Three Perfect Days at Singita Sweni

Booking a safari can seem like a daunting experience - choosing between various countries, national parks, concessions, reserves, etc. provides for thousands of different options. This was my third safari (all with Singita!) and once you travel with Singita, you can’t go back!

Singita has lodges across Africa, and for this trip, I decided on Kruger National Park. That meant a choice between Sweni or Lebombo lodges. I chose Sweni because of its lower room count (not that Lebombo is big), as well as its location directly on the river. But they’re only about five minutes apart, and Singita encourages a “site visit”, even if just for a coffee, so you can take a look at what the other lodge is like.

Sweni is located on Singita’s private concession within Kruger National Park. The key here is private, meaning only Singita vehicles are able to traverse the land. Plus, they are able to go offroad, which isn’t available to those in the National Park. What this means for you — better game viewing! Most game sightings were only my vehicle — imagine sitting in an open-top SUV among a pride of lion or rhino! On the off chance there are other guests in the area, Singita limits the number of vehicles at each sighting so there will be no jockeying for the best views.

Outside the game drive, you will spend most of your time eating — they feed you nonstop! The pastries and bread were especially good! There’s also a wine cellar where you can pick your own bottles to go along with meals (they offer plenty of suggestions too).

Service across the board is stellar. You really do feel like family. They get to know your preferences very fast, and are always a delight to chat with. You leave immediately wanting to come back — more than a few people I talked with were already planning their next visit before leaving (including me)!

Lastly, Singita is a pioneer in conservation and community engagement. Singita encourages visits to neighboring villages (you’ll notice a lot of the staff are from these same villages). They are proud to showcase their impressive animal conservation program which help to limit poaching and return animal populations to what they once were.

Safari may seem like a structured vacation - at Singita Sweni it is entirely customizable to what you want to do. This is what my day looked like:

0500 - wakeup
0530 - 0600 - continental breakfast with fruit, pastries, granola, and coffee (they don’t skimp on their coffee either - espresso, latte, cappuccino, etc!)
0600 - 1000 - game drive
1000 - 1100 - breakfast
1100 - 1400 - free time to hit the gym, take a swim, spa treatments, nap, etc.
1400 - 1530 - lunch and/or afternoon tea (full menu or finger sandwiches, fruit, snacks, pastries, etc)
1530 - 1900 - game drive (with a sundowner!)
1900 - ???? - drinks and dinner

This trip report is part of our ongoing series on travel to South Africa. In need of further inspiration? Check out Sydney Webb’s guide, South Africa's Best Malaria-Free Safaris.