Sandringham Private Game Reserve opens to guests on 1 August 2026. It is the newest property in the Sabi Sabi Collection, it sits on close to 5,000 hectares of Greater Kruger bushveld in Limpopo between the Timbavati and Thornybush reserves, and it is built on ground that was a hunting concession until Sabi Sabi began rehabilitating it in 2022. Rates open at ZAR 38,500 per person sharing per night. This page sets out what it costs, which of the two camps to book, how to get there, and the one thing about the game viewing you should understand before you commit.
The short answer
Sandringham has 12 suites, 2 villas and one exclusive-use house, split across N’weti Camp and Shisaka Camp on the Timbavati River. Suites are ZAR 38,500 per person sharing per night, fully inclusive. A maximum of 10 vehicles traverse the whole reserve, which is exceptionally low density. Children under 13 are not accommodated. The other trade-off is that this is a young, recovering reserve where animals are still relearning that vehicles are harmless, so sightings are wilder and less predictable than the Sabi Sand. Book through us and we handle rates, availability and the airstrip connections.
Where is Sandringham Private Game Reserve?
Sandringham lies in Limpopo province, in the Greater Kruger, sharing boundaries with the Timbavati Game Reserve and Thornybush Game Reserve. Four rivers converge on the property, including the Timbavati River, one of the main perennial rivers running into Kruger National Park. The Drakensberg escarpment forms the western skyline.
That water is the reserve’s defining feature. There is a large dam in front of the main lodge, and the camps are positioned so that a good part of the day’s wildlife activity happens in front of you rather than out on a drive.
| Getting there | Detail |
|---|---|
| Private airstrip | Sandringham has its own gravel airstrip. Transfers to and from it are included in the rate |
| Hoedspruit (HDS) | About a 45-minute road transfer. Scheduled flights from Johannesburg and Cape Town |
| From Sabi Sabi | A short hop between the two private airstrips, which is how most people combine the reserves |
| Nearest neighbours | Timbavati and Thornybush Game Reserves |
Sandringham rates for 2026, 2027 and 2028
These are the published Sabi Sabi Collection rates, valid 1 August 2026 to 28 February 2027 and again 1 March 2027 to 29 February 2028. Rates are the same across both periods, which is unusual and worth knowing if you are planning ahead.
| Accommodation | Rate | Sleeps | Works out at |
|---|---|---|---|
| N’weti Luxury Suite | ZAR 38,500 per person sharing per night | 2 | ZAR 38,500 per person |
| Shisaka Luxury Suite | ZAR 38,500 per person sharing per night | 2 | ZAR 38,500 per person |
| Shisaka Luxury Villa | ZAR 149,000 per villa per night | Maximum 4 adults | ZAR 37,250 per person, and includes a private vehicle |
| Sandringham House | ZAR 385,000 per night | 8 adults | ZAR 48,125 per person, with private chef, butler, host and guide team |
Note the villa maths. At four adults, a Shisaka Villa works out marginally cheaper per head than two suites and throws in a private safari vehicle. If you are two couples travelling together, or a family of four with teenagers, the villa is the better buy by a clear margin. That is not obvious from the rate sheet and it is the single most useful thing on this page.
What is included
- Open vehicle safaris by day and after dark
- Environmental awareness walking safaris
- Breakfast, lunch and boma dinner
- All drinks except French Champagne and Private Collection wines, including many premium wine and spirit brands
- Limited laundry, though no dry cleaning
- Transfers to and from the Sandringham airstrip
- Government taxes and VAT
What is not included
- Conservation levy: ZAR 450 per person per night to 28 February 2027, rising to ZAR 495 from 1 March 2027
- Festive surcharge: 15% on all bookings arriving between 20 December and 5 January, regardless of when you check out
- Single supplement: none for up to two suites per booking; beyond that, 50% of the daily rate. A single supplement always applies to villas and premium suites
- Amani Spa and wellness treatments, gratuities, boutique purchases and anything personal
In hard numbers, a couple staying three nights in a suite in, say, October 2027 is looking at roughly ZAR 234,000 including the levy, before flights. Arrive on 22 December and the same three nights become roughly ZAR 268,000. Rates move, so treat these as planning figures and let us quote you properly.
