Sabie River Bush Lodge — Hotel in Bushbuckridge

I will start by saying this place is pretty great. We went ahead and did the actual pick up from the airport and had no issues with that. Our driver was timely and we were greeted with lemonade at the lodge. Staff is incredibly friendly and will do their best to make sure you have a good experience! The grounds itself are very nice and private. While people were staying there, it never felt “too” busy. The beautiful view of the Sabie river was everything. We were able to see a hippo and elephants on the first day! They also have a life size chess board and a swimming pool. They also have pool chairs and tables you can lay out on and relax, we read our books and enjoyed the view many times while visiting. We stayed in one of the bush tents that was luxury. It was very clean and had a perfect view of the river. The bed was soft, comfortable, and did have a bug net around it which was nice. The bathroom was worth the “upgrade” price. Our own bathroom with a nice walk in shower and a viewing window to see the river. The outdoor area of the tent had private chairs and a table. The restaurant had very good food, we ate dinner every night and even got to try Kudu (it was so good). We also had lunch a few times there and really enjoyed the variety of food and the quality. Again, the staff was very great at their jobs and did their best. Our safari driver, Mbosa (spelling) was AMAZING! Every day we had a safari he was on top of it. We saw the big 5, and even more! Overall, I really recommend this lodge and again, the staff was so amazing. I would recommend if you want a beautiful and relaxing stay, friendly staff, and delicious food.

One of the only cons we had was the communication. Emails wouldn’t be returned and stuff wasn’t specific enough so we had to just hope we showed up and everything was “correct”. You also have to pay some fees at the physical location and can’t pay them online, which was odd to us but fine. They do accept physical cards as well. Again, we would definitely stay here if ever doing a...

The absolute worst ever. I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone. The General Manager, Candice has no sense of customer service at all.

We paid for 2 rooms and a tent and opted for the package deal which included safari rides. We couldn't make it for the first evening safari and was told that there is no refund.

All the while we paid R900 more per person for something that was R110 at the Kruger gate. How did I find out about this? We were escorted by a driver who had to pay with the company credit card at the venue, with no appointment needed.

Because every day had an activity, our evening drive was to fall on the next day, which clashed with the day drive. When I realised this, she told me to pay an extra R110 per person with the shuttle that escorted us the previous day so that they drop my family and I can continue from the day drive into the evening one to avoid losing my money. She couldn't be accomodating at all. Just more money!

The day drive was delayed 5 whole hours. Never once did Candice call. All this fell on the guide who then had to take us to a nearby hotel for breakfast while an EXPIRED PERMIT FOR THE SAFARI VEHICLE had to be sorted. They the had to hire a vehicle from another tour company as it was Christmas eve and the permit offices were closed.

It is the saddest R40 000 spent ever.

I suggest you NEVER opt for the package. The self drive tours is a mere R110 for access to the kruger.

Candice's staff is what saves her business. She has no customer skills and once she has bagged the money, you won't get anything from her, not even a call to apologise for us waking up after 4am for a drive that was paid for, knowing her vehichles don't have the correct permits to...

Great location, service, and comfortable rooms (we stayed in Tent 4). Laid-back, relaxing, and restful atmosphere with views of the Sabie River/Kruger from all lodges and grounds. Large common deck overlooking a hippo hole with maybe six or eight hippos in it the whole time we were there. An elephant came down to the river and grazed along its banks all afternoon and into the evening one day. The Lodge is about 1.5 hours from Kruger airport (we booked the shuttle rather than rent a car, and would mostly likely do so again) and a short distance from the Paul Kruger Gate. We booked a sunset safari followed by an all-day safari and between the two saw everything we hoped to see—even things we thought very unlikely to catch such as a leopard in a tree a few feet from us. Not everyone staying at the Lodge saw as much as we did, so our experience may have been better than average, but no one we spoke to was disappointed in their tours of the park booked through the Lodge. (We did speak to others who rented cars and tried to tour it on their own or booked with other places who were disappointed.) Meals were satisfying and the dining experience very pleasant. While we thought communication with the Lodge could have been better in the lead up to our visit (we are in the US and were booking our first trip to the region, so a little nervous about what we were doing), we now see there was nothing at all to worry about and would rebook again with no worries. We highly recommend Sabie...