Xanatseni Private Camp

A game park safari is on the bucket list of so many, as it was ours. This was our first visit to South Africa and it certainly wont be our last (we hope). We placed our trust in our travel agent who booked the Xanatseni Private Camp for us for a 4 night stay and he chose a winner as far as we are concerned. We were met at the little Hoedspruit airport by a staff member and taken to the lodge (extra cost but reasonable). Although not top of the price range we found the lodge and our villa to be absolutely delightful. All facilities mentioned on the website were great and since the lodge is small and intimate we felt very much at home right from the start. Our villa was so beautifully presented, spotlessly clean and, in a modest way, quite luxurious. Very comfortable, modern and bright with an outdoor patio overlooking the grounds and plain. The shower was wonderful, hot and strong and a bath was there for those who want to soak and relax. All this was very much appreciated however the highlight was our Safari, guide and tracker. ALL the staff were wonderful but, of course, we spent more time with Dean and Sydney than the others therefore getting to know and appreciate their passion for their work. Whether or not we had spotted animals, the drives themselves would have been spectacular in their own right. The ‘boys’ prepared morning coffees and afternoon drinks during the drives and we saw the most stunning sunrise and sunsets and we FELT Africa. Amazing. But we did see animals and plenty of them. Sydney and Dean found the Big Five within our first 36 hours. Some of that was luck but much of it was incredible knowledge. They not only found a plethora of animals but Dean’s knowledge was endless and he explained about the flora and fauna in detail with an enthusiastic passion. An incredible man, an incredible country all enjoyed from a wonderful lodge. Highly, highly recommended.

Xanatseni private camp is such a nice place to stay. The staff was awesome und took care of us during the whole stay. On our arrival day we were a bit late due to an accident but the staff made it possible to join the afternoon game drive. Thank you Dean, Ash and Sydney for all the experiences and interesting information during the game drives. It’s great to see how respectful and kind they treat the animals and the environment. It’s not about chasing animals it’s about getting to know them in a very good way - thank you so much for these special days of our trip to South Africa. We will come back :-)

Amazing stay at Xanatseni Private Camp! We had a fabulous time in this very cosy private camp. We felt at home with Lina who took so good care of all of us, making sure we had everything we needed. We had an amazing ranger, Dean, and tracker, Sydney. The safaris were amazing, thank you guys for your passion and dedication. Dean, thank you so much for all your stories, we learnt so much in a few days thanks to you. I would definitely recommend Xanatseni Private Camp for unforgettable vacation. Thanks a million times Lina, Dean and Sydney !

My partner and I stayed here for 3 nights at the end of our holiday to South Africa. We had the experience of a lifetime at Xanatseni, the lodge itself exceeded expectations. The rooms were spacious, clean and comfortable. We got two game drives per day, one in the morning starting at 05:30 and one later starting at 16:30. We had an exceptional ranger named Dean who accompanied us on our drives, he was incredibly knowledgeable, very friendly and respectful to the animals. It was great to spend time with an experienced ranger who is so passionate about his work, we learned so much from Dean - I genuinely don’t believe there is a better person for this job. The Land Cruiser was comfortable, each passenger is given a blanket and a rain coat. We managed to see the big 5! Thanks to the skills of our ranger and tracker. We felt safe at the lodge, each guest is given an emergency walkie talkie for any medical emergencies. The food is amazing! I didn’t take any photos but there was not one meal that we didn’t thoroughly enjoy - compliments to the chef! All of the staff are so friendly and accommodating, the lodge really has a family feel to it. We ate meals together and it was a great way to meet new people from different parts of the world.

Me and my husband stayed at this camp in November last year. We saw a lot of animals and the food and service was terrific. (I'm vegetarian and the chefs accommodated me perfectly). We were greeted by Teneel who was friendly and welcoming. Our only complaint was the behaviour of our guide and driver Ashleigh. Some of the comments being made towards my diet made me very uncomfortable. I did not appreciate the remarks and would have preferred to enjoy my eating habits without scrutiny. We were also informed about the next door camp that kill the deer to attract predators which was disappointing since we thought the animals were under protection of the reserve. It came across as cruel, insensitive and unprofessional. Perhaps this behaviour is because of a lack of experience but we saved up for a long time, paid a lot of money to go on safari and expected better from the guide. Great camp, but we shall not return.

