Nothing beats Mbuluzi. No big 5 so you can cycle/run/walk to your hearts content which keep the visits from getting boring. (just watch for crocs, hippos, snakes etc). Have to get my fix at least every year so as to properly unwind. Very active when it comes to community upliftment and development and interaction. Found out their inaugural trail run was being held whilst we were there and wow what an awesome event. Local tribesmen playing traditional music, fresh cooked mielie (corn) bread, local coffee and even an honesty bar! Be sure to attend next year if they do it again. Best staff, best reserve, love love love it.

We in North America and Europe are used to digital mapping and house numbering address schemes. (Much of the Spanish-speaking world still use house names, Edificio Raul, and Japan uses a hierarchy address scheme of prefecture, municipality, wards, district, and town or village.) In Swaziland, addresses are step-by instructions: Depart Maputo on the EN2 past Matola and Boane. Approximately 5km after Boane turn left onto the EN5, passing the quarry on your right. Continue straight with this road to enter Swaziland at the Namaacha/Lomahasha border post. Continue on the road, cross the bridge over the Mbuluzi River and turn left on the tar road after the bridge. Mbuluzi Game reserve is 600m on the left. Following the GPS map, we find the village of Ngomane, and then the entrance to Mbuluzi. We're received warmly, as long-separated family. Check-in was methodical, giving me time to explore the nicely-designed Randoval-style office and the exhibit of wildlife bones just outside. Mbuluzi Game Reserve has eight different lodges and a campsite, separated by walking paths through the woods. We got the Timbuti tented lodge, a Botswanan military tent with a wooden thatched roof. The interior has a cement floor and an attached, very comfortable bathroom with a full tub (that looks out onto the forest). It's secluded and quite magical. The tent cabin's awnings and wooden porches protect from the rain and provide a satisfying outdoor seating space. There's also an outdoor shower, surrounded on three sides by a wooden privacy screen. There's a central common Randoval-inspired shared kitchen and living room; it's huge! The common kitchen is large, with ample counter-spcae and a standard (small) European-sized gas stove. Pots and pans and crockery and cutlery galore; one wants for nothing in that department. My favorite piece of kitchen equipment was the bush baby cast iron pot, with three stubby legs to allow one to place it directly in a campfire. (I really wanted to take one back, but even the smallest version took up way too much luggage space. Someday.) Because a bit of pre-trip research had uncovered a dearth of restaurants in the area we'd gone hog-wild in our shopping and now had plenty of options for meals. We cooked everything with a South African twist, either with the ingredients, spices, or both. A typical breakfast of ours was scrambled eggs and crisped biltong and droëwors. The common area also had a round swimming pool overlooking the river. Several times a day we'd be out there when the troops of monkeys would commute through the trees, hooting and hollering. Some would drop to the ground and explore our area, although none came particularly close to us. (Years of camping in US forests, with their resident bears, taught us to secure food; the monkeys weren't rewarded for their efforts.) The common area also has a wood-fired open grill, built into a fire ring (which also serves as bench seating around the fire). The staff provided wood and a stern warning not to harvest our own, lest we inadvertently burn the wood of the tambuti tree -- umthombothi (Spirostachys africana) -- the smoke is noxious and the cooked meat, mildly poisonous. We loved the campfire grill so much we used for cooking lunches and dinners! The marinated skewers we'd bought on the way came in very handy indeed. The campfire is also the perfect place to relax at day's end, the flickering light magically illuminating the trees, the crackling sound of the burning mixing with the burble of the river. The animal preserves are just across the road, and several times we took multi-hour walks along the marked trails, sharing space with giraffe, zebra, kudu, nyala, impala, bushbuck, grey duiker, and warthogs. Two kinds of simians, the Chacma baboon and Vervet monkey, always made their way to our tent; we never saw them in the wild. We highly recommend the Mbuluzi Game Reserve; the staff, the accommodations, and the grounds made for a wonderful, self-sufficient week.

What a beautiful place! ♥️ we only stayed 1 night, but i will definitly come back and stay longer 🥰

We absolutely love it here. Lots of new trails and the Camp site has recently been upgraded. Great job. It is wonderful to come back and see all the improvements.

Beautiful game reserve where you can walk around and mountainbike safely on your own. Tons of wildlife and beautiful birds

A little piece of heaven

Absolutely fantastic! Stayed at the Mphangele Lodge and had a braai out under the stars! We took an evening drive and saw baboon, kudu, warthog, zebra, springbok, and more! Haven't stayed in many places where we're warned not to get near the river in the backyard ...due to crocodiles! Made us want to cancel the rest of our trip and just stay here!

Lovely staff, outstanding views and a wide array of wildlife. One of the best experiences of my life was staying here! The North end of the reserve is an outstanding wilderness full of adventure, a morning or evening visit is much recommended.

Highly recommend staying at their Mphangele lodge! We stayed there in June 2017. We saw lots of giraffe right at the end of our driveway on both days. Very friendly and helpful staff as well!

Mbuluzi Game Reserve is located in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland). It is a private game reserve known for its conservation efforts and eco-tourism initiatives. The reserve encompasses diverse landscapes, including savannahs, riverine areas, and woodlands, providing habitats for various wildlife species. Mbuluzi Game Reserve offers safari experiences, allowing visitors to observe animals such as impalas, zebras, giraffes, and numerous bird species. The reserve emphasizes responsible and sustainable tourism practices.

Amazing game reserve. Fantastic campsite in the bush. We were the only campers. Very safe camping. Hot water showers with a donkey boiler. Best loo with a view. Lovely walk to the rapids in the river. Sunset lookout on top of the Lubombo mountain. Stunning view. Wi fi at reception. Friendly staff. Animals in the bush.

