SINGITA LEBOMBO LODGE - KRUGER NATIONAL PARK:

Singita Lebombo is enchantment in a savage setting, a glimpse of wildest Africa. Rangers say it’s the largest concentration of game they’ve seen in the Kruger National Park.

The area is marked by its diversity, from the leopards and lion that own the open spaces to the herds engaged in the ebb and flow of an archaic migration. Each creature is an intrinsic part of a precarious cycle, from the hundreds of species of birds to the flora and intriguing insect life. The days and nights here are shared with the animals, the sounds and smells of the African bush.

LOCATION:
In the Kruger National Park's south-east, on the border with Mozambique, an unexplored expanse was granted to Singita as a twenty-year concession of 15 000 hectares (33 000 acres). Lebombo is pristine, a rocky landscape of surreal flora, sweeping valleys and breathtaking splendour. There is an echoing silence at Lebombo that resonates over the land, a spiritual truth as old as life itself.

Arriving at Lebombo, one is first struck by the immense scale, the looming horizon and endless wilderness that stretches out before you. It is a place of abundance and brilliance, open tracts of Africa as wild as it comes. Built above the land instead of into it, Lebombo Lodge touches the earth lightly, a temporary witness to this magnificent place and the infinite beauty of the untamed.

DISTANCES:
One hour 15 minutes by air from Johannesburg to Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport. Approximately eight hours driving time from Johannesburg to Singita Lebombo (600 km).

TRANSFERS /RATES:
There are daily flights from Johannesburg International Airport (JIA) to Kruger Mpumalanga Airport (KMIA). Air transfers (30 min) from KMIA to the lodge are operated at an additional charge. Unfortunately we do not offer road transfers from KMIA. Transfer rates apply between KMIA and Singita Lebombo and a KMIA arrival tax is levied, payable at the lodges.

ACCOMMODATION:
The lofts at Singita Lebombo sit perched like eagles' nests among the cactus-like Euphorbia on the basalt cliff tops. Facing the ancient Lebombo mountain range, the Sweni and Nwanetsi rivers entwine like glittering veins of gold far below. Singita Lebombo is the culmination of the search for an idyllic location.

Ceiling to floor windows, the luxury suites chameleon the landscape, each an expression of the surroundings. Living space is expansive and exclusively furnished, indoors and outdoors fuse seamlessly in complete privacy. Singita Lebombo is more than simply safari, it's a feeling that remains a part of you.

Built on ethos 'to tread the earth lightly', Singita Lebombo is Africa unfiltered and unadorned. There's a vastness in this remote wilderness that pierces your senses, taunts your imagination, captures your soul.

THE LODGE:
Singita Lebombo arrives amidst considerable reputation. Unlike any lodge the continent has seen, Singita Lebombo extends the opportunity for an unparalleled journey into Africa. The Singita Lodges have won international accolades, including 'The world's number one destination' 2001 and 2002, by Conde Nast Traveler readers, and the Harper's Hideaway Report 'Number one international resort' 2001 and 2002.

Astride the most breathtaking views of any Safari Lodge, guests are afforded several entertainment and leisure options. The hallmark Singita gym and health spa, a wine cellar and an African Trading Store celebrating African sculpture, craft and design are discreetly set in the surroundings. With facilities available for business, indoor and outdoor dining areas and a library area, Singita Lebombo offers a cool silence that is entirely intoxicating.

CUISINE:
Cuisine is a central feature of the Singita Lebombo experience. The celebrated executive chef fuses local ingredients and mode with a contemporary international style. The emphasis is on wild tastes, grilled meats with fresh fruits and vegetables, wholesome and uncomplicated. At Singita Lebombo, the food is prepared with a devotion to each guest's personal taste.

Dining takes place wherever the impulse leads, whether by the pool or in the seclusion of your room. The 'silo' bush-cellar, with a choice of award-winning South African wines, offers the connoisseur an insight into the vineyard culture.

WILDLIFE:
Singita Lebombo is enchantment in a savage setting, a glimpse of wildest Africa. The wildlife here is not used to the sight of man, rangers say it's the largest concentration of animals they've seen in the Kruger National Park.