Very good. Food is first class, dessert at both lunch and dinner! excellent game drives led by Dean and Sydney, they were very motivated to find the animals in our drives. During the game drives, we would always be able to see something new. Service is excellent and it’s very cosy. Teneuil was very hospitable, and the rest of the kitchen and service staff are very friendly and accommodating. The beds are very comfortable and there’s a nice bathroom/ bath tub. Very family-friendly environment, cosy and nice. We would go back again if we had a chance.

We spent 2 nights at the camp and found it to be like home from home. All the staff are very welcoming and the whole atmosphere was very relaxed. There is a house for larger groups but we (my wife, 21 year daughter and I) stayed in 2 lodges. There is only 6 lodges so would never get crowded even if the camp is totally full. The rooms are very good and clean with good wifi through out our visit. Game drives are varied and we saw different areas on most of the drives. We only saw 3 of the big 5 but we went with the attitude that anything we saw would be great. The sightings included a herd of elephants including a pregnant elephant where you could see the baby kicking from inside her. We also saw hippo including a 3 month old baby. We had 2 lion sightings with one being in the dark via hand held lamp. The other member of the big 5 that we saw was a large herd of buffalo. Other sighting included various antelope, zebra, warthogs, giraffe, hyena, chameleon and numerous species of bird. Many of these were seen at the water hole in front of the camp where they have a lookout platform. Meals are fixed menu but we did not have any bad meals. Guests sit together for meals along with at least one staff member so it was very social. There are power outages all across South Africa currently but there is a generator at the camp so no problems for guests. Thanks to Sydney and Chene for all our game drives and to Teneil, Ash and the rest of the staff for a very enjoyable 2 days.

Everything about this place is amazing. The ranger and traveler we had, Dean and Sidney, were first class. Knew a lot. And helped us to see the big 5. The front of house staff and housekeeping also made sure everything was perfect. And the location was also perfect. So peaceful but close to all the action. Couldn’t fault a thing. Thoroughly recommend this place as somewhere to stay, what an experience.

Peace... Just chilling and ultra peaceful - those are the words that comes to mind when I think of our time at Xanatseni. We were lucky enough to enjoy this camp with a whole bunch of our friends, but - if truth be told - I wish we had at least stayed another night, if not 2... Everything was just so laid back and it felt like we were visiting old friends, not as guests, but as lifelong friends! And we had NEVER met these people before! We arrived late after a crazy busy week - totally flustered - and we were worried that we would have made them late for a game drive or something. But our hosts (Zanel & Iwan) were SO welcoming and made us relax immediately - they got us settled in with zero fuss and organised us some drinks at the pool. (Something that was ultra awesome was that they had a shaded area over the shallow part of the pool so the moms with toddlers - or snow white like me! - could also enjoy the pool without worrying about burning on day 1!) We were introduced to everyone and we just felt at home instantly! We were I formed that dinner was to be a "braai" aka BBQ outside and we were escorted to a game viewer with some drinks packed for along the way...but NOTHING could prepare us for the awesome views! I wish I could tell you about EVERYTHING that we saw and did....but there is just too much! Oh, and the attention to detail...their bath and shower gels are TRULY TO DIE FOR!!!! I have been around the world and I can say with confidence that their bath/shower gel is just OUT OF THIS WORLD!!! It smells AMAZING!!! And just small things: I always get thirsty at night and creeper back to the bar after everyone had gone to sleep (or so I thought) because I needed some water - but I actually had NO IDEA where I was going and ran into Iwan! He IMMEDIATELY helped me out with 4 bottles of water! We also came within 1 metre of a massive hyena and we simply had THE MOST MEMORABLE New Year's Eve ever! Travel advice regarding this camp? Don't forget your battery pack and your charger - your phone battery won't last with all the pictures that you would be taking! It is a GREAT camp to visit with friends, as it is not too big and you can book out the entire camp for yourselves...oh, just remember that you are going to be SEVERELY relaxed and that you might only realise how much you needed to rest once you get there, and then you'll want to sleep too much! Rather book AT LEAST 1 more night than you'd have planned, otherwise you'll DEFINITELY be sorry. You don't realise how tired you are until you get there...and you get SERIOUS FOMO!!! It's like you want to sleep 24/7 because you are relaxing for the first time in a long time, yet, you want to stay awake 24/7 for fear of missing something! I LOOOVE my sleep, but I forced myself to stay awake as much as possible, since in the daytime there was just too much happening, and at night, I couldn't stop looking at the shooting stars or I was listening to the bush or a guides' bushtales or we were tellin