TOURS AND ACTIVITIES
All guests staying at Sebatana can enjoy an extensive list of services ranging from traditional game drives and big five safaris to cultural and historic tours. In the following you can read the complete program with all tours and activities available on selected days.
RESPONSIBLE TOURISM
Sebatana Lion Lodge is an active player in the local community and supports various projects to ensure fair and sustainable tourism in the area which we believe is of huge benefit to both the community and staff as well as guests visiting.
Malaria free five star Safari at Sebatana Lion Lodge
Welcome to our 7-night luxurious safari package in South Africa, at the five-stared Sebatana Lion Lodge. Join us and visit this striking country, where we with a stay at Sebatana Lion Lodge will make sure you have a magnificent and unique wildlife experience, while simultaneously getting a profound knowledge of the country’s diverse culture and astounding history.Welcome to our 7-night luxurious safari package in South Africa, at the five-stared Sebatana Lion Lodge. The package is a 7-night package only with different tours and activities offered each day. Tours and activities described in the program can be purchased in advance or during the stay at the lodge. Please refer to the price list for more information.
The day to day program including tour and activity options:
Day 1 – Arrival and transfer to Sebatana Lion Lodge
Following Arrival, we will set course through the magnificent landscape to the lodge.
Ensuing lunch, there will be an opportunity to get settled in the pristine surroundings, take a dip in the pool and get acquainted with the lodge and personnel.
In the early evening, our hosts at Sebatana Lion Lodge will serve a refreshing cocktail and afterwards there will be a briefing regarding your stay at Sebatana. You will be instructed in how to respectfully live in the bush and which precautions to be aware of.
Following the manager’s reception and briefing dinner will be served in the restaurant.
Day 2 – Wildlife talk (incl.) and afternoon game drive (incl.)
After breakfast, we will go on our first game drive in the open Land Cruisers to the settings in the middle of the bush where the guides will give a wildlife talk in regard to which species of animals, birds and plants, we will find throughout the upcoming week. The guide will also explain the area’s history and what the scenery is like at Sebatana Lion Lodge.
Ensuing lunch, our guides will pick us up in one of the Land Cruisers and take us on our second safari, where our local tracker will do his best to find as many different species as possible. An experience with many magic moments.
In the evening the table will be set for yet another culinary experience.
Day 3 – Welgevonden big five safari (opt.) and Night Safari (opt.)
Today is a chance to relax in the pristine surroundings and take in the true feel of the African bush. If desired you can also choose to participate in one of our optional big five safaris. Today you have the chance to join this amazing tour where we visit one of the best big five private reserves in South Africa. Sebatana is part of this jewel in the African bush with more than 40.000 hectares with stunning nature and all the animals you would expect and hope to experience while in South Africa. Here in the middle of the bush, in a nature so unique that it is one of the few Unesco protected aras in the world, we can find more than 50 different mammals including the famous big 5, Lione, Elephant, Rhino, Leopard and Buffalo.
Night safari
At dusk, when the sun sets over the African bush, we depart Sebatana Lion Lodge. At dusk, when the sun sets over the African bush, we depart Sebatana Lion Lodge.
It is a spectacular experience to watch how the bush changes and how a completely different animal kingdom emerges. Night Safari takes place in open Land Cruisers, where we use powerful spotlights. We must use all our senses, in particular our eyes and ears, as suddenly the spotlight will detect a pair of eyes reflected in the light. This is an intense experience and something you should not miss out on.
Our guide will, throughout the safari, whisper different information about the wildlife we encounter here in the dead of night. On a night safari, we may be lucky enough to spot animals which we do not usually see during the day. Animals such as leopard, caracal, bush baby, porcupine, antbear, etc. The quietude is a characteristic of the African night, it may seem spooky and suddenly you may hear something that sounds as though the bush is ‘crying’. Such sensory perceptions are a strong characteristic of a night safari.
En route we will stop at “Flintstone Cave”, where the light from the fireplace will greet us. The chef has prepared a lovely three course dinner, and beautiful tables have been set for you. To sit in the middle of all that darkness with the fireplace illuminating your surroundings, enjoy an exquisite dinner and a glass of red wine is truly a world-class experience. When everyone has finished, we will continue our safari through the bush. The phenomenal experience should not be omitted, as it completes your safari adventure.
Day 4 – Soft trekking tour (Incl.) and Tribal evening (opt.)
After breakfast we commence our walking trail. En route our experienced guide will relate the characteristics of the Waterberg Mountains, in regards to the impressive fauna south of the equator and the distinctive surrounding nature. Simultaneously, you will gain some insight into the animal breeding- and feeding areas, an insight which will be especially exciting when learning more about antelope behaviour
After lunch there will be time for some hard earned relaxation by the pool or in the communal areas.
Tribal Evening
In the evening we are invited to a private dinner at our chef’s, which gives us the opportunity to experience how the indigenous black population once lived, and sometimes still do. This is an extraordinary chance to ensure that you gain some historical insight into African culture and lifestyle, in addition to a contemporary awareness.
The local culture and lifestyle are in many ways incredibly exciting, and we will be able to taste their unique food and beverages. We are also introduced to some of their customs and traditions. In many ways we should envy their way of life, they may not be rich in assets, but they are wealthy in human experiences and especially in respect for one another and their values.