Very beautiful lodge. Well equipped kitchen for self catering. Allot of game around. Very friendly staff.

We where there from 10 till 13 of August. The singwe lodge we booked. In whas truly amazing. An amazing spot on the river Bank. A little paradise. The lodge whas way bigger then expected and wildlife such as giraffe, nyala, 's and warthogs wonderd around our lodge. At night sitting by the fireplace and only hear animal noises whas a amazing experience. The place whas clean and the staff very helpful. We would recommend the mbuluzi any time. Wonderful!!

Excellent fun biking trails today. Next time we’ll come for a longer stay 😊

Absolutely beautiful, calm and relaxing. Came across a few giraffes and water buck whilst cycling and experienced a stare down (at a safe distance of course) with a crocodile. A cool experience only unique to Africa.

I stayed at the Liphiva Lodge at Mbuluzi and it is absolutely stunning! Serene and tranquil! The rooms are clean and comfortable to stay in. Loved it!

great experience,love the nature,let's go out there and explore!

Nice spot with walking and bike trails. Lots of opportunity to see wildlife.

Good walking trails with great views.

Such a lovely rental experience. The staff was very helpful and gave nice directions out to our rental home (even when we got lost, he helped us navigate in over the phone). The rental rooms were lovely and well equipped, with kitchens with everything you could want or need. Our rental had a great place for a fire outside, and on a chilly May evening was simply perfect.

Best two weeks of my life

Awesome awesome place! Always wildlife to see and the bird life is amazing! Beautiful.

What's not to love? Giraffe and zebra everywhere. Bird lovers paradise. The best accommodation in Swaziland surrounded by unspoilt Lowveld wilderness.

Wonderful place with great walking and mountain biking and the staff where very friendly and helpful. Would definitely recommend anyone to stay there. Both camping and lodges.

Nice sceneries

Neat, quiet private lodges and game reserve Update: I had previously given Mbuluzi 5 stars. Stayed at Nkhankanga lodge. This time, I booked a campsite for family fishing. Everything was lovely until the site manager came through, questioning us about a flyer I had made for my FAMILY. He actually said that we "looked like" we were going to "make plenty of noise." Next thing, he showed up at our site with his dogs who ran through our campsite, ate our fishing bait, and were in our camp kitchen before I could stop them. Several of us had to shout at him to get his dogs. There were only two but they seemed to be everywhere. He took them and left. The dogs returned without him. After chasing them away twice, I called our contact to complain. The manager showed up after I complained - - he was livid that I had made a complaint. He was extremely disrespectful, took pictures of us in our pajamas at the campsite, and took pictures of our contact info in the checkin book. We are all dog lovers. But no dogs are allowed in the game park...And why did he keep cropping up at our site uninvited anyway? Toilet paper was not refilled all weekend, but the campsite is nice. It's quite a hike to the river, not "overlooking" it as stated on the website. Update: we had a lovely stay at Singwe Lodge. EXCEPT, we were not told there was no electricity until we got there. So we arrived wth meat and very little ice. They said they were coming for three hours with ice. Some of our meat expired in the extreme heat. When begging for ice or a generator, that same crazy manager suggested told us we should just leave—in the dark, after we had already paid, and driven hours for a holiday. The manager is why I do not recommend this place. If he is ever involved in your stay, he will ruin your day. We had a lovely weekend despite, but something must be done about this despotic manager. The other staff is lovely.

Love the place this is where i ran to after the bad experience i got from Lugogo sun....Mbuluzi i salute you staff friendly nd helpful we went to Mozambique nd came back midnite out of patrol all garages closed nd we made fone call in the morning nd they sent the bakkie with patrol so quick thank you

It’s a magical place. Seeing a giraffe from a car is great but seeing it appear between the trees while you are walking in perfect silence is something that takes you breath away.

Exceeded all expectations! Well run nature reserve with amazing scenery. Very quiet

Great cycling routes in Mbuluzi and camping

Leadwood-small but secluded.... Ideal for 2 persons-shower looking outward✔️

This is an absolutely amazing place and we are only sorry that we only had 2 nights here - we would have loved to stay longer. We stayed in Vovovo - wonderfully spacious accommodation with separate buildings for each couple/person, and in the prettiest of surroundings. The staff at Mbuluzi are incredible - kind (staying late to welcome us when our arrival was delayed), responsive and friendly, as well as really knowledgeable. We loved the game drives - both self-drive and with a guide - and when we reached the viewpoint we were moved to tears by the beauty of the view. We cannot speak highly enough about Mbuluzi and would recommend it to anybody - thank you for a wonderful stay.

Special place

Great place to stop if you’re looking to see Giraffe! Drove through the gate and saw five right away! The staff at the gate was very friendly and gave us a detailed overview of the map to try and improve our odds of seeing the animals.

Best camping experience

😉

We spent the day in this reserve, magnificent place of vegetation and animals, there are two entrances north and south. In the south entrance there are cottages very well arranged a real plus to fully enjoy the charms of the place. In the north entrance a large and savage river. There is a huge family of monkeys that I didn't manage to take a picture of too fast for me. As much for the gazelles as for the wildebeest and the monkeys, the summer is the time of births.

What a beautiful place for a hike

Very safe and relaxing

Nyala Lodge, beautiful, love this place.

Extremely Rustic. If you want peace and tranquility this is one of the places to be. There's not great network signal but it is the best to just be in the forest and connect with nature. There's baboons and Giraffes, the birdlife is incredible and the river that runs through the reserve is amazing. You can either walk through the reserve or climb on a bicycle or you can drive around in a car.