Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
The White Lion Lodge is situated on the Sanbona Wildlife Reserve 200 km from Cape Town. Sanbona is home to free self-sustaining White Lions, the Big Five, the endangered riverine rabbit and Cape Mountain Zebras. The privately owned White Lion Lodge offers luxury accommodation for maximum 8 people (4 rooms), exceptional personal service and delicious cuisine. The Lodge lies in the southern part of the Reserve, traverses 30000 ha over the Sanbona Wildlife Reserve. Is set along a tranquil, remote river valley offering an ultimate Karoo experience.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Trendy
Hidden Gem
Languages Spoken
English, Afrikaans, German
Location
On the Sanbona Wildlife Reserve, Montagu 6720 South Africa
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The White Lion Lodge on the Sanbona Wildlife Reserve receives accolades for its impeccable service, as staff are frequently commended for their warmth and attentiveness, significantly enhancing guest experiences. Lodgings at the reserve boast spacious and private rooms adorned with cozy fireplaces and offer breathtaking views, which guests often admire. The amenities, including outdoor showers, private balconies, and a communal hot tub, are lauded for adding a touch of luxury and comfort to the stay.
Travelers applaud the cleanliness, noting the lodge's meticulous upkeep. However, the perceived value may be affected for some due to additional fees for a full safari experience.
Rooms
Spacious
Value
Expensive
Cleanliness
Meticulous
Service
Attentive
Amenities
Top-notch
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What can you say about the stay? Price performance with additional paid safaris does not fit. The accommodation is great and the suites very large! The service is friendly and always on site. However, we expected more in terms of safaris: the included tour is through the part located there. Focus on plants and birds - animals? Very few and then far, far away. Accordingly, you have to pay another 75 euros per person to do the safari in the morning, in the other part. Here you can see elephants, giraffes, rhinos and co. But the park is so big, it's very, very difficult to see lions and other animals. Guests should also be given the opportunity to be picked up at the entrance, as not everyone has an SUV to master the route to the accommodation.
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Date of stay: September 2024
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
From the time you arrive at the lodge your experience starts, you are warmly greeted with a nice cold towel. The drive from Cape Town takes about 3 hours and would HIGHLY recommend going through the Franschhoek pass either going or coming.
There are only 4 units on the property and all are luxurious and large. The private balconies and outside showers are very nice, with you own deck chairs and tables give you a great sense of privacy.
There are 2 safari drives every day, early morning, lasting about 4 hours and an evening one for about 2 hours. Your guide, Israel, has a genuine love of his job and it shows. The sunsets are are spectacular, and even better with a cocktail. Should you choose just to relax and sit by the pool, you will feel very relaxed.
The reserve is NOT a park, its just that, a reserve and you may or may not see the animals. but when you do, it is amazing and natural.
What makes the experience really amazing is the care you get from the staff. As there are only 4 units, everyone has dinner in the dining room. The food is really fabulous. Gerry and Alicia prepare perfectly cooked and presented meals. We were there for 4 days, and every meal was outstanding. They will also cater to vegetarian needs.
All the Yogurt, Muesli and vegetables are all grown or sourced locally. The tomatoes actually have taste.
I will definitely return, and would HIGHLY suggest that you make your reservations as soon as possible.
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Date of stay: May 2022
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Service
Room Tip:There are no bad rooms
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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We were a family group of 11 and basically had all the bungalows and main house to ourselves. The road from the main gate to the accommodation is a bit of a drive, so best to have a sturdy vehicle .... We were welcomed and greeted with a late lunch ~ good selection of food prepared by a very friendly & sociable group of ladies. It soon became very festive and jovial. The surroundings and scenery is very calm and quiet - great to escape from hustle & bustle. The rooms have all the accessories & facilities required for a relaxing stay. They all have nice views across the river & away from each other - providing some privacy. The kids enjoyed the pool and the adults the jacuzzi at night. Dinner was delicious with plenty of options to make sure everyone had a full belly - as well as a decent selection of drink and alcohol. We also did the game drive turned cold after the sun set, so best prepare a jacket and use some blankets provided. The drive was entertaining and fun, didn't see an exceptional number of animals but was ok for us. There were snacks and drinks provided along the drive as well. Breakfast was had on the deck outside and was also plentiful and delicious. All in all a wonderful & relaxing stay in nature, great facilities and excellent, warm & friendly service from everyone at the lodge!
