DISCOVER KARONGWE, A PRIVATE GAME RESERVE IN SOUTH AFRICA’S KRUGER TO CANYONS BIOSPHERE
Karongwe is charting a fresh path in luxury safari: one where conservation is pro-active, community upliftment is part of the business plan, and every guest plays a role in the conservation of land, wildlife, and the people that call this place home.
Our Story
Where rivers meet,
life gathers
In the foothills of the Northern Drakensberg, six rivers braid together in a fertile valley — a natural meeting place where wildlife, people, and stories have converged for generations. This is Karongwe: a living link between the Kruger National Park and the Canyons Biosphere, rich with movement, memory, and return.
Here, the Big Five roam its valleys and ridges, joined by cheetah, wild dog, a wealth of birdlife and smaller game. The rivers write their long, looping signatures across the uncluttered reserve, nourishing floodplains and jackalberry groves, shaping migrations that have traced these paths for centuries.
Guests arrive from around the globe to watch dawn gild the Lowveld and to hear elephants move like quiet thunder across the land. But what they take home is more than memories — it is a bond with a place alive with meaning, with people whose stories run as deep as the rivers, and with the knowledge that their journey helps protect it all for generations to come.
As custodians of this land our purpose goes beyond just preservation, but into building a more diverse biosphere. We work with local partners to restore habitats, support schools, create jobs, and protect endangered species within the Kruger to Canyons Biosphere. Every guest night contributes to these projects, helping us keep the land, its wildlife, and its people thriving together.
Regeneration
A LIVING LEGACY
Every game drive is only part of the Karongwe journey. Behind the sightings is a deeper story: of land preserved, wildlife protected, and communities strengthened.
The Karongwe project is an ongoing act of regeneration — removing what doesn’t belong, protecting what does, and creating the space for nature to find its own balance.
This work flows into conservation projects that protect the Big Five and beyond; sustainable partnerships with local farmers; community initiatives that bring opportunity, education, and skills to the people who share this place.
Every guest plays a part in this story. You leave with indelible memories — knowing your stay supports anti-poaching patrols, wildlife monitoring, habitat restoration, and the livelihoods of the people who call the valley home.
"Protecting and regenerating this land, and the life it carries, is our way of ensuring the wild heart of Karongwe never stops beating."
- CUSTODIANS OF KARONGWE
People of Karongwe
The Hands and Hearts of Karongwe
Karongwe’s story is carried in human hands. Some know the bush as only those attuned to it can — able to track a leopard through grassland by the alarm call of a francolin, or smell rain coming hours before the first drop falls. Others work in the kitchens and gardens, turning the valley’s harvest into the meals that linger in memory long after the journey home.
Beyond the lodge gates, Karongwe management partner with local farmers, artisans, and suppliers, weaving their produce and craftsmanship into each guest’s experience.
Here, people are not separate from the land. They are part of its story.
Big 5 Plus
Wildlife in full view
The Big Five roam free here. Lion moving through the grass with intent, leopard melting into the shadows, rhino grazing quietly in the floodplain, elephant pushing through the reeds, buffalo standing broadside in the last light.
But Karongwe’s wild heart beats beyond these icons.
This is a living, breathing ecosystem — a balanced biosphere shifting with the seasons, shaped by the rivers, and revealed moment by moment. Every sighting is part of a much larger story, and no two days tell it the same way.