The indigenous black population often expresses themselves through song and dance. Tonight we have arranged for children and young adults to come and entertain with dances and old traditions they proudly retain despite the colonial attempt to “change” them. The dancers who come to entertain us, are all part of a heritage foundation, which works to preserve the local traditions and culture.
Day 5 - Pilanesberg National Park (opt.)
Pilanesberg National Park, the third largest in South Africa, is a three hour drive from Sebatana Lion Lodge. A drive through picturesque mountain formations, developed through millenniums and which stretches through 600km’s/373mi’s of South African landscape. Pilanesberg covers an area of approx. 55,000 hectares/ 135,908 acres and was created through the gradual increase of merged plots.
Upon arrival in the park, we ascend the open safari vehicles and drive through the massive area while our professional guide shares their knowledge of the various wildlife.
All safari vehicles driving in the park are in constant radio contact, so we will immediately know if anyone else for example spots elephants and be able to make our way there shortly. This ensures the substantial likelihood that you will have a marvellous wildlife experience.
Pilanesberg National Park is a beautiful area. Situated in a volcanic landscape, its impressive mountain formations and open plains is home to a wide range of antelopes and one of the world’s largest populations of the endangered white rhino. Simultaneously, Pilanesberg offers “the Big Five” – lion, elephant, buffalo, rhinoceros and leopard – in addition to giraffes, hippopotami, cheetahs, 300 species of birds and so much more.
Tonights dinner is again a culinary feast for all senses.
Day 6 – Game drive (incl.), Champagne bush brunch (incl.) and Christinas Wallow (incl.)
Immediately following sunrise, we leave the lodge and begin our safari.
Our best chance at spotting wildlife up close is during the early morning hours. The antelopes move through large areas to find the best browsing, but also to find the best protection against leopards, hyenas, caracals and other predators. We drive around in an open Land Cruiser, which ensures the best possible view and photo opportunities.
Later in the morning, when hunger arises, we end our safari at Kudu Rock. Here we will serve a wonderful, traditional and lavish African Champagne Brunch, while you enjoy the magnificent view of the African bush.
Afterwards we return to the lodge, where you will have the opportunity to relax and reflect on the many impressions garnered throughout the morning.
After lunch our guides will pick us up in one of the Land Cruisers and take us to Christina’s Wallow, or rather some of the way there. To have the least amount of impact on the wildlife, we will make some of our way there by foot. Christina’s Wallow is a hide, where you will have a direct view of a watering hole which is used by many different species of animals, such as merecats, giraffes, impalas, wildebeest, etc. animals attracted to the watering hole can vary over the seasons but guests are often rewarded with beautiful viewings of African wildlife.
Day 7 - Kaingo Big 5 safari (opt.) and Sunset Rock (incl.)
Kaingo half day safari
Join us in this tour through the wilderness of outstanding scenic beauty. An African Eden, situated in the malaria-fee Waterberg neighboring Sebatana. The area is a declared protected area with critical biodiversity 1 classification and a core area of the Waterberg Biosphere as officially declared by UNESCO. The reservation efforts strive to protect this breath-taking landscape for future generations.
Sweeping across more than 16.000 hectares of bushveld savannah, river, valley and magic mountain landscapes, this represents a piece of Africa as it used to be with unique wildlife experiences, conservation and research activities, together with picturesque natural assets in abundance. With the mighty Mokolo river weaving through the landscape, the reserve is home to more than 60 mammals and more than 250 bird species including the Big 5.
This incredible ecological biodiversity offer a unique wildlife and nature experience in a “conservation first” approach where all tourism income goes towards positive conservation efforts. Sebatana is proud to offer exclusive and unique access to this area for our guests.
As the famous Mokolo river streams through the area and we will take the time for a scenic stop where our guides will serve some refreshments and leave time for some photographic opportunities with the magical backdrop of the river.
Mid-afternoon we will go on another amazing safari which will end at Sunset Rock. A place and an experience, former guests have said to be one of the absolute highlights of the entire tour. This is where we will enjoy a glass of bubbly, chilled champagne, while the sun slowly sets over the Waterberg Mountains in a cascade of red and orange colours.
Right here in the middle of the grandiose African landscape, at a time of unending beauty, you will feel as if no time is passing – and wish it never would. This is truly the epitome of overwhelming happiness, the African way.
Following sunset, we return to the lodge where our accomplished chefs are ready with yet another feast.
Day 8 - Departure day tour and airport drop off (incl.)
Following an English breakfast, and perhaps a final dip in the dipping pool, it is time for one of the hardest moments of our tour; a final farewell to Sebatana Lion Lodge.
While the staff waves goodbye (and hopefully “see you again sometime”) we head for Johannesburg and Pretoria. Depending on season and availability our drivers and guides will try to include as much cultural and historic indsights of this magnificent country and stop at relevant points of interest. It can be a visit to the Apartheid musem and Hector Pieterson Memorial or perhaps the Voortrekker monument and parliament building of Pretoria. Last stop of the day will be at the airport where we say goodbye to all our guests.