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Date of stay: April 2024
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Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
White Lion Lodge exceeded our expectations. It is beautifully laid out and cared for. The lodges are all well finished and every thing has been taken care of. There are bath robes for winter and summer, extra towels, bath salts. The bottle of wine was a lovely touch. There are chargeable lights in the rooms for when there is load shedding and the rechargeable torch attached to the room key is a great idea. There were chocolates each night at turn down time and the mats were put out by the bed. The food was excellent, plentiful and beautifully presented. We ate out on the deck when it was good weather then inside at night. Abigail and the other staff couldn't have been more helpful and nothing was too much trouble. Gerry part owner of the lodge was lovely and was around during the day and sat with us after our meals in the evening. She was full of lots of interesting information about the lodge and the Sanbona reserve. Isreal who took us on the games drives is the most awesome person. His driving skills are second to none. His knowledge of the area, the animals and the flora and fauna is immense. Isreal did his absolute best to find the animals whether we were in the North or the South part of the reserve. The surroundings are breath taking and well worth seeing even if there are not huge numbers of animals. We also went on a walk with Isreal when he pointed out various plants, spider holes, animal tracks etc. Well worth doing. We would thoroughly recommend staying here.
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Date of stay: March 2023Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The Lodge and the park are absolutely beautiful. We came to the lodge when my husband joined me in South Africa. I had been in Zambia and Kenya for over 5 weeks and had done a Safari experience in each country. We had limited time in South Africa, but my husband wanted to experience a Safari. This was a true Safari experience, and we saw Giraffe, Cape Buffalo, Elephant, Cape Mountain Zebra, Rhino, baboons, springbucks, lion (male) and a Hippo. If you have done other parks the quanity of the animals is very limited but they are in the park.
The lodge has thought thru so many things to make your stay special. They provide ponchos, blankets, rain gear, etc. for your game drives. The landscape of the Sanbona Reserve is stunning, and the time of year we went was beautiful, with flowers popping up everywhere.
I have some food allergies, but the lodge ensured that I had delicious meals and snacks that I could enjoy worry free. The staff and manager of the property are incredibly kind, thoughtful, and hospitable. This lodge is a couples paradise and a great way to step away from the hustle and bustle of city life.
For those that are not used to load shedding, the lodge is in the process of completing becoming self-sufficient on solar. However, the only impact it had on our visit was lack of heated floors (but the gas fireplace was more than enough for a cold day) and low lighting (but that made it all the more romantic).
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Date of stay: September 2023Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:Be aware of loadshedding and understand that this is not Kruger or other larger game perserves. ...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Accommodation was delightful with attention to detail. Food for breakfast and dinner was excellent – if only just enough for lunch. One lunch we “dared” to ask for seconds - upon which an assortment of fingerfood was hastily prepared from the deepfreezer.
We know the Karoo is a different setting for gamedrives altogether - However, the guide Romeo made the drives all around unpleasant. On the first game drive he greeted us with “we’ll probably wont see much but we’ll try”. Well. We saw one hippo. Some antilope in the distance, a baboon. He seemed listless and bothered. No information was volunteered – only when prompted did he share information about the karoo and its individuality. The game drives weren’t fun at all. The group taking advantage of the drive in the morning spent 7 hours on the vehicle. En route to the northern part of the reserve they were told that the white lions (!) had been killed a few weeks prior – so there weren’t any lions in the reserve currently. A brief information beforehand would have been appreciated. After the lengthy drive in the morning he clearly did not feel like taking the other guests out on the afternoon game drive. He was even more subdued than the previous day. Again had to be prompted to divulge more information about the area, its animals and flora/fauna. When stopping for a sundowner the ordered Gin and Tonic came without the tonic. As only one beer and one coke had been packed for the other couple – no drinks were available. All in all – a beautiful setting – nice accommodation – good food – lousy game drives.
