Africa offers some of the best wildlife watching opportunities in the world and this review picks out the best luxury safari camps to spot the “Big Five”. Whether you want to see the “Big Five” (The lion, African elephant, Cape buffalo, leopard, and rhinoceros) or simply want to sit out and relax under the stars in the vicinity of these gorgeous beasts. You will be sure to enjoy the pristine African wilderness at the camps below.
Cottars 1920’S Safari Camp In Kenya
Cottars 1920s Safari Camp was one of the first permanent luxury tented camps to take guests out on safaris in Kenya. Little has changed since the 1920s and the original spirit and essence of the golden era of safaris can be experienced here.
Elegant accommodation consists of six Luxury safari tents, all with large private verandahs, beautiful antique furnishings from the ’20’s, private en-suite dressing rooms and bathrooms with an old-fashioned shower and flushing toilet.
Cottars 1920’S Safari Camp camp overlooks the Mara and Serengeti Plains in its very own private concession bordering the Serengeti, Maasai Mara and Loliondo reserves, which guarantees privacy and an abundance of wildlife. Spot the big five and choose your season carefully, as the camp is path to the great migration of millions of wildebeest and zebra. Camp guides are highly qualified and knowledgeable of the area, who share an amazing insight into the Masai culture and the flora and fauna in the reserve.
In the evening, bathe in your outdoor bathtub, have an amazing dinner under the stars (greens from the camp’s own vegetable garden) and give Bambi a hug before bedtime (she is the camp’s resident baby gazelle).
AM Lodge in South Africa
The five-star AM Lodge is located in the beautiful Klaserie region of the Greater Kruger National Park of South Africa. An area famed for spotting the “Big Five”. It is also close to the Klaserie River, which is an essential part of the surrounding fauna and flora.
Features of this lodge include majestic lantern lit wooden walkways that connect various parts of the complex. Modern wooden decked pools and rooms open up completely to the wilderness and their own private deck and pool to bring the outside in.
Chief’s Camp In Botswana
Named after Chief Moremi, this Camp is located in the world-renowned Moremi Game Reserve. The camp is ideal for a “Big Five” African safari due to the vast numbers of animals that congregate here all year round. Chief’s Island is one of the many islands created by the seasonal floodwaters of the Okavango Delta and is well-known for some of the finest game viewing in Southern Africa, including both black and white rhino, completing the Big Five.
Sanctuary Chief’s Camp has twelve luxury bush pavilions, all with their own private decks as well as both indoor and outdoor showers. The split-level main deck offers expansive views over the floodplain while the dining area surrounds a fire pit on the very edge of the Piajio plains.
Arathusa Safari Lodge In South Africa
Arathusa Safari Lodge is located within the Sabi Sand Reserve, adjacent to the unfenced Kruger National Park. Together these two areas comprise one of South Africa’s most incredible and pristine wilderness sanctuaries. Expect to see a high concentration wildlife in the early morning and evening safari drives, including the “Big Five”, along with frequent leopard sightings.
The lodge is situated on a large waterhole, ensuring interesting game and bird viewing from the comfort of the camp. Rooms or lodges are spacious and overlook the waterhole where you will often see numerous elephants drinking and splashing about. Hippos frequent the lodge lawns and you hear them grunting into the night.
Mahali Mzuri
Mahali Mzuri is Sir Richard Branson’s East African property located in Kenya’s Maasai Mara ecosystem and perfectly positioned to take advantage of the seasonal great wildebeest migration.
The Motorogi Conservancy is home to wildebeest, zebra, cheetah, giraffe and gazelles, as well as the Big Five. Although, the biggest draw to the area is the annual Great Migration and the camp, being set on a hill, offers a natural amphitheatre-like viewing point of this unforgettable spectacle.
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