The area is marked by its diversity, from the leopards and lion that own the open spaces to the herds engaged in the ebb and flow of archaic migration. Each creature is an intrinsic part of precarious cycle, from the hundreds of species of birds to the flora and intriguing insect life. The days and nights here are shared with the animals, the sounds and smells of the African bush.

ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE:
Suggested arrival time is after 12 noon with check-in from 13:00 pm. Rooms must be vacated by 11:00 am for the convenience of arriving guests. Late departure times can be arranged at the lodge, subject to availability of rooms.

Due to Singita Lebombo's very remote location in the heart of the African bush, there is always the possibility of telephone lines operating intermittently or not being available around the clock, which may result in long delays in processing your credit card. To avoid this, and ensure a smooth check-out and departure, it is strongly advised that you consider pre-paying as much of your visit as possible. We would prefer that you depart Singita Lebombo having had a perfect stay right to the very end.

ARCHITECTURE:
Lebombo Lodge is a tour de force of glass, water, steel and timber. The structures are integrated seamlessly into the surroundings as though a natural extension of the landscape. Walkways snake their way among euphorbia that worship the sky, to lofts clasped to the cliffside high above the N'wanetsi River. Stark spaces created of wall-to-wall glass, the suites are light and meditative; quiet mystical places that reach to the distance, the silence and the endless beauty.

No attempt has been made to capture the experience at Lembombo with embellishment or excess. Every aspect of the design was refined by the intensity of the place, reduced to where form and function unite. The wild wide open is the only requirement here, and one's spirit is stirred by its wonder.

CATERING REQUIREMENTS AND LIQUOR LICENCE:
Please inform Reservations of any special dietary requirements and we will do our utmost to oblige, subject to certain conditions and restrictions. The lodges are fully licensed.

GROUPS AND INCENTIVES:
Please contact us for your Groups and Incentive requirements.

Recommended route from Hoedspruit:
Leave Hoedspruit, Eastgate airport and turn right on the main road for approximately 6km to a T-junction. Turn left onto the R40 for approximately 6km to a T-junction. Turn left onto the R40 for approximately 19 km to another T-junction. Stay on the R 40 by turning left at this T-junction, but only for 2 km before turning left again onto the R531 (Orpen Gate Road). After 42 km (mind the cattle on the first 20km on this bit then elephants and bigger game later) you will come to the Orpen Gate to the KNP.

Proceed straight into the Kruger on the H7 for 41 km (TIPS: 50 kph speed limit. PLEASE: This is a great game viewing area so if travelling at speed limit, with stops for sightings, this portion should take approximate 1.5 hours). At the T-junction turn right ont the H1 - 3 for 3km before turning left onto the H6, clearly marked N'wanetsi.
After 19km on the H6 (allow 30 - 40 min) the tar ends at a T-junction and turn right for 1 km to Singita Lebombo.

BY AIR:
Federal Air also offers a daily return flight direct to Singita Lebombo from Johannesburg International Airport. Federal Air provides air transfers to and from KMIA to Singita Lebombo. Federal Air is currently connecting all flights arriving and departing into KMIA that fall into the operating period for Satara the airstrip in the Kruger National Park that Singita Lebombo uses, as set by the Parks Board. There are daily scheduled flights currently operated by SA Airlink and Nationwide into the new Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport situated between Nelspruit and White River. (This airport has replaced the Skukuza and Nelspruit Airports).

CHARTERS:
Please note we can assist with a quote on any private charters.

THE SEASONS:

NOVEMBER THROUGH DECEMBER:

Our summer months are very hot and humid with either continual rains or very typically afternoon thundershowers which generally clear before the game drives depart. Lots of young animals are born during this time notably the impala lambs, which are beautiful but vulnerable to predators.

JANUARY TO MARCH:
These are normally drier months with very hot days. There are lots of beautiful migratory birds during the Summer period. Early morning drives with early returns to escape the heat, are typical.

Please remember to bring hats, sunscreen and to take malaria prophylaxis as well as rain protection gear (we will provide ponchos). Please note umbrellas are not taken on the game drives when its raining.

LEBOMBO CONCESSION:
The Lebombo Concession is geographically and ecologically among the most exquisite territories in the Kruger Park. The perennial Sweni and N'wanetsi Rivers meander like glittering veins of gold across this ancient landscape, believed by some to be the birthplace of mankind. The region is bisected by grey obelisks that stack to the sky, wreathed in succulents and creepers and home to nimble klipspringer antelope that leap from rock to rock.

