Sabie Sands Game Reserve

The Sabi Sands Game Reserve is a 65,000 Hectare Reserve, pioneered by local Landowners in the 1950s, and shares a border with the' World-Renowned': Kruger National Park. Today, many of the families who reside here are now third and fourth generation Land Owners. Their legacy being mainly; the successful conservation of the highest density of big game in South Africa. Even though there is a 50 kilometre unfenced boundary with the Kruger National Park, wildlife in the Sabi Sands Reserve is well habituated with :

​Wildlife & Animals – Sabi Sands with sightings:

• Elephant- Common.
• Giraffe- Common.
• Hippo- Common.
• Buffalo- Common.
• Zebra- Common.
• Wildebeest- Common.
• White Rhino- Occasional.
• Black Rhino- Very Rarely .
• Leopard- Very Rarley

This results in very rememberable Safari, because of there: 'Exclusivity; Close encounters and 'Seldom Seen' sightings. This is particularly true of the elusive Leopard. The Sabi and the Sand Rivers run through the Reserve, which add further dimension to the bio-diversity of this Area.

The African continent is the only place in the world where big game still roams freely in great numbers. In particular the Kruger National Park Area and the neighboring Private Game Reserves, which are famous for the incredible possibilities of also seeing the Big Five up close. The term "Big Five" is reminiscent of the old safari hunting days. The name is not derived from the size or number of the animals, as many people believe but rather, that these five animals are the most difficult to be seen and hunt. The "Big Five" are: 'Leopard; Lion; Buffalo; African Elephant and Rhinoceros.'

Sabi Sands is in particular well known for its amazing Leopard sightings."This is the most elusive animal of the 'Big 5' and NOT OFTEN SPOTTED, when going on a game drive in the reserve. Sabi Sands offers the ultimate 'photographic safari' - You can be certain to return home with some absolutely stunning pictures and memories!"

Besides the Big 5, other game species occur in great numbers, among which are more than 300 bird species. "Sabi Sands possibly makes the best South African safari destination for wildlife enthusiasts, photographers and bird watchers alike."

So what is the 'secret' behind Sabi Sand's success story? For this one has to have a closer look at the Reserve's History. Many of the land surface of what now is the Sabi Sands Game Reserve used to be agricultural land. As cattle farms occurred in the Area, a reliable source of water was needed on the Farms. In order too provide this water, many boreholes were drilled providing a steady supply of water. Then aAfter the establishment of Sabi Sands as a game Reserve, these Waterholes and Dams were kept intact and they are still functional, as watersource. It is now not only Cattle that drinks this water, but the many Wild Animals in the Game Reserve. As these waterholes provide an abundance of water throughout the Year (and seasonal influences are not much of a factor). Sabi Sands proves to be a very popular place for large herds of animals. "This to the enjoyment of Travellers and large Predators alike!"

The original Sabie Reserve was already proclaimed in 1898. It turned out to be the forerunner of the massive Kruger National Park. Many of the original Landowners were evicted from the Area, when in 1926 the National Parks Act was passed. In turn, the former Land Owners created- 'the Sabi Private Game Reserve', adjacent to Kruger National Park in 1934. Of these pioneering Land Owners, six families still own Land in the Sabi Sands Game Reserve, they are now third and fourth generation owners. In 1948 the landowners formally formed, what now is: 'the Sabi Sand Reserve', the first game reserve in South Africa.