Botlierskop Tented Lodge — Hotel in George

🐾 Botlierskop Private Game Reserve – Full Review

🌍 Setting: Nestled between Mossel Bay and George, this malaria-free 4,200-hectare reserve offers a rich safari experience with mountains, riverfront views, and a variety of ecosystems. Home to 4 of the Big Five (excluding leopard), it features lions, elephants, rhinos, and buffalo, as well as cheetahs, giraffes, zebras, hippos, porcupines, and over 200 bird species.

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🛏 Accommodation

Botlierskop offers a range of luxury and family-friendly options across several lodges and private cottages:

🌟 Luxury Tented Lodge • Private tented suites with outdoor showers, clawfoot bathtubs, and panoramic decks overlooking rivers or plains. • Ideal for couples or honeymooners.

🏘 Village Lodge • Restored historic farm buildings transformed into charming rooms and suites. • Family suites and interleading rooms available. • Surrounded by rolling lawns, dam views, and mountain backdrops.

🏡 Self-Catering Cottages • Options like Rooidoekie Pod, Kasks, and Justice of the Peace offer privacy, multiple bedrooms, full kitchens, fireplaces, and countryside seclusion. • Ideal for groups or longer stays. ⸻

🦁 Activities & Experiences

🛻 Included in Packages • Morning & sunset game drives (2 per day) • Horseback safaris • Guided bush walks with experienced rangers

💆‍♀️ Optional Experiences • Fijnebos Spa with massages, hydro baths, and beauty treatments • Canoeing, catch-and-release fishing • Tennis court, water slides, playground for children • Bird watching and photography excursions

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🍽 Dining • Two main restaurants offer traditional South African cuisine, buffets, and à la carte menus. • Ingredients are fresh and locally sourced. • Vegan and halal options available on request.

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❤️ Personal Experience

We truly enjoyed our stay in this stunning safari destination. The rooms are absolutely wonderful, offering comfort and nature in perfect harmony. The food was very, very delicious – every meal felt special and thoughtfully prepared.

We went on the early morning and afternoon game drives, and both were unforgettable. We also tried the horseback safari, which is not to be missed – our tour leader, Mr. Mandela, was a very wonderful and knowledgeable man who made the whole experience even more special.

We were lucky to see all the major animals, including cheetahs, elephants, rhinoceroses, hippopotamuses, lions, porcupines, different types of deer, and giraffes. The most beautiful part was that many of these animals actually passed right in front of our room, making it feel like we were living in the heart of the wild.

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✅ Highlights • Luxury meets nature: Authentic safari experience with elegant accommodations and world-class service • Family-friendly: Wide range of activities for all ages, from game drives to horse safaris and kids’ water slides • Malaria-free and located along one of South Africa’s most beautiful routes • Top-rated staff and guides: Especially Mr. Mandela, who left a lasting impression • Magical wildlife sightings right from your room

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🏁 Final Verdict

Botlierskop Private Game Reserve offers an exceptional safari experience that blends luxury, adventure, and the raw beauty of African wildlife. Whether you’re travelling as a couple, a family, or a group of friends, the memories you make here will last a lifetime. Everything – from the rooms and food to the guided tours – is crafted with care...

I always strive to provide fair and balanced reviews that reflect my full experience, in the hope that they will be helpful to other travelers. To begin with the positives: the room was beautifully designed, tastefully furnished, and well-equipped with all necessary amenities. The bed was especially comfortable, and overall, the room exceeded expectations in terms of aesthetics and comfort.

To accommodate my entire family and to benefit from the full-board meal service (which is not available with the villa option), I booked two rooms. Unfortunately, what followed seriously impacted our stay and resulted in both a disappointing experience and a substantial financial loss.

Shortly after our arrival, my wife had lunch at the resort’s restaurant. During the meal, she began to feel abdominal discomfort, which quickly escalated to symptoms of food poisoning. Despite feeling unwell, she joined the scheduled safari activity to avoid disrupting the family’s plans. However, by the end of the excursion, she was experiencing chills, nausea, and repeated vomiting — all classic signs of foodborne illness, clearly linked to the lunch she had consumed.

As a result, we had to cancel our plans for the following morning’s safari and stay back to care for her. I reported the incident to management the next day, expressing serious concerns about the hygiene and food safety standards at the restaurant. Regrettably, I was surprised and disappointed by the response — or rather, the lack thereof. I received no apology, no acknowledgment of the issue, and no offer of compensation.

To add to the frustration, when reviewing the final bill at checkout, I discovered that I had been charged the full amount for the stay, without any deduction for the 50% deposit I had paid three weeks prior.

In conclusion, while the accommodations themselves are lovely, I strongly advise future guests to exercise caution with the on-site restaurant. You may wish to consider booking a stay without meal services, or limiting your experience to the safari only — although it is worth noting that the number of animals observed on the safari was surprisingly limited, given the size of...

I would like to give the staff of Botlierskop and especially the Fijnebos Spa staff a superb review for going above and beyond in their amazing service. On the 7th of November, I was travelling to Botlierskop with two other ladies for our office year end function when we had a an unfortunate experience of being in a vehicle collision- another driver, a subcontractor working at the resort came speeding around a blind corner and drove into our vehicle, knocking our little car 180 degrees off the road . Luckily we were not severely injured (minor whiplash for the driver) but we were in a state of shock and her car was damaged to such an extent that we could not continue to drive. Within moments the Botlierskop rangers were there to assist and took us via game drive vehicle to the resort. They arranged to have our booking time extended, which we had already fully paid at the Spa, and gave us something for the shock. After having something to eat and the staff guys helping one of our ladies’ husband with the towing of the car, we went into the Spa and we were so blessed to have the reception lady pray for us and making us feel settled and relaxed after our horrible ordeal. I took a photo of this angel of a woman, her name is Shamolene. Our treatments we so relaxing and the beautiful worship music they played added to the effect of peace and calm that we experienced. It was truly an amazing blessing and turned the entire day around for us. I would definitely visit this establishment again, despite the awful experience we had on the dirt road coming in, although I would urge Botlierskop take some drastic measures to ensure this type of thing does not happen again. More signage and perhaps speedbumps or warnings / mirrors around the dangerous corners are really necessary to make the road safer for guests. It really is a beautiful place and the service is amazing, I can highly recommend it. But do take care when driving...