Lion Sands Sabi (River and Ivory Lodges)

Kruger and surrounds, South Africa

Virgin rating

Swimming pool at River Lodge
Luxury Room at River Lodge
River Suite
River Suite
River Suite
River Lodge
River Lodge
River Lodge
Bush walk
River Lodge with Sabie River View
River walk
Luxurious Treehouse Experience
Bush dinner
Ivory Lodge
Ivory Lodge
Ivory Lodge
Ivory Lodge
Ivory Lodge
Swimming pool at River Lodge
Luxury Room at River Lodge
River Suite
River Suite
River Suite
River Lodge
River Lodge
River Lodge
Bush walk
River Lodge with Sabie River View
River walk
Luxurious Treehouse Experience
Bush dinner
Ivory Lodge
Ivory Lodge
Ivory Lodge
Ivory Lodge
Ivory Lodge

The hotel

Family owned and managed since 1933, Lion Sands Game Reserve is renowned for its game viewing, plus its holistic approach to safari with every animal, large or small, given the same respect and attention. Accommodation comprises of several luxurious lodges, each with a fantastic range of amenities and those all-important views of the perennial Sabie River. Gourmet cuisine is another attraction, served al fresco in the boma or in the gracious surrounds of the dining room. For a truly unique experience, try a night under the stars at one of their amazing treehouses. Chalkley Treehouse, is built around a majestic 500 year old Leadwood Tree, with beautiful views over the plains. The newly built Kington Treehouse is constructed entirely with wood and glass and surrounded by treetops and boulders.

Amenities

  • Bar
  • Safari
  • Spa
  • Honeymoon
  • Safety Deposit Box
  • Fitness Centre/Gym
  • Internet Access
  • Restaurant
  • Villa / private house

Where is it

Overlooking the beautiful Sabie River, River and Ivory Lodges are located in the Sabi Sands Reserve. Transfer time from Skukuza Airport: 20 minutes.

Hotel information

Accommodation at Lion Sands is spread across 4 distinctive, luxurious lodges. River Lodge houses 18 thatched rooms comprising of 8 Luxury Rooms, 6 Superior Luxury Rooms and 4 River Suites. overlooking the African bush or Sabie River. Luxury Rooms have lounge area with mini-bar, en-suite bathrooms and wooden viewing deck offering fantastic views across the savannah. Rooms sleep maximum 2 adults and 1 child (aged 10-15 years).

All Inclusive of: all meals, tea/coffee, game drive refreshments and snacks, local soft drinks, beer, spirits and wines (excluding premium/imported brands and Champagne). Daily game-drives with an optional bush walk. A mini-bar is included at all Lion Sands Lodges. For guests staying at Ivory Lodge, laundry and a selection of local-brands from the mini-bar are also included.

River Lodge Superior Luxury Rooms are more spacious with large open-plan bathrooms and an outside shower.

Interconnecting rooms are available and make a great choice for larger families.

River Suites are set in a private location and have expansive decks offering river views, as well as private plunge pools. The 2 Bedroom River Suite is ideal for families.

Ivory Lodge is the ‘Piece de Résistance’ of Lion Sands and offers a personally tailored experience to guests in an ultra-luxurious environment. The stylish suites consist of 8 One Bedroom Villas and 1 2 Bedroom Villas with huge separate lounge rooms and beautiful bedrooms with open-plan bathroom, all enjoying sensational views over the landscape and Sabie River. The spacious wooden deck also has a private rim flow pool. Also available from all Lion Sands lodges are the unique Treehouses providing the ‘ultimate bush bedrooms’ and allow guests the opportunity to enjoy a night under the stars and acquaint themselves with nocturnal Africa- a simply unforgettable experience.

Indoor and open-air (boma) dining area, private lounge and bar, wine cellar (Ivory Lodge). Swimming pool overlooking the river at River Lodge. Africology Wellness centre*. Chalkley and Kingston treehouse experiences*. Curio shops. ‘Memory Lab’ for guests to print photos on a canvas*. Complimentary WiFi in public areas.

3 nights between 18 Dec-3 Jan.

Please note: children aged 10 years and older are accepted at Lion Sands River, Tinga, Narina and Ivory Lodge.

Rating summary

  • Location Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Sleep Quality Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Rooms Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Service Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Value Image of the Tripadvisor rating
  • Cleanliness Image of the Tripadvisor rating

Traveller rating

  • Excellent (1045)
  • Very good (58)
  • Average (19)
  • Poor (7)
  • Terrible (6)
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Best vacation of my life!

