Singita
Conservation-led luxury safari across Africa
Singita — "place of miracles" in the Shangaan language — began in 1993 when Luke Bailes opened Ebony Lodge in the Sabi Sand, and now protects well over a million acres of Africa under a conservation-first model. Today the portfolio spans four countries — South Africa's Sabi Sand and Kruger concessions, Zimbabwe's Malilangwe Reserve, Tanzania's Grumeti and northern Serengeti, and the gorilla forests on the edge of Rwanda's Volcanoes National Park — with a first Botswana lodge slated for December 2026. As a Fora preferred partner, I check availability directly with Singita and book every one of them at Singita's own rates.
Singita in South Africa — Sabi Sand & Kruger
Singita's South African portfolio splits across two private reserves. In the 45,000-acre Sabi Sand private game reserve — famed for leopard sightings and adjoining Kruger — you'll find Ebony Lodge, the 1993 original, with twelve suites and private plunge pools; Boulders Lodge, whose organic, boulder-inspired architecture seems to grow out of the riverbank; Castleton, the Bailes family's original farmstead turned six-bedroom exclusive-use villa; and Ebony Villa, two interlinked family suites configured for multigenerational groups. In Kruger National Park itself, Singita holds the private 33,000-acre N'wanetsi concession in the park's southeast: Lebombo Lodge's glass-and-steel "eagles' nests" suspended above the river, the intimate seven-suite Sweni Lodge wrapped in riverine forest, and the four-bedroom Lebombo Villa. Six nights split between the two reserves — at least three nights in each — is the classic South Africa itinerary, and under Singita's current combination offer it earns a complimentary night, subject to their validity dates.
Singita in Tanzania — the Grumeti & the Serengeti
Tanzania is Singita's largest canvas: the 350,000-acre Grumeti concession on the Serengeti's western corridor, plus the Lamai Wedge on the Mara River in the far north. At Grumeti sit Sasakwa Lodge (manor-house grandeur on a hilltop above the plains), Faru Faru (a contemporary "botanist's camp" on the banks of the Grumeti River), Sabora Tented Camp (1920s-explorer glamour, reimagined in 2020), the private-use Explore camp with its own guide and vehicle, and three exclusive-use villas — Serengeti House, Milele (opened mid-2024) and Kilima (opened October 2024, still the newest Singita of all). Up near the Kenyan border, Mara River Tented Camp is a tiny, off-grid, fully solar camp with front-row seats to the Great Migration's river crossings from July to October; the migration passes through Grumeti itself typically between May and July.
Singita in Rwanda — Kwitonda & the gorillas
Singita's Rwandan outpost sits on the very boundary of Volcanoes National Park at Kinigi, built around reforestation and gorilla conservation. Kwitonda Lodge has just eight suites in volcanic stone and woven Rwandan craft; next door, Kataza House is a four-bedroom private-use home with full staff and dedicated gorilla-trekking logistics for up to eight guests. Practicalities matter here more than anywhere: gorilla permits run US$1,500 per person per trek on top of the room rate, and Kwitonda asks a two-night minimum with one park activity — three nights with two treks is my usual recommendation. Because permits, not lodge space, are the real constraint, I start the permit process six to twelve months ahead for June–September and December travel. It bolts neatly onto a Serengeti itinerary via Kigali.
Singita in Zimbabwe — Pamushana & the Malilangwe
The quietest corner of the portfolio, and for repeat safari-goers often the favourite. Singita runs two properties on the 115,000-acre Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve in southeastern Zimbabwe, where every stay supports the Malilangwe Trust's conservation and community work. Pamushana Lodge is the dramatic one: a hilltop lodge whose thick stone walls and thatch echo Great Zimbabwe, with eight suites ranging from one-bedrooms to a three-bedroom family suite — every one with its own plunge pool — gazing out over the Malilangwe Dam. Malilangwe House, a fully staffed five-bedroom private home set on the edge of a rocky outcrop, each bedroom with its own deck, is arguably Zimbabwe's most exclusive family safari base. If you want Singita's conservation story at its purest, this is where I'd send you.
Singita availability & booking — how far ahead, honestly
The honest answer: for peak windows, work twelve to eighteen months ahead. Mara River Tented Camp is the single most contested Singita inventory — a handful of tents, open June to mid-January, and the July–October crossing season goes first. Sabora's nine tents vanish for the May–July Grumeti migration pass, and Ebony and Boulders sell out up to a year ahead for the June–October dry season and festive dates. The single-unit exclusive-use houses — Castleton, Serengeti House, Kilima, Milele, Kataza — need the earliest possible enquiries for Christmas and New Year. Green season (January–April, November–early December) genuinely has space at three to six months' notice, at the lowest rate tiers. Singita's properties are lodges, camps and private villas rather than hotels, and they don't sell packages — if you're comparing Singita Africa safari packages, what I actually do is build the multi-lodge itinerary at Singita's own rates, with their combination offers applied where your dates qualify. I check availability directly with Singita, request a courtesy hold where they offer one while you decide, and route the whole journey end to end.