To the north, the hills and valleys open up to a vast terrain dotted with thorny scrub, where dense herds of game continue on an archaic journey, ever tracked by the lion and leopard that rule the plains. Nature transforms from spring's vibrant green to winter's ochre, in the endless shifting seasons that choose which will live, and which will die.

KRUGER NATIONAL PARK:
The world-renowned Kruger National Park offers a wildlife experience that ranks with the best in Africa. Established in 1898 to protect the wildlife of the South African Lowveld, this national park of nearly 2 million hectares, SANParks - Kruger National Park is unrivalled in the diversity of its life forms and a world leader in advanced environmental management techniques and policies.

Truly the flagship of the South African national parks, Kruger is home to an impressive number of species: 336 trees, 49 fish, 34 amphibians, 114 reptiles, 507 birds and 147 mammals. Man's interaction with the Lowveld environment over many centuries - from bushman rock paintings to majestic archaeological sites like Masorini and Thulamela - is very evident in the Kruger National Park. These treasures represent the cultures, persons and events that played a role in the history of the Kruger National Park and are conserved along with the park's natural assets.

The Kruger National Park is the primary destination in South Africa for many international tourists. Each year more than half a million visitors are registered.

The National Park was opened in 1898 at the instigation of then-president Paul Kruger. After hunters had considerably decimated the originally rich game stock, all the land between the Sabie and the Crocodile Rivers was put under the protection of Nature Conservation to ensure the survival of the remaining animals. Only as recently as 1961 was the extended Kruger Park fenced in.

The park stretches from the Crocodile River in the south up to the Limpopo River, which is the international border in the north. Altogether it is 350 km long, 65 km wide and comprises an area of about 20,000 sq km.

A web of roads of 1863 kilometres leads through the National Park, 697 kms of them being tarred. For the visitor there are numerous differently equipped restcamps, most of them scenically positioned. Within the park boundaries, travel is only allowed between sunrise and sunset. After dark one has to stay in one of the fenced restcamps.

The best time for observing the animals is the dry winter season. Then the grass is low and bushes and trees don't have leaves, so that one can have an unobstructed view. Because it virtually doesn't rain in winter, the animals come to the waterholes to drink in the mornings and evenings and can easily be viewed from the car.

Overview of The Kruger National Park

Where nearly 2 million hectares of unrivalled diversity of life forms fuses with historical and archaeological sights – this is real Africa. The world-renowned Kruger National Park offers a wildlife experience that ranks with the best in Africa. Established in 1898 to protect the wildlife of the South African Lowveld, this national park of nearly 2 million hectares, SANParks - Kruger National Park is unrivalled in the diversity of its life forms and a world leader in advanced environmental management techniques and policies.

Truly the flagship of the South African national parks, Kruger is home to an impressive number of species: 336 trees, 49 fish, 34 amphibians, 114 reptiles, 507 birds and 147 mammals. Man's interaction with the Lowveld environment over many centuries - from bushman rock paintings to majestic archaeological sites like Masorini and Thulamela - is very evident in the Kruger National Park. These treasures represent the cultures, persons and events that played a role in the history of the Kruger National Park and are conserved along with the park's natural assets.

Vegetation and Climate

The Kruger National Park is generally flat to gently undulating, with average height of 260 metres (853 feet) above sea level, with its most mountainous areas being along the eastern boundary, formed by the Lebombo Mountains. Sixteen distinct landscapes provide a multitude of habitats for the Kruger Park's inhabitants. Located in the Southern Hemisphere, the Kruger Park has its share of rain and hot weather. During the summer months (September-April), the Park experiences sporadic rainfall in the form of quick thunder showers. April through August represent the winter months in Southern Africa which in turn means very little rain. As far as rainfall is concerned, the southern region receives the largest amount of rainfall while the central plains receive the least. The temperatures average from 30 C (86 F) in January (summer) to 23 C (73 F) in July (winter). Please be aware that the maximum temperature can reach 47 C (117 F) (January) and 35 C (95 F) (July).For your information, the average nightly temperature can range from 7-18 C (45-64 F) (January) and most certainly freezing in July. It is highly advisable to wear 'breathable' clothes to avoid heat exhaustion or stroke during the day, drink plenty of water and ensure that appropriate clothing is available in the often cold nights.