Mar 8, 2024 erinmcfarland10 Columbus, Ohio

The most incredible, epic and amazing vacation of my life! I can’t say enough good things about this experience. - The rooms were absolutely gorgeous and well appointed! Always clean and well maintained. - The service was top notch! The people really made the experience. Every detail was taken care of. - The food was delicious! Made fresh daily,… Read more
The most incredible, epic and amazing vacation of my life! I can’t say enough good things about this experience. - The rooms were absolutely gorgeous and well appointed! Always clean and well maintained. - The service was top notch! The people really made the experience. Every detail was taken care of. - The food was delicious! Made fresh daily, custom menus, absolutely unbelievable dining experiences. we happen to be there over Easter, and the Easter brunch spread was like nothing I’ve ever seen before! - The guides on safari were so sweet. I can imagine week after week they are met with the same questions from first time, safari travelers like myself and my husband. They had so much patience, excitement, and thrill to show us the bush, and all of the animals! We had Ozy and Heavy, quite the incredible duo!!! - We saw all animals on our list and more. We will be back!! Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating The best safari experience

Mar 6, 2024 Stefanie L

My husband and I stayed for 3 days 2 nights at River Lodge as part of our trip to South Africa from Hong Kong. This has been our favourite holiday so far (and we travel a lot!), amazing hospitality, amazing food, and amazing game drives. We would 100% return! The South African couple that we shared game drives with told us Lion Sands (or the… Read more
My husband and I stayed for 3 days 2 nights at River Lodge as part of our trip to South Africa from Hong Kong. This has been our favourite holiday so far (and we travel a lot!), amazing hospitality, amazing food, and amazing game drives. We would 100% return! The South African couple that we shared game drives with told us Lion Sands (or the greater Sabi Sands area) offers the best game drives experience. We cannot agree more! We went into the bush to track a Leopard that was hunting, something that wouldn’t be possible in Kruger National Park! 10/10 would recommend this to all our friends that’s paying a visit in South Africa! We hope anyone visiting would have the same rewarding experience as us. Thank you again for the Lion Sands team for this unforgettable experience. Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating TRIP OF A LIFETIME

Jan 29, 2024 Michelle R

There are no words to describe Lions Sands - you just have to go and experience it for yourself. This is a luxury lodge and a once in a lifetime experience for us so for anyone else wanting to tick off Safari from the bucket list and get it right the first time just go straight to Lions Sands - you will not be disappointed From the moment we… Read more
There are no words to describe Lions Sands - you just have to go and experience it for yourself. This is a luxury lodge and a once in a lifetime experience for us so for anyone else wanting to tick off Safari from the bucket list and get it right the first time just go straight to Lions Sands - you will not be disappointed From the moment we were greeted at the airport we were treated like royalty and that service continued throughout our entire stay. Every member of staff adds to the personalised experience and nothing is too much trouble for anyone. The Chef even made us a local specialty Bobotie on request! Adelaide and Geoffrey were the best waiters and the Housekeeping left us notes every night! There were so many personal touches, campfire dinners, sunset drinks were some of the lovely surprises - everyone went above and beyond and we are truly grateful. We saw Hippos, Buffalos, Elephants, Monkeys and Crocodiles from the balcony of our suite and ticked off the big 5 by our second safari. I do have to give special mention to our guides and trackers who blessed our family with the most unbelievable encounters and left us pinching ourselves. We were a 3 generation family of 10 so we had 2 Guides - Ozy and Ruvan and 2 trackers Abriham and Heavi - absolute legends!!! Such great ambassadors for South Africa, so passionate about their job and so knowledgeable on all the wildlife. Our kids absolutely adored them and are already missing them all - we do hope one day we see them again! From the bottom of our hearts.....THANK YOU! Read less
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Great location and guides

Jan 22, 2024 Brisboy64 Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Great location, friendly staff who work as a team, great rooms and food. Our first experience in Africa and we are looking forward to more! Shout out to Pierre and Joe our safari guides. Their passion and respect for wildlife and the natural environment made the trip fabulous.
Image of the Tripadvisor rating Honeymoon Heaven

Jan 19, 2024 Odyssey64768293656

My husband and I did 3 nights here for our honeymoon in January 2024. The weather was great during our stay thankfully! We Loved our experience here. We really enjoyed having Cruz and Lloyd with us on the game drives. They were so friendly, professional and educational. They made us feel calm, safe and always smiling. They really went the extra… Read more
My husband and I did 3 nights here for our honeymoon in January 2024. The weather was great during our stay thankfully! We Loved our experience here. We really enjoyed having Cruz and Lloyd with us on the game drives. They were so friendly, professional and educational. They made us feel calm, safe and always smiling. They really went the extra mile in our opinion. The food was incredible and very appreciated as well as the cleanliness of our room every time we walked in - and always fully stocked with the mini bar drinks! We absolutely loved the barbeque on our last night, the food, dancing and looking at the stars in the dark there was incredible. The only sad part was that we did not get a chance to book the treehouse for a night - that was my fault for not having done it in advance. Overall, we would love to come back soon & will definitely recommend to friends! Read less