From the moment you arrive, you and your clan of eight are designated a team of staff that ensure every finer detail of your trip is tailored to your liking. Resting on the banks of the Limpopo River, within Botswana’s prolific Mashatu Game Reserve, Kolokolo nods to a novel penned almost a century ago, beckoning you in to your own sanctuary in Africa.

There are so many stories about the great Limpopo River, that allow for the perfect depiction of life on its banks, immersed in the untamed beauty of Botswana. The words escorting us on a wild voyage, as we traverse 42,000 hectares of the privately-owned Mashatu Game Reserve. Conversing with the baobabs, Kolokolo Safari Home, the Nyala berry, and of course the Mashatu trees. Befriending the eagle owls, the kingfishers, the kori bustards, the barbets and bee-eaters. With over 350 bird species to spot, you’ll be socialising and chitchatting your way through your safari.

This remarkable “Land of Giants” lives up to all of the tales told about its wild terrain. A vast landscape of open plains, grasslands and riverine forests. Where rocky hills meet marshlands and majestic sandstone ridges. Where the wildlife is as plentiful as the stars in the night’s sky. Its ancient soils stir up curiosity in every intrepid traveller, to go out on a great quest of learning, of discovery, and of reacquaintance. Sometimes we need a home to return to, after those great adventures. Not a 5-star luxury lodge, but a home. One that can gently unpack our new findings and new discoveries of the delicate ecosystem that we’re an intricate part of. And that’s Kolokolo.

An exclusive-use luxury safari home, settled on a private stretch of the Limpopo River, surrounded by expansive lawns and age-old trees. Four ensuite bedrooms rest either side of the living spaces, encased by that signature wrap-around verandah.

All comfortably on one level, the birds will sing from the sills and the branches, the kids can run out directly onto the lawn, stackable doors folded away so that you’re in constant connection with the scent of the bush. The light, landing on every surface in the kitchen, the reading nooks, the lounging spots, the dining areas and the meditative gazing-out seats. This hideaway is yours for the next few days – at least – perhaps even a week. Kolokolo is your sanctuary in Africa, within the Northern Tuli Game Reserve of Botswana. Yours to do as much, or as little as you choose.

Immersive riverside moments

With that said, you’ll be inclined to do as much as you can, striking while that bush iron is hot. From the moment you arrive, you and your clan of eight are designated a team of staff that ensure every finer detail of your trip is tailored to your liking. A chef, crafting menus and dishing up meals that are perfectly attuned with your palates and appetites. You can get involved in the cooking too, depending on what activities are on schedule for the day.

Early morning or evening game drives and guided walks which you can swap around when you fancy. Swimming in the reservoir as you watch the resident fish eagle dive for their catch in the river. Cricket, croquet and any kind of lawn game around the garden. Sundowners around the boma that turn into late night chats beneath the stars. Gathering around the tables, feasting and creating more chapters for your own river storybook.

One that has all the images of the birds chaperoning your drives through the Botswana bushveld. The family of cheetah sleeping in the Shepherd trees, the hippo grunting from the shallows, as the giraffe elegantly lounge alongside the banks, dipping their long necks, enjoying their own sundowners. It doesn’t matter where you’ve planted yourself around the property, with its ample seating and breakaway spots on the beautiful grounds, the river will always be in sight. As will the skies, the dappled light from the trees, and the evolving colours of the landscape. Illustrating your storybook with the inimitable Pitsani palette.

Written by Colleen Ogilvie