I could gush about this property forever. It was beautiful, the staff friendly and great to talk to, and the game drives were awesome! I was truly heartbroken when we had to leave! They went above and beyond my expectations and I will remember my stay here forever!! Thank you River Lodge staff for giving us such a wonderful honeymoon/anniversary that we will never forget! Read less

We stayed at Lion Sands August 5-9. We previously stayed here in May 2018. We are finishing up our fourth trip to Africa and Lion Sands is still our favorite. Details: Stayed in River Suite #1 which is the best in the Lodge; Guide was Francois who was also our guide last year-we requested him again because he did a great job last year; Amu was our tracker; Philly was our butler-he is relatively new but did a great job, especially with my unusual eating preferences. Game drives here are different than a lot of places. You don't see a high volume of animals everywhere like some places in Kenya for example. So you drive around a bit but each drive it seems we found something spectacular. An example (best game drive ever, even Francois agreed): came to a leopard up in a tree with a kill. At the bottom of the tree were 10 lions with some of the younger males trying to climb the tree to get to the leopard, only to get halfway and then falling back down. Eventually the lions left, then the leopard came down and left. In the meantime 6 hyenas came by to clean up all the scraps. This all took place less than 10 feet from the jeep! On another occasion we were closely tracking a leopard who then came right by the jeep and was within inches of the tracker who sits outside the jeep at the front. The lodge itself is like a 5 star resort. Suite had a great view of the river and we were frequently visited by guests-at one time we had 11 elephants and a young hippo in the area right outside our suite. Dining is by menu and they are very flexible on special requests. Francois did a fabulous job again and we really enjoyed discussion and kidding with Philly our butler. Only room for improvement-wifi was very spotty. I know we are in Africa but wifi in Kenya camps was much better. I like to keep up or else face an avalanche of emails at the end of the trip. We will almost certainly have a 5th trip to Africa and Lion Sands will definitely be one of the places we return to. It's a great way to end the trip to Africa! My advice to people planning safari: 1. Avoid lodges in national parks. Typically you cannot go off road in national parks such as Kruger. The experience in being able to go off road totally makes the safari a different experience. (Kruger is right next to Lion Sands.) 2. On your first safari avoid time in cities like Capetown, Nairobi or Johannesburg. Those can be visited later but they are not unique like being on safari. Every day you spend in a city is a day you aren't spending on safari! We highly recommend Lion Sands, both for the game drives and the quality of the lodge. Read less

First off, I would like to thank each and every person who made our stay so welcoming and memorable! From the moment we walked off the plane in Skukuza we knew Lion Sands was going to be a magical experience. This was the 2nd stop and day 3 of our 27 day honeymoon and it has stood out in our minds as the best thing we've ever done in our lives. We cannot say enough great things about our Guide Aidan and Tracker Eddy! They were the absolute BEST!!! It's not often you feel such genuine love and spirit for animals, people, and the land as you do when you are at Lion Sands. We will be back without a doubt. Read less

This was my first African safari but it won't be my last! Particularly, staying at Sabi Sand/Lion Sands River Lodge was simply amazing--my cabin was large and beautiful with a slight view of the river running behind the lodge. There were mosquito nets that they put down for sleeping, but I never did see a mosquito on the whole trip. The bathroom was perfect as well--stand up glass shower and claw-foot tub looking at the view outdoors. Food was wonderful and I really liked the bar/lounge area. Needless to say, we saw the Big 5 during a 2-day safari (dawn and dusk). Our Land Rover driver and tracker were the best--lots of sightings, information, trail drinks, and fun! I can't say enough about how perfect everything was done. Read less