Karoo Lodge at Samara

This lovingly renovated farmhouse lies on the first property bought by the Tompkins family when they started Samara in 1997. Combining modern day comforts with a rustic and welcoming feel, Karoo Lodge is the perfect place to relax and allow the tranquillity of the Karoo to envelop you – on the wide verandah in summer or by the cosy fire in winter. With 9 double rooms of varying sizes, Karoo Lodge caters for individual travellers, couples and families.

About Samara Karoo Reserve

Spanning 27,000 hectares of breathtaking wilderness, Samara Karoo Reserve, formerly known as Samara Private Game Reserve offers a Big 5 safari with a difference – a unique conservation passion project in a singularly beautiful setting.

Samara’s story is one of restoration. Since 1997, 11 former livestock farms in South Africa’s Great Karoo region have been painstakingly rehabilitated. Thousands of indigenous animals have been reintroduced, including the first cheetah, elephant and lion to return in over a century. The dream? To restore to its former glory a mesmerizing landscape in the country’s magical heartland.

Key to Samara’s vision is the concept of co-creation, where every guest plays a role in rewilding the landscape and preserving it for posterity.

And what a landscape: an unexpected semi-arid paradise of astonishing diversity, once home to the epic springbok migrations, where spine-tingling views abound and vistas feed the soul. Vast herds thrive on the extensive plains; predators once again stalk the savannahs. Dramatic purple mountains unfold above grasslands rivalling the Maasai Mara for splendor.

A total of 26 guests are invited to join this conservation journey, a guest to land ratio almost unparalleled in Africa. Accommodation is in two intimate lodges: Karoo Lodge, an authentic and lovingly-restored farmstead and the Manor, a striking yet understated villa.

Located in the malaria-free Eastern Cape, a 2.5-hour drive from Port Elizabeth or 1.5-hour charter flight from Cape Town, Samara is easily accessible yet retains a true wilderness feeling. A safari for the soul.