Africa's wildlife up close at Waterside at Royal Malewane

I am so excited to finally share my first post from my latest stay at Royal Malewane, Waterside. It has been almost two years since my first visit to the Royal Malewane. We were greeted with the warmest welcome from an old friend, Matt - at the airport of Hoedspruit. So many smiles and hugs were shared. Coming back to Royal Malewane, is like seeing a familiar friend or family member - and reuniting as if nothing has changed. You’re treated like family.

We had a late check in - around 4pm and headed straight for bed post dinner. Matt agreed to meeting us around 06:00 for our first game drive. I could hardly contain my excitement. When you choose a safari destination, it’s the guiding team that makes the difference to the memories you’ll take home with you. Matt and his tracker, Stanley - have an extensive wealth of knowledge when it comes to birding as well as the wildlife in the Kruger.

Upon picking us up in the early hours of the morning Matt proceeded to ask me which animals I wanted to see - to which I replied, ‘elephants, lions or leopards’ - I knew we probably had a very slim chance with encountering leopards or lions as they are both known to be one of the hardest and rarest animals to spot in the wild. Matt and his tracker - truly delivered in style.

After a morning of seeing a herd of beautiful elephants we were lucky enough to come across a pack of lions as well as Leopard, who was guarding his kill, perched high up in a tree.

The rangers at Royal Malewane at Waterside - are truly in a league of their own. Matt and Stanley went out of their way to ensure that we saw all the animals we really wanted to see. The spaciousness and added extras of our top-of-the-range Land cruisers afforded ample space for our photographic equipment and luxurious comfort.

Thank you for the best start to our trip! Excited to share more images.