What Singita actually costs in 2026
As a guide, 2026 rack rates run, per adult per night sharing: Sabi Sand and Kruger suites R51,665–R60,470 (roughly US$2,850–$3,400), Grumeti's entry lodges — Faru Faru, Sabora and Explore — US$2,210–$3,220, Sasakwa US$2,550–$3,525, and Kwitonda around US$2,720–$3,630 plus the US$1,500 gorilla permit per trek. Exclusive-use villas run from about US$11,000 to US$38,000 per night for the whole property. Those figures include all meals and drinks, twice-daily game drives and laundry; conservation levies, park wildlife fees and charter flights to the reserves sit on top. Treat these as planning guidance — Singita confirms the exact rate for your dates at the time of booking, and rates and inclusions can change. The offers matter too: Singita's current combination offer adds a complimentary night to six-night stays split at least three nights each between Sabi Sand and Kruger, four non-peak Serengeti nights currently earn a free night plus a half-price private vehicle, and twelve nights across two regions currently earn two free nights. Offers are Singita's own, apply identically direct or through me, and are subject to their published terms. Booking through me costs exactly the same.
Booking Singita with Via Privata
The same rate. Superior privileges.
Complimentary breakfast daily
Room upgrade on arrival, subject to availability
Early check-in & late check-out, subject to availability
Hotel credit (typically US$100, varies by property)
VIP welcome amenity & recognition
Dedicated planning and on-the-ground support
You pay the hotel's own rate — never a markup. As a preferred partner, Via Privata adds these privileges, expert planning, and VIP recognition on top.
Current Singita Offers
Singita Grumeti
Six nights, one on us + private vehicle
Combine six nights across Singita's Serengeti lodges and camps and receive a complimentary night, plus a complimentary private safari vehicle.
Singita Pamushana
Malilangwe — 50% off a night
Book four nights at Pamushana or Malilangwe House in Zimbabwe's private Malilangwe Reserve and receive 50% off the lowest-rated night.
Singita Properties We Book
Frequently Asked
What do I get by booking Singita through Via Privata?
Via Privata books Singita as a Fora preferred partner, so you pay Singita's own rates while I check availability directly, request courtesy holds where Singita offers them, and route multi-lodge itineraries — Sabi Sand plus Kruger, or Grumeti plus the Mara River — so the combination offers apply where your dates qualify. You also get one person accountable for permits, transfers and charter flights from end to end.
Where are Singita's lodges and game reserves?
As of 2026 Singita operates in four countries: the Sabi Sand private game reserve and the private N'wanetsi concession in Kruger National Park (South Africa), the Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve (Zimbabwe), the Grumeti concession and the Lamai Wedge of the Serengeti (Tanzania), and the edge of Volcanoes National Park (Rwanda). Singita markets the portfolio as ten lodges and nine villas. A first Botswana property, Singita Elela in the Okavango Delta, is scheduled to open in December 2026.
Does booking through an advisor cost more than booking Singita directly?
No. As a Fora preferred partner I book at Singita's own published rates — the same 2026 rack rates you'd pay direct — and all of Singita's offers, from the six-night South Africa combination to the two-region long-stay deal, apply as normal, subject to Singita's published terms and validity dates. The availability legwork, holds where offered, and end-to-end routing come included.
Does Singita have lodges in Kenya?
No — Singita has never had a lodge in Kenya. The portfolio covers South Africa, Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Rwanda, with Botswana scheduled to join in December 2026. The closest thing to a "Masai Mara" Singita is Mara River Tented Camp in the Lamai Wedge of Tanzania's northern Serengeti: it sits on the Mara River only a few kilometres south of the Kenyan border, inside the same Serengeti–Mara ecosystem, with front-row Great Migration crossings from roughly July to October — effectively the Mara experience from the quieter Tanzanian side.
How much does Singita cost per night?
For 2026, expect roughly US$2,200–$3,600 per adult per night in a standard suite depending on region and season: Grumeti lodges from US$2,210, Sabi Sand and Kruger around US$2,850–$3,400 (R51,665–R60,470), and Kwitonda in Rwanda up to about US$3,630 plus US$1,500 per gorilla trek. That includes all meals, drinks, twice-daily game drives and laundry; conservation levies, wildlife fees and charter flights are extra. Treat these as planning guidance — Singita confirms exact rates at booking. Exclusive-use villas run from around US$11,000 to US$38,000 per night for the whole property.
How far in advance should you book Singita?
Twelve to eighteen months for peak dates — the July–October Mara River crossing season, Grumeti's May–July migration pass, and Sabi Sand's June–October dry season and festive weeks all sell out roughly a year ahead. Rwanda is constrained by gorilla permits rather than rooms, so I start the permit process six to twelve months out for June–September and December. Green season (January–April, November–early December) is the honest exception: real space at three to six months' notice, at the lowest rate tier.
How do I choose between Singita's lodges?
It depends whether the priority is leopards (the Sabi Sand), the Great Migration (Grumeti and the Mara River), gorillas (Rwanda) or pure seclusion (Pamushana) — and on your dates, since each region peaks in a different season. That's the first conversation I have with every Singita client. For a lodge-by-lodge ranking, our guide The Best Singita Lodges in Africa, 2026 walks the whole portfolio.
Is Singita in the Serengeti?
Yes, twice over. Singita Grumeti is a 350,000-acre private concession on the Serengeti's western corridor — home to Sasakwa, Faru Faru, Sabora, Explore and the villas — where the migration typically passes through between May and July. Separately, Singita Mara River Tented Camp sits in the Lamai Wedge of the northern Serengeti, on the Mara River near the Kenyan border, for the July–October river crossings.
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