Leadwood Lodge, Sabi Sand Game Reserve, Mpumalanga, South Africa

The Sand River lives up to its name and its course weaves around great banks of sand, shaped into dunes by the wind and flow of the river. On its well-watered banks large Leadwood trees spread their boughs wide, and in their shade stands a lodge named after these noble giants.

The view from Leadwood Lodge’s wooden decks change with the seasons and the flow of the river, which is strongest during the hot rainy months of September to March.

The Sabi Sand Game Reserve grows lush and thick at this time, which signals the impalas to drop their babies all within a few days of each other, to lessen the chances of them being taken by predators. In contrast the bush dies down during the cooler dry season from April to August and animals are more easily visible through the undergrowth.

Any time is a good time to go to Leadwood Lodge, because with only four air-conditioned suites you are guaranteed privacy and exclusivity. Clever design has created different levels in the main lodge with intimate spaces for game watching, reading a good book or some romance in Africa.

But it is the tactile combination of materials in Leadwood Lodge that make it architecturally and decoratively interesting; crushed stone, raw cement, dark meranti wood, rough granite and glass. Boldy used, each substance makes its own statement, yet combines in an atmosphere of self-assurance.

This South African luxury safari accommodation is the perfect place to down anchor and chill out to the flow of a river.