Ulusaba

This lodge, owned by Sir Richard Branson, has amazing views from high atop a mountain. Our room was very large with the bathroom below a spiral staircase. Though I would have preferred one level rather than two, the room was very spacious with an outdoor deck. The main bar/dining area was very large with lots of room for seating and large windows to view the bush below. Service at this lodge was spectacular, and everyone addressed us b name. The food was also spectacular, prepared by an experienced chef who often was in the main area chatting with guests. Our guide Michael was also spectacular -- experienced, personable, fun, and enthusiastic. Our tracker John was also a great addition and worked well with Michael. A wonderful experience and I highly recommend this lodge!!! However, it will be closed in 2026 for a complete rebuild -- should be spectacular!

10 years ago we came to Ulusaba Safari Lodge on our honeymoon and it was incredible. But I never ended up writing a review. ||We came back for our anniversary, but this time to Rock Lodge. I’m so happy to report that it once again met and exceeded expectations. ||In my opinion it is simply one of the greatest vacations on earth.||To start, our Ranger, Brad, and Tracker, Harold, were superb. They found all the Big Five of course, and this time the magnificent seven as we added Cheetah which we never saw 10 years ago. We even grabbed a glimpse of a Honey Badger which had become a running joke during the trip. ||The lodge is superb. Everything you could want, whenever you want. Great food, great wine, but above all friendliness, Ulusaba really is a family. ||We cannot wait to come back after the refurb. We certainly won’t wait another 10 years, but just long enough that our young children are old enough to also experience safari and the delights of the Ulusaba family.

We had a truly unforgettable holiday at the Ulusaba Rock Lodge in September. The safaris were always going to be the highlight of our trip to South Africa and in no way did Ulusaba disappoint.|Our guide Brett and tracker and Harold were absolutely superb. They were so passionate and knowledgeable about both the animals and reserve. The animal sightings were amazing and we have some spectacular photographs to remind us of out holiday.|The accommodation, meals and facilities were top class and the staff were all very friendly and helpful.|All in all a totally fantastic and memorable few days in Ulusaba and we can’t wait to return.

..it’s the staff as well, all of them! They call the staff and the guests “the family” and that’s exactly how it feels as soon as you return, just extremely welcoming, and it does make you feel very special, well done all, please don’t change.||||The opportunities for game viewing are excellent of course, with the abundance and diversity of wildlife, particularly leopards are amazing. Central to the viewing are the Rangers and Trackers, and this time we had the wonderful Tom and Sam, always in the right place at the right time, and their knowledge of all things safari is astonishing. Predators, game animals, birds, reptiles, vegetation, and everything else are all covered and explained in detail.||||We must praise all of the support staff, hosts, room staff and all of the servers and kitchen staff of course, the Lodges would not work without them.||||We must not forget to thank Shelbeigh who arranges everything for us and makes sure that everything is in order before we even get to the Lodge.||||We will be back in 2027 once the renovations are complete. Please don’t change too much, we love it as it is.

Stayed at Rock Lodge for 5 days. Everything about the experience was exceptional and special. The arrival to the reception centre and transport to the lodge makes the experience feel wild and adventurous. The staff at the lodge were all friendly and nothing was too much trouble. Guests were made to feel like part of a friendly family of Ulusaba visitors. I can see why so many guests are return bookings. The Rock Cliff rooms are very well appointed and the bar resturant area is comfortable with the most incredible view out and down across the reserve. Many sightings from the lodge. Drives were top quality for information from Stuart and Derek sharing their skills and always happy to answer questions. Wildlife sightings were spectacular. We were very lucky with some of our encounters but they always felt worked for and never staged or predicable. Every track was explained and detailed what was being looked at and why. We were fortunate to be with Stuart the conservation manager. We could hear arrangements for any sightings being communicated and very well managed so it never felt the animals were being harassed or made to react unnaturally. Vehicle numbers were strictly controlled for the very best experience. Overall a wonderful place with every staff member we met being a pleasure. All the best for the redevelopment and we plan to return to see the new Ulusaba. Thank you for a wonderful experience.

Another wonderful visit with exactly the same results! Peter and Respect are a great team and have the knack of always being in the right place at the right time for the best game viewing, thanks lads! The room was always spotless, and the laundry returned clean and ironed within 24 hours. Food was spectacular as always, so well done and thanks to all of the catering staff. Wonderful to meet up again with our faithful trip organiser Shelbeigh and her temporary substitute Kirsty who arranged a rapid transit through Jo'burg airport to enable us to get the FedAir in time for our ongoing flight to Ulusaba. Lovely to have Anel looking after the whole operation so efficiently as always.||||The highlight of the game drives for us was “meeting up” again with Vutomi after seeing this wonderful leopard as a three-month-old cub two years ago. Peter and Respect manoeuvred the Landrover through dense bush tracking him for fully twenty minutes and managed to work out exactly where he would come out into the open. We got our best ever safari video of Vutomi looking straight up at us from two feet away. Unforgettable, thanks both. ||||As usual the sendoff was brilliant and emotional, made even better by Lauren and one of the anti-poaching rangers and his dog (no names mentioned here for obvious reasons) turning up at the airstrip to say goodbye (or to make sure we were actually leaving).||||See you all again in September.

Oupa & Mango made our return visit just as special out in the game reserve, and fabulous to see guide Tom again. Researched other reserves but like many other guests opted to return to Ulusaba and the same welcome and charm as before from the moment you arrive at the landing strip to inside the lodges and during the game drives. Smart move to refurbish to retain the vibe but freshen up the suites. Looking forward to seeing the renovations when they are complete in 2027.

This is one of Richard Branson‘s version. Safari Lodge is in AFRICA. We stayed at the Rock Lodge, which is 800 feet above the Savannah. Charming lodge with wonderful views of Savannah. We had two great guides, James, and orange, the spider, who took us all over the private game, reserve to see All of the big five, together with dozens of other animals. Wonderful food in the restaurant and tremendous hospitality from the staff. Highly recommend.