Vegetation Zones

The varying climatic conditions impact on the type of vegetation in the ecosystem that can survive and flourish in each vegetation zone. This of course affects the distribution and population densities of the various animals - each type favouring some or other ecosystem environment.

History of the Kruger National Park

The first explorer to set foot in the region was the Dutchman François de Cuiper who led a Dutch East India Company expedition to explore. However, the expedition was attacked and driven by local tribes-people near Gomondwane. Only around 1838 Voortrekker expeditions led by Lous Trichardt and Hans van Rensburg were able to successfully establish forward outposts. Hundreds of Europeans and farmers came to the Lowveld lured by rumours of gold and the great quantity of valuable commodities such as ivory and skins.

This caused the number of game to dramatically decrease due to hunting and trading of animal skins and horns. President Paul Kruger was told about the rapid destruction of wildlife in the area by hunters, after which he succeeded to persuade the Transvaal parliament to establish a protected area for the wildlife in the Lowveld region. The "Sabie Game Reserve”, bordered by the Crocodile River in the south, the Sabie River in the north, the Lebombo Mountains in the east and the Drakensberg Mountains in the west, which is now the southern part of the Kruger National Park, was established in 1898.

These reserves would eventually expand into today's Kruger National Park. The Anglo-Boer War stopped any further development of the reserve, but the British, after winning the war, proceeded with the plan to develop the Sabie Game Reserve and gave the task to major James Stevenson-Hamilton in 1902 to protect the animals against hunters, ivory poachers and cattle farmers. The Park was opened to the public in 1927 for visitors to view animals and plant life in an area where they are protected. After the Anglo-Boer War, James Stevenson-Hamilton was appointed as the first park warden. He spent the next 40 years protecting what the war had destroyed. His actions are no doubt an ever-living contribution to the Kruger National Park's current existence. In addition to his animal conservation, James Stevenson Hamilton was also responsible for acquiring another 10 000 hex acres for the reserve.

After World War I, the Kruger National Park was protected by the government of South Africa and remains under the watchful eye of the government even today. The very first ranger in the reserve was Paul Bester who made his residence in a rustic rondavel (hut) which is now the site of the headquarters camp, Skukuza. Documents concerning the History of the Kruger National Park can be viewed at the Skukuza Library. Half a million years ago, the first San stone age hunters roamed the plains in search of game. The modern day bush men have left fascinating rock paintings all over the Republic of South Africa, and Kruger National Park contains over one hundred sites of these paintings. The Kruger National Park is a living memorial to President Paul Kruger and those who have upheld his vision of a protected wilderness reserve which will forever remind us of that which we are so dangerously close to loosing.

A Short Natural and Cultural History:

There are almost 254 known cultural heritage sites in the Kruger National Park, including nearly 130 recorded rock art sites.

There is ample evidence that prehistoric man – Homo erectus roamed the area between 500 000 and 100 000 years ago.

Cultural artefacts of Stone Age man have been found for the period 100 000 to 30 000 years ago.

More than 300 archaeological sites of Stone Age man have been found.

Evidence of Bushman Folk (San) and Iron Age people from about 1500 years ago is also in great evidence.

There are also many historical tales of the presence of Nguni people and European explorers and settlers in the Kruger area.

There are significant archaeological ruins at Thulamela and Masorini.

There are numerous examples of San Art scattered throughout the park.

The park was first proclaimed in 1898 as the Sabie Game Reserve by the then president of the Transvaal Republic, Paul Kruger. He first proposed the need to protect the animals of the Lowveld in 1884, but his revolutionary vision took another 12 years to be realised when the area between the Sabie and Crocodile Rivers was set aside for restricted hunting.

The Scottish born James Stevenson-Hamilton (born in 1867) was appointed the park’s first warden on 1 July 1902.

On 31 May 1926 the National Parks Act was proclaimed and with it the merging of the Sabie and Shingwedzi Game Reserves into the Kruger National Park. The first motorists entered the park in 1927 for a fee of one pound.

Many accounts of the park’s early days can be found in the Stevenson-Hamilton Memorial Library.