Senalala Luxury Safari Camp provides the best African safari experience with a combination of luxury accommodations in the middle of The Klaserie Private Game Reserve, amazing sightings and very close observation of the Big 5 and other African wildlife, and guides that are highly trained and passionate about their profession and sharing all that they know with you.
From the moment we arrived at Senalala, we were made to feel welcome and at home as Corlia, James, and Darryn were waiting for us. We were shown to a beautiful and spacious room with en-suite bathroom with a large tub and separate shower. The room was equipped with a fan, air conditioning, luxury linens, two comfortable chairs and small table, and a table that may be used as a woman’s vanity (since it has a mirror) or a desk. We had access to complimentary wifi in our room. The wifi was relatively fast when there were only a few guests but when the camp was at full capacity, the bandwidth was not sufficient to handle the high level of usage. The best thing about our room was that it had a sliding glass door that afforded a view of the watering hole so we could spot game from bed and we would run to the viewing platform to get a better view. We saw elephants, giraffes, and lots of impala. The camp owns a couple of Toyota Land Cruisers specifically designed for safari game drives so that the 3 rows of passengers have a good view with the ‘stadium seating’ configuration. The seats are very comfortable too. The Land Cruisers are convertible (no top) so make sure to bring a hat, sunscreen, and a hair tie if you have long hair since we spent 6 hours a day traveling around the game preserve hunting for animals. There are 2 game drives per day: one at 6am and another at 4pm. We brought rain jackets but that wasn’t necessary since Senalala provided large rain ponchos on the one morning when we had a light drizzle. We are pescatarian leaning more towards vegetarian and Corlia was able to accommodate our dietary preference which we greatly appreciated. The food was not gourmet but it was good with much fresh, local produce and a nice variety. We had ample access to water, coffee, tea, sodas, juices, wine, beer, and some liquor…all self serve and very convenient and easy. There is a small pool which we enjoyed on several occasions.
Lastly and most importantly, the animals! Our professionally trained guide, Darryn, was amazing. He is a skilled tracker which was very helpful in locating some of those elusive animals such as hippos, lions, and leopards. We saw all the Big Five and many days we saw 4 of the Big Five. One afternoon game drive, we found a pack of Wild Dogs which is a very rare sighting and followed them for a while as they were out hunting. Darryn is extremely knowledgeable and shared all kinds of information with us. Not only was it extremely interesting, it was a very educational experience. One of my favorite parts and it was unexpected was how close we were able to get to the animals. Awesome photo opportunities when you’re only 10 feet away from a lion or elephant. Darryn allowed sufficient time to sit, watch, and observe the animals and for photos. Since Darryn knows the signs of agitation or aggression, I always felt safe. We visited in the beginning of March and saw many babies (zebra, giraffe, rhino, wildebeest, elephant). They were so cute and a big treat to me. (The babies are born around November to December.) It was such a pleasure living in the middle of a wild, beautiful land for a few days and having the chance to be in harmony with these amazing animals. My husband and I celebrated our 25th anniversary with this trip and it was the best present and exceeded our expectations. We will cherish the memories forever! Thanks Senalala!