N’weti or Shisaka? Which camp to book
Both camps have six suites, both sit on the water, and both are served by the same central main lodge, linked by elevated walkways. The difference is position and character.
| N’weti Camp | Shisaka Camp | |
|---|---|---|
| Style | Canvas-topped safari suites, classic tented feel with modern comfort | Solid architecture in a Tamboti thicket, with nest-like rooftop salas |
| Position | Raised alongside the water, looking to the Drakensberg | On the bank of a Timbavati tributary, in among the trees |
| Signature feature | Half-moon lounge nook and a stone-clad infinity pool on a wraparound deck | A rooftop sala above the tree line, for naps, birding and stargazing |
| Palette | Earthy browns, soft greens, neutrals | Calming blues and greys drawn from the river |
| Also offers | Suites only | Two Luxury Villas with private vehicles |
| Name | Tsonga, for the moonlit silhouette of the mountains | Tsonga for “nest” |
Choose N’weti if you want canvas, the long view west and the classic safari feel. Choose Shisaka if you want the rooftop sala, more enclosure and the sound of the river, or if you need a villa. Both have king beds, private plunge pools, indoor and outdoor showers, dressing rooms and freestanding baths positioned for the view.
Sandringham does not accept children under 13. That applies across both camps, the villas and Sandringham House, and it is the single fastest way to know whether the reserve is right for your party. Families with younger children should look at Sabi Sabi’s lodges in the Sabi Sand instead, or at a reserve with a dedicated children’s programme. Note that some third-party listings still show an under-12 policy; ours is the current position and we will confirm it in writing on any booking.
Sandringham House, for exclusive use
Set upstream from the main lodge, Sandringham House is a 1,100 m² residence with four en-suite bedrooms sleeping eight, plus a dedicated chef, butler, host, private vehicle and guide team. At ZAR 385,000 a night it is the most expensive thing on the reserve, and at full occupancy it lands at ZAR 48,125 per person, roughly 25% above a suite. For a multi-generational family travelling with teenagers, or a group of friends who want the day shaped around them rather than the lodge timetable, that premium buys a great deal.
What the reserve is actually like
Close to 5,000 hectares, four rivers, 160 kilometres of mapped road network, and a maximum of 10 vehicles traversing the whole thing. That density figure is the number to hold on to. It is genuinely low, and it means unhurried sightings without the queue of vehicles that a busy Sabi Sand traverse can produce on a leopard.
The camps are unfenced. The main lodge holds the restaurant, a bar with panoramic views, an all-weather dining deck, an open-air boma with a sunken firepit, a wine cellar, the Amani Wellness Spa, a gym overlooking the water, a bush boutique, and a small museum housed in one of the property’s original stone buildings that tells the reserve’s history, hunting era included. The architecture is by Nick Plewman, with interiors by Cate Simpson of Reflecting Africa.
The honest bit about game viewing
This is where a page written to sell you something would stop. It is also the part that should decide your booking.
Sandringham was a hunting property. Rehabilitation started in 2022, which in conservation terms is very recent. Sabi Sabi’s own team describes the work as building mutual trust with animals that are relearning that human presence no longer means danger. That is a candid way of saying the wildlife is not habituated to vehicles in the way it is on reserves that have been photographic for forty years.
What that means in practice: sightings are wilder, harder won and more dependent on tracking skill. Your guide will spend more time reading tracks and less time driving to a known animal. For some travellers that is exactly the point, and it is closer to what safari felt like a generation ago. If it is your first safari and you want reliable, close leopard at close range on day one, the Sabi Sand still does that better, and Sabi Sabi’s own four lodges there are the obvious comparison.
The counterweight is the water. Four rivers and a large dam mean animals come to you and stay visible, and the sightings tend to involve behaviour rather than just presence: drinking, bathing, wallowing, crossing.
How Sandringham compares
| Option | Typical rate | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Sandringham | From ZAR 38,500 pps | Very low vehicle density, brand-new lodges, water-based sightings, a conservation story you are part of |
| Sabi Sabi, Sabi Sand | Varies by lodge | Established, dense Big Five viewing with 45 years of habituated wildlife |
| Timbavati and Thornybush | Generally lower | Greater Kruger game viewing at a wider range of price points |
Sandringham sits at the top of the Greater Kruger market on price. You are paying for exclusivity, new build quality and a very low guest count, not for four decades of established traversing. Many people combine the two: a few nights at Sandringham and a few at Sabi Sabi in the Sabi Sand, connected by a short flight between the private airstrips. That itinerary gives you both the wild, tracking-led reserve and the reliable leopard viewing, and it is the version we most often recommend across a wider Southern Africa itinerary. See our comparisons of Kruger and the Sabi Sands and the Sabi Sands and Timbavati for the wider picture.
