Singita Ebony Lodge

Singita Ebony Lodge offers 12 luxurious suites, including one-bedroom suites perfect for couples, Lewis Suites that are ideal for families with older children, and spacious Family Suites with two en-suite bedrooms. When both Family Suites are booked together, they form the exclusive Ebony Villa with a private pool, lounge, dining area, personal chef, and private safari vehicle.

Each suite features a private deck with a heated plunge pool, indoor and outdoor showers, a double-sided fireplace, air-conditioning, a well-stocked minibar, and beautifully layered interiors that blend canvas, glass, and timber. The design draws inspiration from traditional safari style with a modern, luxurious interpretation.

Guests enjoy twice-daily guided game drives, walking safaris, birding, stargazing, archery, and access to a fitness centre and spa. For families, the lodge offers a dedicated children’s programme with interactive nature activities and bush-themed learning experiences.

Yes. Singita Ebony Lodge welcomes children of all ages. The Family Suites and Lewis Suites are ideal for multi-generational or family travel, and the Mini Rangers’ programme offers fun, educational activities tailored for younger guests.

Dining is a highlight of the experience, with contemporary African cuisine served in a variety of settings, including open decks overlooking the Sand River. Meals are complemented by premium wines from Singita’s renowned cellar, and private dining on your suite’s deck can be arranged.

The lodge is located in the Sabi Sand Game Reserve, one of Africa’s best wildlife areas. Guests often encounter the Big Five—lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo, and rhino—as well as an abundance of plains game, birdlife, and exceptional leopard sightings.

The lodge is accessible via a short flight to the Singita airstrip, followed by a seamless road transfer to the lodge. Premier Africa can arrange private flights, road transfers, and all logistics to ensure smooth travel.

Singita Ebony is the brand’s founding lodge, combining deep heritage with contemporary design. Its riverfront setting, tent-style architecture, exceptional guiding, world-class culinary experience, and commitment to conservation make it one of Africa’s most iconic safari properties.

Your stay contributes to long-term conservation work focused on wildlife protection, habitat restoration, and community development. Guests can engage with these initiatives through educational experiences at the on-site Conservation Room.

Nestled among the jackalberry trees along the banks of the Sand River which meanders through the Sabi Sand Nature Reserve in South Africa, Singita Ebony Lodge is lauded as the “birthplace of an enduring vision”, an integral part of a growing legacy.

Ebony Lodge first opened its doors in 1993 and serves as Singita’s founding lodge with its own signature architectural style originally inspired by the chunky, rounded Adobe architecture of West and North Africa.

Within the lodge’s dramatic open-plan interiors, lightweight canvas, timber and thatch elements are tastefully combined and enhanced by bold lines and floor to ceiling glass walls to make it a true modern reinterpretation of the classic safari lodge. The lodge decor also showcases vintage pieces from the founding Bailes’ family collection.

It is also worth noting that Ebony Lodge has been recognized as the No. 4 best safari lodge in Africa according to the Travel + Leisure 2020 World’s Best Awards.

It is worth noting that at Singita Ebony Lodge, the official check-in time is 13:00, while check-out is usually at 11:00.

In addition, all accommodation packages at Ebony Lodge are mostly fully inclusive for the duration of your stay, with the full cost of all meals and beverages (including premium wines, spirits, and liqueurs) already incorporated into the quoted accommodation rate.

The only exception to this would be for purchases of French Champagne, gratuities, or personal expenses, which guests are personally liable for, over and above their accommodation rate.

A helpful note for the convenience of multicultural visitors in particular is that all staff at Ebony Lodge speak not only English, but Afrikaans, Zulu and Xhosa as well.

For the past three decades, Singita’s unrelenting commitment to safeguarding Africa’s precious wildlife populations, fragile ecosystems, as well as vulnerable local communities has led to the fostering of several strategic conservation partnerships with supportive nonprofit Trusts and Funds in each of the regions they operate within.

One such supporter of the Singita Conservation Foundation is the Singita Lowveld Trust (SLT), its nonprofit conservation and community development partner in South Africa.

SLT’s biodiversity projects assist immensely in the protection of high risk species like rhinos, leopards, lions, wild dogs, vultures, along with many other endangered species in the region. The organization also plays a vital role in maintaining the healthy ecosystems that support these countless species of wildlife.

Ebony Lodge guests are even able to observe such initiatives first hand through the lodge’s immersive ‘Anti-poaching Canine Unit Experience’, which provides real world insight into Singita’s deep commitment to conservation and sustainability. In order to help fund this much needed wildlife protection program, a minimum donation amount of ZAR 3,800 will normally be required for each person participating, with a capacity limit of 2-6 guests per demonstration.

The SLT also places a significant importance on creating lasting socio-economic development by encouraging community upliftment through extensive conservation and tourism employment.

At Ebony Lodge, the policy for younger guests stipulates that children aged between 2-16 years may be accommodated for 50% of the adult rate when sharing with one adult or another child.
Since wilderness safaris are a wonderful way to spend a family vacation, Ebony has gone the extra mile to create some superb family friendly accommodations to make everyone feel welcome.

• The aptly named ‘Family Suites’ feature a master bedroom plus additional twin bedroom, both with en-suite bathrooms.
• The roomy ‘Lewis Suites’ are especially ideal for families with teens, comprising two separate suites located next to one other.

Guests should also bear in mind that the lodge vehicle use policy will require families of up to 3 people (with at least one child under the age of 10) to book and pay for a private safari vehicle ahead of time, subject to availability.

Aside from the extremely popular morning and evening wildlife game drives, informative guided safari walks, and rejuvenating spa services, there are also several unique activity options available to enhance your safari adventure.

Such activities include:

• Animal tracking experiences
• Biking
• Local village visits

Ebony Lodge favors a more communal atmosphere, adopting a bohemian aesthetic with decorative touches that present tribal masks, colonial furniture and vibrant ethnic weaves.

Guests also frequently praise the scintillating bush breakfast beneath the Marula trees in the mornings, as well as the star-lit suppers catered near a roaring boma fire in the evenings.

It has been noted that the “all-inclusive” elements such as wine, laundry and fully stocked in-room treats go a long way towards significantly enhancing the overall luxury experience.