Mashatu Lodge

The camp’s 14 luxury suites are positioned at the waterfront, overlooking the bushveld where scores of various bird species can be seen, including the African fish eagle, carmine bee-eater and the kori bustard – the heaviest flying bird in the world.

Each of the 14 luxury suites at Mashuta Lodge is large and spacious. The bedrooms consist of a double bed and extra-large single bed, ideal for families. The beds are adorned with soft, breathable sheets and plush pillows and match the room’s light and natural colour scheme.

Guests can sit down and relax in the lounge area, which faces a set of glass double doors. Enjoy the view from the comfort of a cushioned armchair, or venture out onto your private verandah and immerse yourself in nature and the stunning bushveld scenery. The suites are air-conditioned so that you can keep the climate comfortable, and include en-suite facilities. The large bathrooms consist of a bath, shower and separate WC.

Guests will be treated to three delicious meals each day. Light breakfast, brunch and afternoon tea are served on the shaded terrace overlooking the waterhole, and guests can enjoy dinner around the reed-enclosed boma. The food at Mashatu Lodge is an array of flavoursome traditional African cuisine.

Meals are usually homely and consist of fresh fruits, vegetables, tender meat, and a selection of homemade bread and pies. Finish dinner off with an indulgent dessert, and a refreshing beverage from the camp’s bar, while looking out at the diverse landscape of the Mashatu Game Reserve.

Explore the private Mashatu Game Reserve in a 4×4 safari vehicle. The safari vehicles are fully open-topped, meaning that nothing will obstruct your view of incredible creatures such as the elephants, giraffe, ostriches and elands which roam the land of the giants. Game drives are available twice a day and allow guests to get up close to amazing wildlife and learn interesting facts about the creatures and reserve from the lodge’s knowledgeable guides.

Explore the bush on foot on a walking safari, and experience a more immersive safari. Your professional guide will be able to teach you how to recognise tracks and follow clues in the bush to incredible game viewing opportunities. Additionally, you will be able to search for the smaller creatures that hide within the bush, often missed during a rapid nature of a game drive. Wander around Mashatu at your own pace, without the noise of an engine to startle the game. You can also tailor your experience and find a specific species that interest you.

Venture out into the bush, as the classic explorers did, on the back of a horse. Take one of the camp’s well-trained horses and gallop alongside herds of antelope and zebra. Race across the dry plains and get a sense of the vast and open landscape. In order to maintain guests’ safety, horse riding is only available for experienced riders. Guests can also take extended horse safaris and multi-day adventures to travel further and explore more of the diverse Botswana landscape.

Embark on a cycling safari on one of the camp’s mountain bikes, and explore the game trails and elephants paths that meander through the varied landscape of the Mashatu Game Reserve. Explore the bush with the wind in your hair, and travel across the dusty plains on your own safari and at your own pace. View beautiful flora and fauna without causing any harm to the environment.

Guests can also book a ‘camp wild’ cycling experience, which consists of a 3-day cycling safari. The ‘camp wild’ experience is only available during Botswana’s winter months. Guests can enjoy a guided mountain biking adventure by day, before sleeping under the stars at night.

Visit one of Mashatu’s three photographic hides and capture incredible and candid wildlife photographs as the animals go through their daily routines. Capture the game behaving naturally in their own habitat and record exciting moments experienced on the Mashatu Game Reserve. Mashatu Lodge is home to a resident wildlife photographer who will be able to give guidance and help you take the best photographs possible.

The hides have also been angled to optimise lighting conditions and give the best backdrops for your images. Venture down to the ‘elephant hide’ and snap some shots of the grey giants bathing and squirting water.

In order to raise funds for ecological preservation, conservation of wildlife and to support local communities and help them retain their culture, Mashatu charges each guest a daily levy of $10 per night.

‘Most areas in Africa, which are earmarked for the conservation of wildlife and natural environment, are realising the increasing necessity for ecological preservation and support of the communities who live on the periphery of these areas, as well as the retention of their culture. In addition to the major contribution which the custodians of these sanctuaries make, they garner additional support from guests who enjoy these areas. This is done by way of charging the guests a daily levy, which is earmarked for conservation, community and culture.’

Mashatu supports Children in the Wilderness, a non-profit organisation that works to educate children about the environment and the importance of conservation. The Children in the Wilderness programme hosts Eco-Clubs and camps to educate children from rural communities in Africa about their local wildlife areas and how they can help protect them in the future.

Mashatu closes its Tented Camp for 12 days each year in order to facilitate two six-day camps for children between the ages of 10 and 14. The Camp Director gathers mentors and volunteers to run educational activities and inspire children to conserve their local wildlife and heritage. The camp also offers interactive workshops on conservation, environmental management, the geography and geology of the area, culture, HIV/AIDS, nutrition and why wildlife is important.

‘Our Children in the Wilderness programme at Mashatu is an environmental and life skills educational programme for children, focusing on the next generation of decision-makers; inspiring them to care for their natural heritage and to become the custodians of these areas in future.’

Pack for a Purpose is an initiative that encourages travellers to benefit local communities by using spare suitcase space to bring much-needed supplies for their Conservation Education Program and Women’s Craft Groups. Supplies can be dropped off at your accommodation and will be used to aid a local project, such as craft groups, where local woman are taught skills that allow them to make traditional and non-traditional items such as traditional basketwork, hand-sewn and embroidered products and hand-beaded glass and food nets.

These items can then be sold to provide incomes, start small businesses and even support the construction of homes.

The animals that live within the Mashatu Game Reserve are not constrained by fences or barriers and are free to come and go as they please. This means that the wildlife is not forced to survive within a certain environment and reduces stress. The game within the reserve chooses to live there. Mashatu is also home to the largest herd of elephant on privately owned land in Africa and provides a refuge for these giant creatures to protect them from poachers.

Mashatu camps are small and cater for an exclusive number of guests. This decision limits the number of tourists and therefore the environmental impact that tourism has on the reserve. Mashatu offer alternatives to 4×4 safaris in order to reduce the number of vehicles on the reserve, such as horse safaris, bike safaris and guided walks. This means that tourist impose less on the landscape and pollution is kept to a minimum.