and had a vast array of in-depth knowledge about the reserve, it's plants and it's animals. The weather was variable but I did go in their winter time so it was to be expected. The highlights of my stay were the scenery which was absolutely beautiful, seeing three lionesses feeding on a hippo carcass and seeing two cheetah brothers resting in the shade of a tree. If you have the chance, I would definitely recommend going.
Shamwari has changed a lot, very much for the better, since I was last there in 1998.
Long Lee Manor in Shamwari is a luxurious lodge with excellent facilities and very friendly staff. Shamwari Reserve itself is around 25k hectares now and perhaps double the size since we were there last, in 1998. Wild cats are now free in the reserve; they weren't in 1998. The quantity of game to be seen, very often with only our vehicle present, was superb, both large and small (the jackal pups? cubs? we saw beside their den were entrancing); elephants were to be seen frequently, and close up without being hassled and unconcerned by our presence. We were also lucky enought to see a pair of cheetah brothers make a kill, again very close, and on another occasion an unbothered leopard came out of a thicket and went round our vehicle before going back into another thicket. Our ranger was very alert to what we wanted to see, and while radio communication with other rangers back and forth could sometimes be intrusive, I guess it was necessary to locate where particular groups of animals were to be found. I suppose the big surprise was the number of rhino to be seen, including a few black rhino, though rhino are not my favourite species. We were there for four nights, but still didn't cover all the ground - which is very varied from open plains to bush to wooded valleys. Getting up at 5 a.m. every day is tiring but very much worth it(!) though on reflection and from my notes (I kept a daily diary) I think we saw more in the afternoon/early evening drives. Although there are another four or five lodges on the property, we did not often see other vehicles out on drives, and being a private reserve there were no local tourist vehicles as there are, say, in the Kruger. One final point - Shamwari has a tie up with the Born Free Foundation and their visitor centre in the reserve is well worth a visit.
An idylic setting for a Malaria-free but authentic Safari Experience
From the moment we were collected from Port Elizabeth Airport, we knew we had made the right decision. Having originally considered staying somewhere where we would fly in a small plane directly into the Game Reserve, we were recommended to Shamwari by so many people that this is where we decided upon.
The accommodation was wonderful, having been designed as large wooden huts covered with tarpauline type rooves which may sound basic but in fact were done in a way to provide luxurious 5 star accommodation whilst at the same time still feeling that you are sleeping in the bush. The bathroom was lovely with huge windows looking onto the bush and the wet-room type shower was a joy to use. Each suite has it's own plunge pool & sunbathing deck and the warthogs do like to join you in the morning & later at night.
The game drives were well organised and our guide JR was extremely knowledgeable & experienced. We we were lucky enough to be in on the capture of a zebra by a pack of lions, from initial set-up through stalking to capture and finally the kill. Not pleasant in itself but to have experienced what would normally only be seen on a wildlife program was a privilege.
Catering was not as good as we had expected but I think as we were unlucky with the rain, so the kitchen was also unlucky in that it couldn't serve meals outside in an informal BBQ environment & more formal indoor service was their forte.
WE would highly recommend Shamwari as a Safari destination