Thakadu River Camp

We decided to do a trip to South Africa which included a safari. There are plenty of accommodations within the reserve to choose from. We chose this location since it was community owned & operated, and it was very reasonably priced. You will either have to take a prearranged shuttle or fly in. I did a shuttle and it is four hours from Johannesburg. We spent four nights here. I am not one for ultra luxury; the tents were more than enough for me. I enjoyed being about to completely unplug from television and the internet. Honestly, you do not spend much time in your rooms if you do the morning and evening drives. I felt like I was on the go for majority of the time. The food was off the charts. I got to eat things I could not get in the states and some I had never even heard of. I did not go hungry at all. Nothing better than eating real, homemade meals versus some processed, mass produced meal. The staff were so friendly and helpful. We loved joking around with them. I enjoyed sitting by the pool or by the river and watching the random animals walk around. There was a bit of a drought when we were there, so they weren't as active as it could be. Our guide for the drives was amazing. He took his time in finding animals. We got to see all of the Big 5 within the first two days, which is definitely not normal. We saw so many animals that are normally more reserved. A few things to think about: (1) The pool is not heated. I repeat IT IS NOT HEATED. It felt nice on the super hot days, but it will take a minute for your body to get used to it. (2) There are wild monkeys running around the property. Do not leave food sitting around on your balcony; they will steal it. I would discourage eating anything on your balcony. They can be aggressive. There is a chance they will come into the dining room during breakfast and lunch. The staff do there best to keep them out. At least they are not around at night during dinner. (3) Be careful walking around at night. The camp is surrounded by electric fence. But there could be snakes on the paths. There many be other random animals (non-dangerous) walking around. I saw something (looked like a small, fat deer) as I was walking to the lobby one morning for a drive. It was literally right next to the path; I just happened to see it. It looked at me, I looked at it. Then it went back to eating the grass. To this day, I still have absolutely no idea what it was LOL I hope they have continued success. I would stay here again. (At the time of this review, they are closed due to damage from a flood.)

What an incredible experience. A beautiful lodge set within an amazing game reserve where the welfare of the animals is at the forefront. We truly felt that we were experiencing the animals in the wild and on our return to the lodge each day we were treated exceptionally well by the most wonderful team of staff. The tented rooms were beautifully fitted out with fabulous terraces. The pool where we could relax and watch as a range of animals visited the nearby river was fabulous and an extra bonus was the in house massage service, massages were provided on your own terrace which was just wonderful.

Rooms are a little rustic but have their own unique ‘charm’. Plenty of space and the bathroom is good. The facilities throughout are pretty good and the pool area superb. Food is good but not a huge variety. The staff are all friendly & welcoming - special shoutout to the lady who looks after the restaurant!