Dream bucket list safari at Marataba, after waiting four years!

James and Ellie, from the UK, were mesmerized by their Marataba safari experience in every way and shared the magic with us…

The day finally came for our long-awaited trip to Marataba Mountain Lodge. We first booked this holiday in 2019 for travel in 2020 but of course, we all know what happened! We arrived in the South African winter - in our opinion the best time for game viewing and the landscape was stunning.

When we arrived for check-in, we were overwhelmed by the sheer beauty of the lodge. Our room was No.1, a short hike from the main lodge area, and it was breathtaking with incredible views looking down the valley and across to the Waterberg mountains in the distance. These views are something you can only dream about. From the moment we arrived we knew our stay at Marataba was going to be a special one and the staff made us feel so welcome, like family.

It was time for our first game drive and boy we were in for a treat when our field guide Bongz spotted a herd of elephants. We stopped and observed these incredible animals from a distance, but the curious elephants decided to come closer and pass the vehicle - the most incredible experience of our lives. There were tears of pure happiness and this was only the beginning of our four-night stay. We stopped for sundowners and soaked in the African sun as it began to set below the horizon. On the way back to the lodge Bongz spotted something extra cute and hard to see – a lesser bushbaby playing in the trees – we watched for around ten minutes and captured the cutest photo.

The following day’s sunset drive was off to a cracking start. Less than 25m from the lodge and our first ever rhino sighting was the beautiful elusive black rhino. These guys normally run and are very shy, but this one played hide and seek behind a bush. Later in this game drive we would come across 14 white Rhino and another black rhino, along with the other animals we saw such as impalas, elephants, giraffe, wildebeest…the list goes on.

We celebrated a special 30th birthday on this trip and started the day on the Miss Mara Water Safari, one of the reasons we wanted to visit Marataba. This is a unique experience, and the hippopotamus got the memo. We were treated with a magnificent sighting of them out of the water with young hippos in tow. The water safari was so peaceful and tranquil and a good chance to do some birding with a beverage or special coffee, which became a morning must for us.

During our morning game drive, we were treated to a bush walk. Before the walk commenced, we were briefed on safety, as the distance was approximately 2km and we would be walking for around 1.5 hours. We felt very safe with our guide and was a great experience to see the bush from a different perspective. You do not know what you will see on a bush walk and it was thrilling knowing the animals could be watching us. We had a brief sighting of some impala and got to learn more about the dung/scat we came across during our walk.

We were hoping for a lion sighting for my 30th birthday and Bongz delivered. We had an incredible sighting of a beautiful male lion!

Each game drive was unique, and we loved that we didn’t know what we would see next. Towards the end of the next morning’s game drive, we were surprised with a breakfast stop in the bush. The setting was perfect overlooking the mountains accompanied by some bubbles and pancakes. This was magical!

The evening game drive was just as amazing, as we got to witness a male elephant in musth and some baby giraffe with mum during the most incredible golden hour in the bush.

After our last sunset safari, we headed back to the lodge for our Boma dinner. We chatted about our favourite sightings of the trip and our guide sat down and ate with us for our last evening.

A big shout out to all the staff at Marataba Mountain lodge especially Labious the chef who prepared and cooked the most incredible food we have ever eaten on our travels.

On our last sunrise safari and after trying to track buffalo for the past three days, Bongz delivered, and we saw a herd of buffalo taking our Big Five count to 4 out of 5.

South Africa & Marataba will always hold a special place in our hearts, and now we have the safari bug we can’t wait to return to South Africa soon. Thank you Marataba, we love you.

See more on their Marataba experience here. You can catch up with more of James & Ellie’s Adventures on their YouTube channel.