Atta Logo

Thanda Private Game Reserve

Bush Villas & Tents, 13 Rooms

Thanda, meaning ‘love’ in Zulu, is an expression of the magical union of the power of Zulu culture, wildlife, romance and exclusivity. Thanda Private Game Reserve is South Africa’s top award winning safari destination and is situated in northern Zululand, in close proximity to the Indian Ocean.

The inimitable integration of South Africa’s best climate and rehabilitated and rich bush land has made Thanda home to amazing wildlife and over four hundred bird species. Ignite your imagination and open your mind to an extraordinary experience for your mind, body and soul.

Discuss Your Trip

South Africa

Thanda Private Game Reserve

Key Info

  • Capital: Pretoria (Executive), Bloemfontein (Judicial), Cape Town (Legislation)
  • Population: 57,398,421
  • Currency: Namibian dollar (NAD) & South African rand (ZAR)
  • Time Zone: SAST (UTC +1)
  • Languages:

    Afrikaans,
    English,
    Ndebele,
    Northern Sotho,
    Sotho, Swazi,
    Tsonga,
    Tswana,
    Venda,
    Xhosa,
    Zulu.

  • Climate:

    South Africa’s climatic conditions generally range from Mediterranean in the southwestern corner of South Africa to temperate in the interior plateau, and subtropical in the northeast. A small area in the northwest has a desert climate. Most of the country has warm, sunny days and cool nights.

South Africa Map

South Africa

Accommodation
& Facilities

see where you'll be staying

Thanda offers a choice of five-star accommodation to suit every taste and budget: family comfort and elegance at the royal private villa, the exclusive opulence of the main lodge or the rugged refinement of the tented camp. Thanda Private Game Reserve’s royal private villa was awarded “Africa’s Leading Luxury Villa” and “South Africa’s Leading Luxury Villa” at the World Travel Awards in 2010- the ultimate travel accolade!

Fit for royalty and surrounded by expanses of African bush, the Royal Private Villa can accommodate ten guests in five luxuriously appointed suites (three queens and two doubles).

The exclusive-use Royal Private Villa welcomes family and groups of friends to enjoy the luxury and privacy of this five star home away from home. The Royal Private Villa was designed for a family and thus it has a range of facilities that will make a family stay enjoyable and fun but still luxurious and exclusive.

The main lodge encompasses nine bush villas which offer guests the epitome of self-contained privacy and sheer luxury. Circular in structure and reminiscent of a traditional homestead against a hill, each of the villas boasts a breathtaking view of the surrounding game reserve. 220m sq in size, each villa has its own spacious lounge area and master bedroom with inter-leading fireplace. A thatched outdoor game-viewing deck (sala) and infinity pool offer refreshing solace from the summer heat. Each of the villas has a full en-suite bathroom complete with an enormous oval shaped bath and indoor and outdoor showers. The villas are all equipped with private bomas for an intimate and romantic dining experience.

Should the urge arise to venture beyond your private retreat, the luxury lodge’s public areas include a library, business centre, finely-stocked wine cellar and cigar bar, as well as a choice between romantic dining venues in the heart of the African bush.

The tented camp has been built in colonial safari-style structure best suited for guests who are searching for an authentic safari experience. The five beautifully furnished tents have four-poster beds, en-suite canvas bathrooms and magnificent views of the game reserve. Public facilities include an intimate dining tent, dramatic outdoor boma, stylish outdoor lounge and plunge pool for cool relief on hot summer days.

The tented camp is powered by a generator for a few hours each day, so guests are able to charge essentials such as cameras and mobile phones. Even when the generators are running, lighting is minimal and the natural atmosphere of the tented camp is enhanced through boma fires and paraffin lanterns.

Discuss Your Trip

Get your hands on a

FreeBrochure

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

It was absolutely wonderful!

We travelled to three separate locations, staying in four beautiful venues; initially in Zambia at Sindabezi and Tongabezi, then moving onto Mfuwe for a stay at Nkwali Lodge - the safari part of our holiday and finally flying to Malawi and the paradise which is Kaya Mawa on Likoma Island. We can neither praise nor thank Sylvia enough for all the care and attention she gave us. As an example, whilst in Zambia we discovered on New Year’s Eve that we’d left one of our internal flight e-tickets at home. We phoned Sylvia in a panic and by the time we’d reached our next destination, our onward bound ticket was waiting for us at the reception. Not a service which would have been available from a high street tour operator I suspect! Tim had wanted to give me a trip of a lifetime and thanks to Sylvia he was able to do so. We will never forget our time in Africa and can’t wait to return. Thank you again Sylvia – it was absolutely wonderful!

Tim & Jo

Zambia & Malawi

We recommend their bespoke safaris and services

We decided to go on Safari with Africabound Adventures, the service provided was excellent! Sylvia took care of all our holiday planning by listening to our queries and put all our anxieties at ease - addressing and meeting all our expectations. Her passion, close links and expertise of Zambia and the region prompted us to book with Africabound Adventures. This one-to-one personalised service was second to none! We had a superb holiday, visiting the 4 recommended National Parks! The lodges were great - of a consistently high standard and comfortable, particularly Lion Camp in the South Luangwa. The game viewing lived up to expectations! The food was great and the people warm and friendly. Thank you Sylvia, for all your efforts towards arranging and delivering a memorable and enjoyable safari with passion, energy and expertise.

Anne and Steve

Zambia

The lodge was great!

We had a great time in Livingstone. The lodge was great - you need to have a love for nature to stay here. The rooms were quite open, overlooking the river therefore you were likely to get a few wasps, bugs etc. fly into your room. However the mosquito netting over the beds avoided one being bitten at night. The manager at the lodge was helpful – however I would recommend that anyone who travels to the Victoria Falls should book their activities directly from the individual activity centres. Other than that had we had great time!

Shreya and Family

Zambia

We can’t wait to go again!

This was our first trip to Southern Africa and our first safari and we can't wait to go again. From the outset Sylvia was incredibly helpful understanding exactly what we wanted from the trip and using her vast local knowledge and experience to tailor the holiday perfectly. The choice is overwhelming and having the benefit of someone to guide you through the options and suggest places to stay and visit was such a help. Sylvia also worked closely with a travel agent to match the internal and international flights to the places we wanted to stay and maximise the time available on our trip. Having all the transfers arranged by Sylvia also took a lot of hassle out of moving between locations. The trip was amazing from the hospitality and drives around the reserve at Tanda Tula, getting up close to wonderful wildlife to the incredible welcome at the stunning River Club in Zambia and a walking safari with rhinos. I would totally recommend using Sylvia and Africabound Adventures to organise your holiday.

David Owen

South Africa & Zambia

Top