When to go
May to September, the dry winter, gives the easiest game viewing: thin bush, cold early mornings and animals concentrating on water. Because Sandringham has four rivers and a permanent dam, it holds sightings better than most through the green summer, which runs roughly November to March and brings superb birding and newborn animals. Avoid 20 December to 5 January unless you want the 15% surcharge. Our month-by-month guide covers the trade-offs across Southern Africa.
How to book Sandringham Private Game Reserve
Twelve suites and two villas is a very small inventory for a property this well publicised, and the first season of any new lodge fills on curiosity alone. If you have dates in mind for 2027, move now.
We book the Sabi Sabi Collection directly. Send us your dates and party and we will come back with live availability, the correct current rate including levies and any surcharge, and a view on whether N’weti, Shisaka, a villa or the House actually suits how you want to travel. If a combination with Sabi Sabi in the Sabi Sand makes more sense, we will tell you that too, and price both.
Send us your dates and we will answer personally. If you want to see how we work first, our planning process sets it out, and our luxury safari planning page explains what we do and do not charge for.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Sandringham Private Game Reserve?
Sandringham Private Game Reserve is in Limpopo province, South Africa, within the Greater Kruger, bordering the Timbavati and Thornybush Game Reserves. Four rivers converge on the property, including the Timbavati River, with the Drakensberg escarpment on the western horizon. It is about a 45-minute drive from Hoedspruit, and has its own private gravel airstrip.
How much does Sandringham Private Game Reserve cost per night?
Luxury suites at both N’weti Camp and Shisaka Camp are ZAR 38,500 per person sharing per night. A Shisaka Luxury Villa is ZAR 149,000 per villa per night for up to four adults, including a private safari vehicle. Sandringham House is ZAR 385,000 per night for eight adults with a private chef, butler, host and guide team. Rates are fully inclusive and valid from 1 August 2026 to 29 February 2028. A conservation levy of ZAR 450 to ZAR 495 per person per night applies, and a 15% surcharge applies to arrivals between 20 December and 5 January.
When does Sandringham Private Game Reserve open?
Sandringham welcomes its first guests on 1 August 2026. The Sabi Sabi Collection began rehabilitating the former hunting reserve in 2022, restoring it to a protected conservation area ahead of opening it to guests.
What is the difference between N’weti Camp and Shisaka Camp?
Both have six luxury suites and share one main lodge. N’weti Camp is canvas-topped, raised alongside the water with views to the Drakensberg, and has an earthy palette. Shisaka Camp sits in a Tamboti thicket on a river tributary and its suites carry nest-like rooftop salas for birding and stargazing, with a cooler blue and grey palette. Shisaka also has two Luxury Villas; N’weti has suites only. Rates are identical at ZAR 38,500 per person sharing.
How many rooms does Sandringham have?
Twelve luxury suites in total, six at N’weti Camp and six at Shisaka Camp, plus two Luxury Villas at Shisaka and the separate exclusive-use Sandringham House, which has four en-suite bedrooms for up to eight guests.
Is the game viewing good at Sandringham?
It is a young, recovering reserve. Rehabilitation from a hunting past only began in 2022, so wildlife is less habituated to vehicles than on long-established photographic reserves, and sightings depend more on tracking. A maximum of 10 vehicles traverse almost 5,000 hectares, so sightings are unhurried and uncrowded, and the four rivers and dam produce strong water-based sightings year-round. Travellers who want reliably close leopard on a first safari are generally better served in the Sabi Sand.
Is Sandringham part of Sabi Sabi?
Yes. Sandringham Private Game Reserve is a member of the Sabi Sabi Collection, alongside Sabi Sabi Private Game Reserve in the Sabi Sand, which has operated for more than 45 years. The two are in different regions and are usually combined by a short flight between their private airstrips.
What is the minimum age at Sandringham Private Game Reserve?
Children under 13 are not accommodated at Sandringham. The minimum age of 13 applies across N’weti Camp, Shisaka Camp, the Luxury Villas and Sandringham House. Families travelling with teenagers are well served, particularly by the villas and Sandringham House, which come with a private safari vehicle. Families with younger children should consider Sabi Sabi’s lodges in the Sabi Sand instead.