Timbavati
Private Game Reserve
Located just 30 minutes from Hoedspruit’s Eastgate Airport lies the Timbavati. Another beautiful private game reserve bordering Kruger National Park, this exquisite wilderness is brimming with wildlife galore, including the Big 5, and is a birder’s haven with over 350 bird species. Get your bird list ready! What the Timbavati is best known for though is its rare white lions. The white lions are not albinos, in fact. They have a harmless condition called leucism, a genetic mutation that gives them their white color. Not only are they rare in existence, but sightings are also very scarce as there are only a small number of them in the reserve. If you are lucky enough to spot them, you’re in for a real treat!
Like other private game reserves in the area, there are no fences along the shared borders between the Timbavati and neighboring reserves or along its border with Kruger. Therefore, animals come and go as they please. As you would expect with private game reserves, there are safari lodges and camps here to meet any traveler’s wish list. Whether you’re with family, on your honeymoon or just looking for adventure, there’s a lodge or camp in the Timbavati for you. There’s even a camp that primarily conducts daily 3-4 hour walking safaris instead of game drives! Imagine the adrenaline rush of being on foot in the wild! Are you up for it?
When to Go
May – October
This is the best time to go on safari in South Africa because it’s the dry season which makes wildlife much easier to see due to shorter grass and less-dense vegetation. Also, water is more scarce, and animals are likely to be seen quenching their thirst at waterholes.