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Date of stay: November 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The White Lion Lodge is a very nice and quiet place to break away from the hustle and bustle and enjoy the peace and scenery. The rooms are very nice and equipped with everything you need. Especially cool the outdoor shower, which gives a good start to the day in the morning.
The food is very good and varied. The whole team is very friendly and helpful.
We enjoyed the game drives and they were very pleasant. Attention, in the morning or evening it can be very cold on the truck, so be sure to use the ponchos provided in the rooms.
We were able to see monkeys, elephants, rhinos, giraffes, zebras and many species of antelopes.
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Date of stay: October 2021
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from White Lion Lodge, General Manager at White Lion Lodge on the Sanbona Wildlife Reserve
Responded 11 Dec 2021
Thank you for the beautiful review. We are very happy to read that you enjoyed your stay and the Lodge. We will be looking forward welcoming you back. Gerhild & The White Lion Lodge Staff
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We stayed at the White Lion Lodge for 2 nights as a group of 7 and had a great time. The rooms were very nice, with all the features of a 5* hotel. Service was very professional and friendly, with Gerri offering interesting insights into Sanbona and its history. The food was also excellent. The drives with Israel were a real highlight. We had been to Sanbona before, but this time the game drives were better, even if one has to add some driving time to the north as compared to other lodges. Israel made every effort and offered a lot of detail which made it all the more interesting. We were lucky (and fortunate to have Israel!) and saw all the different kinds of animals. However, having read some other reviews, do come with an expectation to see a really well managed reserve, including flora and fauna, which means that the animals have space to move around (as they should) and their density is not as high as in some of the other well-known reserves. If you're looking for a high-quality, professional and friendly stay in a personalised environment, I highly recommend the White Lion Lodge. We will certainly be back. Anyone wanting to see a different animal every 5-10 minutes should go to the local zoo.
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Date of stay: April 2022
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This is an elegantly designed, very comfortable small lodge that serves delicious meals presented beautifully at a single large table for the small number of guests. Many lovely touches made us feel pampered and our specific interests catered to. The drives delighted us in the extraordinary range of geological formations, endemic plants, and animals found only in South Africa. Gerry was a wonderful host(ess), and Israel a very knowledgeable and considerate guide. Oneof our favorite safari experiences ever.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: May 2022
Value
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Cleanliness
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Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
White Lion Lodge on the Sanbona Wildlife Reserve was an absolute delight! The rooms were beautifully decorated and designed to incorporate the breath taking outdoor views. Gerry and her team are attentive and polite, making our four days there very special indeed! Israel, the game ranger is knowledgeable beyond all comprehension! The game drives with him were phenomenal! We even saw the endangered Riverine Rabbit!! On the food side, everything was great, although dinners were largely focused on game, which I don't eat. Suggest more choice here. Waking up to early morning game drives and then a sundowners drive was a privilege. Thank you all.
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Date of stay: April 2021Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Gerhild Cuje-Jakoby, Owner at White Lion Lodge on the Sanbona Wildlife Reserve
Responded 18 Jul 2021
Thank you very much for the lovely response. It was a pleasure hosting you at the Lodge. After your recommendation, the chef is offering a bigger variety on meat in the evening. Thank you very much for supporting us in such difficult times. Gerhild
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"Be aware of loadshedding and understand that this is not Kruger or other larger game perserves. This place has its own beauty and does sustain the big 5."
There are more places to choose from in the Montagu area.
PRICE RANGE
R 9,404 - R 13,887 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
South AfricaWestern CapeMontagu
NUMBER OF ROOMS
4
Prices are provided by our partners, and reflect average nightly room rates, including taxes and fees that are fixed, known to our partners, and due at time of booking. Please see our partners for more details.
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