Mashatu Lodge is the original main camp of a 42,000-hectare private reserve in Botswana’s Tuli Block, close to where the Shashe and Limpopo rivers join on the borders of Zimbabwe and South Africa. Elephant herds splash in the waterhole the camp is built around. It is the reserve’s family lodge, with room for children in every suite and two pools for the long hours between drives.
Elephant herds splash in the waterhole the camp is built around.
Mashatu is a local name for the nyala berry tree, but the reserve goes by the Land of Giants, a name that belongs as much to the baobabs on its sandstone ridges as to elephants, giraffes and eland, or to the ostrich and the kori bustard. Lions, leopards, cheetahs and hyenas are seen almost daily, and the leopards are relaxed enough to watch for long stretches.
The Matebole hide is sunk flush with the ground at the water’s edge. Elephants drink two metres away, the lens level with their feet. Morning sessions catch the low light of sunrise, and the hide closes between December and February. For those who want longer, a separate sleep-out hide allows guests a whole night beside the water.
Elephants drink two metres away, the lens level with their feet.
These herds belong to a population that roams freely across the borders of Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe, splitting and regrouping with the seasons. By August, with the seasonal rivers dry, they are digging wells in the sandy riverbeds. The reserve is private land, so guides can leave the track for a sighting, drive on after dark or walk the ridges, freedoms that Botswana’s national parks keep tightly limited.
Most of the staff at Mashatu Lodge are from Botswana, the guides among them, and many come from the villages around the reserve. A single drive with them can pass from mopane woodland onto open plains, climb the sandstone ridges among the baobabs and drop down into the riverine forest on the banks. Kori bustards pace the open ground while martial eagles hunt from above. Down in the river trees, Pel’s fishing owls roost. After dinner the spotlight comes out, and night drives pick up aardvarks, aardwolves, honey badgers and springhares.
Between drives, children make for the Discovery Room, where archaeological finds, skulls and reconstructed skeletons share space with relics of the Boer War, whose battle sites lie on the reserve itself. The guides take that story outside. They stop at the crumbling ruins of Bryce’s Store. A longer outing ends at the river confluence, where the borders of Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe touch. All ages are welcome at the lodge, and at twelve children can join the cycling and horseback safaris.
Kori bustards pace the open ground while martial eagles hunt from above.
Afternoons begin with high tea above the waterhole, the elephants drinking and bathing within sight of the tables, and in summer a woodland kingfisher calling from the trees overhead. Later come sundowners on the hilltops, where in the dry season the sun drops red through the dust. Dinner is three courses by candlelight or a buffet around the fire in the boma. The kitchen cooks traditional African food without fuss, with breads and pies baked in camp, meat dishes and fresh fruit and vegetables.
Flights from Johannesburg land at the Limpopo Valley Airfield, the reserve’s own international airstrip. By road, guests cross the Limpopo at Pont Drift, by vehicle or, when the river is in flood, by cable car. The lodge is open all year. Between June and mid-November the dry season draws animals to the last of the water. December to March is the time of afternoon storms that break the heat, of newborn animals and of birding at its peak, with more than 350 species recorded.
accommodation
Fourteen air-conditioned suites for twenty-eight guests are spaced along the edge of camp for privacy. Each is made for a family to share, with a double bed, an extra-large single and a day bed in the sitting area. Black-and-white wildlife prints hang on the walls, and bathrooms have a bath, a shower and a separate WC.
activities
Two guided outings a day are included, either two game drives or a drive and a walk. Night drives, mountain biking and horseback safaris can be added, as can sessions in the Matebole hide, a night in the sleep-out hide and a visit to the three-country confluence. Because the reserve is private land, not national park, guides can track off-road.
conservation
The Tuli Conservation Trust funds anti-poaching patrols and work to reduce conflict between people and wildlife around the reserve. Each guest also pays a nightly conservation levy that supports anti-poaching and community projects. Part of it goes to the Mashatu Health Care Fund, which subsidises emergency care for staff without medical aid.
