Overview
For a budget Timbavati Safari the ideal destination is the tented safari camp; Shindzela in the south of the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve. This charming tented safari camp has capacity for just twelve guests in six en-suite tents laid out upon an open plain under few shady trees along side a dry river bed. For anyone travelling on a budget this camp will delight and fulfil a lifelong dream of a Timbavati Safari.
At Shindzela Tented Camp the accommodation is in en-suite tents under a thatched covering ensuring that the tents are cool inside, even in summer. The tents are erected on wooden decks and have a small shady porch out the front. The interior has two ¾ sized beds with fine linen and scatter cushions. The camp is lit by solar power and there is a lantern in the tent and one in the en suite bathroom where there is a toilet shower and wash hand basin. The hot showers are powered by gas geysers. Shindzela Tented Camp is not fenced and often has nocturnal visitors making the en suite facilities a must.
Shindzela has a tented dining room where the gracious Gerti serves traditional bush cuisine with natural flair and hospitality. This budget Timbavati safari serves three hearty meals each day and tea and coffee is constantly available. In the centre of the camp is an open area where a fire is lit every evening and chairs laid out for pre-dinner drinks for some lively discussion about the sightings of the day. Drinks are available from chest freezer honesty bar in the dinning tent. Shindzela has a swimming pool in the centre of the camp with sun lounges for long summer days of bushveld bliss.
Dusk and dawn game drive in open safari vehicle set off into a large private concession of Timbavati where you are most unlikely to encounter another vehicle. Timbavati Private Nature Reserve is now open to the Kruger Park in what is termed the Greater Kruger Park a vast unfenced wilderness. This allows the animals free movement all the way from Timbavati on the west to Mozambique in the east in the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park. Game is plentiful in the Timbavati making this an affordable big 5 safari for budget travellers.
