A Secluded Hideaway on the Edge of a South African Sand Forest

Mon Aug 11 2025 17:27:22 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) by Sara G

As part of our Micato Safari (reviewed separately), my family of 8 took 4 of the rooms at Phinda Vlei lodge for 2 nights. We had 2 private vehicles for our group with Thulani and Marc as our guides. The guides were awesome and were as much or more excited than we were about every wildlife sighting. The environment around Phinda is truly amazing and we had some spectacular wildlife sightings including all of the Big 5 plus 5 different cheetahs, which Phinda is known for. The different ecosystems that they have within Phinda provide for a lot of different wildlife viewings in a relatively small area. The rooms were very cozy. We saw nyala, monkeys and zebra from our deck, which was really comfortable and inviting to hang out on. The service was top notch with Happiness’s cooking a major highlight. She truly cared about what our group wanted to eat and keeping us well fed! One tip would be, don’t share a room here with anyone that you don’t want to be very close to. Even though there are 2 beds per room, the beds are in the same bed frame, under the same mosquito net, so you’ll be sleeping quite close together. Due to the way our group split up we had two brothers-in-law sharing a room which was probably a bit more closeness than they wanted but is a fond memory nonetheless! Phinda was my 10 year old daughter’s favorite spot and as she said to me, “Mommy, we have to go back to Phinda because there isn’t much sand forest left in the world!”

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Sun Jul 27 2025 04:27:57 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) by Vanessa B

Excellent game viewing combined with the sumptuous luxury and serenity of the lodge located on the Vlei, fire, the best sunsets, and delicious food! &beyond always delivers the best and most magical bush experience in sub Saharan Africa.

Mon Apr 21 2025 23:10:33 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) by Jill H

We were blown away by the kindness and thoughtful attention of virtually every team member we encountered during our stay at Phinda Vlei. Our game ranger Art was incredibly knowledgeable, enthusiastic, accommodating, and all around wonderful to have as our guide. He and lodge manager Cheyenne and their colleagues organized an absolutely perfect surprise birthday stop by a watering hole at sunset that we will never forget.

Tue Jan 21 2025 15:29:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) by Stephen_Crowthorne

Part of our three lodge stay at Andbeyond properties in Kwa Zulu Natal and Sabi Sands, arranged by Scott Dunn in London. Zuka lodge was our second stop and provided an amazing opportunity to see the wildlife in the northern part of the Phinda reserve and in the sand forest. All aspects of the stay were great; location, game drives, staff and our guide and tracker. We also had a chance to experience the pangolin research work being done at the reserve. Highly recommended.

Sat Aug 03 2024 10:06:27 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) by 960dawns

Phinda Vlei lodge was the second safari lodge my husband and I visited on our trip to South Africa. Vlei lodge is beautiful, the area is just what I imagined Africa to be, and the atmosphere is very focused on the client’s comfort and enjoyment. Everyone from Cheyenne, the lodge manager, to Charles, our evening security escort, all were so friendly and kind yet professional and proud of the experience they have created. The game drives were really special here- our guide, Heather and our tracker Sipho were really knowledgeable and able to track down those special animals we wanted to see. Heather was very relaxed and put us at ease during the drives! We laughed a lot and she taught us so much. Again, Vlei is all about making your safari experience the absolute best! The food was very fresh, delicious and beautifully presented. So sorry I can’t remember the chef’s name but he was wonderful! Our butler Micheal was attentive and so kind! To summarize, my husband is really not a traveler but he says we will definitely return, until then, thank you so much Phinda Vlei!!