Get in touch and let’s start the conversation. An initial consultation helps us understand what you’re looking for, whether that’s specific experiences, luxury touches, or marking a special occasion, and from there we’ll guide you through what’s possible so you can decide if we’re the right fit.
Most guests fly from Johannesburg. A scheduled light aircraft leaves Lanseria airport in the morning and reaches Limpopo Valley Airfield, the reserve's own international airfield, in about an hour and a half, with Botswana's entry formalities handled on arrival. A guide meets the plane, and the drive to the lodge takes about thirty-five minutes through the reserve, so the first game drive starts at the airfield.
To fly at your own hour, we can arrange a private charter from Johannesburg straight into Limpopo Valley Airfield. By road, Johannesburg is about six hours from the Pont Drift border post on the Limpopo, and Polokwane about two. When the river is low, vehicles drive across; when it floods, the crossing is made by cable car, and the lodge's guide collects you on the Botswana side.
Yes, it is the reserve's family lodge and takes children of every age. All fourteen suites are built with families in mind, each with a double bed, an extra-large single and a day bed in its sitting area. Two swimming pools fill the hot middle of the day, and the Discovery Room, a small museum of fossils, skeletons, archaeological finds and Boer War relics from the reserve, keeps young minds busy between drives.
The age limits sit on the activities. Guided walks take children from eight, with a parent until twelve; mountain biking, horseback rides and the photographic hide start at twelve, though younger children can join a one-hour family session at the hide when the family has a private vehicle. With young children we would add a private vehicle, so drives run at their pace.
The rate covers the suite, all meals and snacks, local wines, beers and spirits, soft drinks, wifi and laundry. Each night also includes two guided outings, either two game drives or a game drive and a guided walk, in open vehicles with sundowners on the hills. Transfers within the reserve to Limpopo Valley Airfield or the Pont Drift border post are included, and so is the cable car when the Limpopo is in flood.
The extras are night drives, mountain biking, horseback rides, the photographic hides, village visits, spa treatments, a private vehicle, premium imported drinks and the flights in. The reserve's conservation levy is charged per person per night and part of it goes to the Mashatu Health Care Fund.
Yes, seasonally. TravelHealthPro, the UK's official travel health service, places this eastern corner of Botswana in its northern zone, with a high risk of malaria from October to May and a low risk from June to September, and low risk is not no risk. The American CDC lists the Bobirwa sub-district, which takes in the Tuli Block, among the areas where it recommends preventive medicine.
We are travel planners, not medical professionals, so we make no recommendation about tablets. That decision sits with you and your doctor or a travel clinic, ideally with your travel dates to hand. Whatever the month, cover up and use repellent from late afternoon onwards.
A great deal, because the reserve is private land. After-dinner night drives go out with two to six guests, for the animals that move after dark and a sky free of city light. Mountain-bike safaris follow old elephant paths at dawn or late afternoon, and experienced riders who pass a short riding test can explore on horseback from twelve. You never walk alone: every walk goes out with a guide.
The sunken photographic hide sits at a busy waterhole, with elephants drinking about two metres away at ground level; it is open from March to November. A night in the underground sleep-out hide, full-day walking trails from March to October, a drive to the meeting point of Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa and a village visit can all be added.
June to September is the strongest stretch for game. The bush thins, pans and pools dry up, and elephants dig for water in the sandy riverbeds or come to the waterhole in front of the lodge, while predators are easier to follow. Mornings and nights are cold in June and July. May and October sit either side: October is very hot, but the waterholes are at their busiest.
The green season, December to March, has its own case. Storms clear the air, the plains turn yellow with flowers, impala and wildebeest drop their young, and migrant birds swell a list of more than 350 species. Elephant herds of up to 200 move in to feed. It is hot, often near forty degrees, and the photographic hide is closed from December to February.
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our approach
Every journey starts with a conversation. We take the time to understand your vision before we start planning.
Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape something that is considered, personal, and expertly delivered.
