Elephants Crossing — Hotel in Lephalale Local Municipality

This review is hard to write without sounding like I'm exaggerating but I'll try.|I can honestly say there is absolutely nothing that can make this lodge any better than it already is. It really is a little piece of heaven!|Location and lodge - it took just under 3 hours from Jo'berg airport to get to the main gate, and due to the closer gate being shut because of flooding it was around 2 hours drive to the lodge but this was our first game drive which was a welcome surprise! The Lodge is set on a slight hill with absolutely spectacular views from our tent and the main building.|The Lodge itself is quite small, there are max 12 guests at any time so it felt very personal and friendly.|Accommodation- our tent was lovely. As I travelled with my son we had two singles pushed together. There's hanging space and shelves, a table with tea coffee etc facilities, a lovely roll top bath, outside shower and of course the wrap around deck area with plunge pool. Our beds were very comfy. Although the temperature was down to 13oC at night we were never cold. There's a large fan in the tent although we didn't need it. There are both types of SA plug sockets. |We loved watching the zebra, baboons and impala immediately outside the tent.|Everywhere is spotlessly clean.|Food - chef Austen made a huge variety of top quality dishes. Everyone's dietary requirements were catered for. Breakfast is a fresh buffet plus a la carte, lunch two courses and dinner 3 courses. I wasn't expecting such high standards but every single dish was delicious.|Game drives - Jacob was our guide for most of our drives, he's clearly very knowledgeable and very friendly. We had early morning and late afternoon drives. My son absolutely loved Jacob! We saw a massive number of species. The lions sadly escaped our sights but we saw the rest of the big 5 and so many more. The reserve is vast. It's fantastic to see so many rhino in the wild with the antipoaching team doing a brilliant job.|Service - the owners have got it spot on with the team here. The service was absolutely perfect. As the lodge is small the service is very personal. Nothing is too much trouble. Ayanda leads a lovely team of people.|Words of advice - there are blankets on each car but it is chilly first and last thing so take warm layers for the drives.|We didn't get bitten much at all as there aren't many mosquitos at least in April when we visited. There's bug spray in the room but we wore some too.|Don't bother packing smart clothes, we mostly just wore the same stuff all day as you eat soon after returning from the drives.|Final tip - if you're considering a visit DO IT! I can't recommend this place enough. Thanks to the whole team at Elephants Crossing for making our bucket list trip...

Unbelievable experience. What an opportunity of a lifetime. Made all the more better by Eadie and his team. They were simply outstanding. A real credit to their company! Nothing was too much trouble for Eadie and his team. The food was delicious. Lunch was served on the veranda and dinner inside at night by the open fire. We travelled here in SA's winter but our Scottish summer. However, the temperature was almost the same!||You are entitled to 2 game drives a day. The first one left at 6am but Herbert always had a blanket and poncho on the chair for us with a hot water bottle wrapped inside. What service! Herbert is a legend. All the other game drivers asked for his advice. He was so knowledgeable about all forms of wildlife in the game reserve, not just the big 5. We loved his game drives. Herbert would extend the drive if he thought we would see one of the big 5 if there was positive sightings on the radio. We also really enjoyed Jacob's but he left for his week off after our first game drive. Both of them were amazing.||The location of the lodge is further out than most but seeing elephants every night at the lodge was amazing. One night they appeared just after dinner and then the following 2 nights just after midnight and one drink out of the plunge pool in the next tent up from us!||The resort only has 4 tents and a 2 bed lodge but the tents are amazing. The outside showers are totally enclosed and private and nobody in our group did not like the accommodation. At night staff turned on the calor gas fire in your tent so when you went to bed for the night your tent felt so homely.||Amazing experience, amazing food, amazing accommodation, amazing views and fantastic staff, what more could...

Let me take my time to write this review in English, as a Dutch girl, so everyone can read this. We stayed at this lodge for 2 nights, and it was a BIG dream come true. The lodge, the way to it, the people, the surrounding area—everything is stunning and incredibly lovely.

A BIG shout-out to the staff of Elephants Crossing! The service was incredibly good, friendly, and honest. Every single employee was doing their absolute best every day, and we felt that it was genuine and just the way they are.

Then the food... from the chef himself. It was so, so nice and plentiful! If you are a big eater or just enjoy good-quality food made with love, you're absolutely in the right place here.

Lastly, we really want to express our appreciation to our ranger. I won’t write his name for privacy reasons, as I didn’t ask, but he stole our hearts. He had 27(!) years of experience in this area of Welgevonden. He knew the animals, found so many, and you could see he cared deeply about nature, animals, and his colleagues. For many younger rangers, he was the go-to person for advice over the radio.

He, all the staff, and the place made our dream come true. Even without all the luxury you receive, we will remember Welgevonden and Elephants Crossing as a warm, new place in our hearts.

Thank you all so much, and keep up the great work you all do together. It’s really appreciated!

Ps. They did not ask me to write a review, we just want to because think they and especially the staff, deserve it.

Kind regards,...