The Best 'Exclusive Use' Destinations in Africa: No Need to Compromise on Luxury When it Comes to Group Travel

• Utilize Cape Town as your base: I recommend the gorgeous Ellerman House and its two villas for exclusive use, just like Kim K and entourage have done before you. This spot is perfectly positioned for enjoying famous beaches and Cape Town sunsets. The hotel provides a complementary canapé and cocktail service every night. As well as loads of other goodies like drinks (including champagne), breakfast, the service of a private chef, a 24-hour pantry stocked with treats (prepared under the guidance of executive chef Peter Tempelhoff — a legend chef in the rich Cape Town foodie scene).
  
  Private-use villa 1 for 10 people Dec 2024: $68,100 for four nights.
  
  If your group is more than 10, book out both villas for up to 16 guests. There are rooms and suites in the main hotel if the group is larger still.
  
  Once you’ve soaked up the vibes of Cape Town, climbed Table Mountain and sunned yourself on Camp Bay Beach, it’s time to head out for the safari of a lifetime in any of the following directions:

• But first enjoy the Winelands: A luxury transfer up the road into Stellenbosch to the Owners Villa at Delaire Graff Wine Estate. Experience luxury and opulence on a grand scale in this private, fully serviced four-bedroom villa (eight guests and four additional children can be accommodated). Extending over 660 sq meters, designed and curated by the celebrated David Collins Studio. Soft furnishings and walls adorned with original artworks by some of Africa’s most celebrated artists. Laurence Graff curates the artwork from his private collection. You will have access to infinity pools, stocked wine cellars and bars (all meals and drinks are included as well as a multitude of other additions).
  
  Owner's Villa for eight adults and up to four children, all-inclusive: $42,800 for the minimum stay of two nights.

Exclusive safari

• Kalahari: Fly for two hours in a private pressurized cabin aircraft (this is not the small charter flight that leaves you feeling queasy and uneasy) directly to Tswalu Kalahari. 282,000 acres, making it the largest privately protected conservation area in South Africa. It's all yours for an exclusive safari like none other. The Tarkuni Homestead is perfect for a group of 10 with five guest suites. Plunge pools, spa, library, gym, bean-to-cup coffee and a wine cellar stocked with the best South African wine. No luxury is spared in this all-inclusive luxury safari experience. Plus, the opportunities for game interaction are unparalleled. With various projects that encourage guest involvement while on property, should you choose, this is the most intimate safari. Encounter some of the most elusive and endangered species Africa has to offer. Sightings that the most seasoned game enthusiasts can only dream of, like the black rhino, brown hyena, aardwolf, aardvark and ground pangolin. As well as the black-maned lion only found in this region. And wild dogs. Always a triumph to spot these social hunters.
  
  Tarkuni Homestead for 10 people - four nights at Tarkuni (all-inclusive and private safari) and four nights at Ellerman House (as above) with complimentary one-way private flight transfer between from $116,300)

• Namibia: You may know the iconic landscapes of Sossusvlei and Deadvlei, but my recommendation will take you far north for a completely unique safari on the salt pans of Etosha. One of my absolute favorite exclusive-use locations in the world is Onguma: Camp Kala. (I will be using the word 'favorite' often) Four exclusive suites, each with their own private plunge pool and their own wood-fired hot tub on an elevated deck overlooking a floodlit drinking hole where animals arrive to drink while you are luxuriating with a glass of bubbly in your pool.
  
  Central areas include an open-plan “show” kitchen and all-day pantry, a fully equipped gym, yoga deck and spa. Below the deck, enjoy the air-conditioned photographic hide. Complete with butler service, it does not get any more exclusive. When booked for exclusive use, the camp can accommodate up to 8 adults and two children rather than the usual eight guests (no under 12).
  
  Exclusive use for 10 people, four nights (all-inclusive, including safari activities) and four nights at Ellerman House: eight nights total: $136,473.

Tropical island paradise

• Mozambique: Did I say I had a favorite? Oooh, it’s a toughie. Kisawa Sanctuary in the Benguerra Islands of Mozambique (a short complementary helicopter transfer from Vilankulo when staying seven nights or more — and why would you want to stay less than a week?) is 300 hectares of rolling sand dunes, pristine beaches & expansive island adventures awaiting your exclusive enjoyment. Get a load of this: 14 bungalows, eight residences, dedicated service teams, nine private pools, 10 electric mini-mokes for getting around the 5kms of pristine shoreline. The hotel has received numerous accolades, one of which is being featured in Vogue’s first World’s Best Spa Guide, listing 100 of the world's best. The combination of Ayurveda and cutting-edge technology (Iyashi Dome — known for dramatic results in anti-aging and weight loss among other benefits) has this spa experience receiving world-class acclaim. Unlimited spa treatments are all part of the exclusive-use package, as are ocean experiences with representatives from BBSS, the Bazaruto Center for Scientific Studies, among other things like a pizza tuk tuk and beach BBQ.

• Madagascar: Travel to Nosy Ankao Island on the northern tropical tip of Madagascar for an ‘exclusive use’ tropical island experience of a lifetime. 32 guests can be accommodated at Miavana by Time +Tide in 14 private villas complete with private pools, soaking tubs, outdoor showers, eco-cooled interiors. Meals, drinks, guided lemur walks, diving, boat cruises, fishing and so much more, including an express spa treatment, butler, electric buggy and bicycles. Exclusive use is available for stays of five days or more. If you stay seven nights, your private flights from and back to Tambo (Johannesburg) in a Learjet 45 are complementary. Making this paradise accessible directly in just 3.5 hours. Rates for exclusive use are from $120 000 per night for 32 guests.

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