Game Drives at the Kuzuko Lodge in South Africa

When you hear the word Africa – you automatically think of all the wild animals – exotic and beautiful, you think of the tree of life. I can’t help but think of the movie – The Lion King! When we decided to visit South Africa, I watched The Lion King at least 5 times with Myrra to prepare her for her big trip. We were so excited for our trip and to go to all the Game Drives at the Kuzuko Lodge in South Africa.

Soon we realized that up until this point, we had really only taught her farm animals. She had no idea about the bigger wild animals. So, I ordered a book on African animals alphabets off Amazon. We then planned a trip to the African Lion Safari near London, ON. We were thrilled to see her excitement to see all the animals and this is when we knew that she was going to love her trip to South Africa.

Well, She did! So much so that she still talks about it till today. We see her getting ready and when asked where she is going, her answer is always AFRICA! Check out this cute video that we took a few days before leaving for our big trip.

One thing we both wanted to do was stay in one of those resorts right in the jungle and ones that did game drives. We chose to stay at the Addo Elephant National Park because it was close to the Garden Route and because it was malaria free – a big requirement for us as Amarra was only 6 months at the time. I read so many positive reviews about the luxurious Kuzuko Lodge that this resort definitely topped our list. It looked so luxurious and a place where we all would enjoy a lot. I reached out to the lodge and had to switch around our dates, as they were already full for all other dates we were looking for.

Let me start off with how we booked our package to help you guys out if you choose to stay here. Their local currency is Rand (R) so the prices are in R! They had 2 options:

1. An all-inclusive package:

Price R 7140 for a double occupancy room per night.
The price includes – accommodation, meals (breakfast, light finger lunch, dinners, tea and coffee) and 2 game drives per day.

2. Bed and breakfast

Price R 3340 for a double occupancy room per night – they had a sale going on. This price includes: accommodation, breakfast and dinner. The game drives were an additional R 300/person/drive. Kids under a certain age stay for free and they offer baby-sitting services during game drives for R 100/hour.

What we did:

We chose the bed and breakfast and added 2 game drives per person and pre-booked a morning and afternoon game drive. Our plan was to add more at the time if we felt the need. Our goal was to just relax and enjoy the resort with the girls! We were extremely eager for the game drives at the Kuzuko Lodge in South Africa but, the 2 game drives were enough for us and we got to see everything the park had to offer.
We also paid an additional R 300 for lunch for all of us. When the numbers added, we were still saving a lot by choosing the bed and breakfast option.
Just a heads up though! We visited during the shoulder seasons and the prices are much higher if you go during peak season. Plus, they had a sale for bed and breakfast so make sure you reach out to the hotel directly before booking!

Chalets

The service at the Kuzuko Lodge was splendid; the people warm and always ready to help and the staff kind beyond words. The views were beautiful and for beginners like us, the game drive at the Kuzuko Lodge in South Africa was perfect. Our chalet was kid friendly and it had a fenced balcony. The balcony faced a waterhole where we saw animals stop by for a drink. There was housekeeping twice a day that stocked up on all the goodies in the room. The evening staff came for nighttime service where they opened up the double bed and prepared the room for bedtime.

The chalet had a king bed, double bed, a separate area for shower and washrooms along with a bathtub. There was a huge window where you could sit in the bathtub and enjoy the beautiful views of the jungle. The chalets were next to each other but angled in a way where you couldn’t see the chalet next to you. 

Game Drives:

The morning game drive departs at 5am. It can be cold! We live in Canada and yet were freezing on this game drive. Make sure you carry a light jacket with you – something we did not do. The afternoon game drives depart at 4pm.
A special shout out to Kai who took us on our game drives and was so amazing at what he did. On our first game drive, within 15 minutes we spotted a lion and a herd of elephants! He made our first experience on a Game Drive at the Kuzuko Lodge in South Africa so exciting.
The cool thing about these game drives is, you literally stop in the jungle and they set up for tea/coffee along with some cookies. Can you imagine stopping in the middle of the jungle to enjoy a hot cup of coffee?
We took Myrra who was just over 2 years for the afternoon game drive. We also took an Ipad incase she got bored or we needed her to be quite and it worked really well! She was so excited to see the lions and elephants!

Baby-sitting:

We had Lezanne looking after our girls. The day we checked in, Amarra stayed with her while we went on our safari. She is more than excellent with kids! The morning drive was too early for Myrra to come along and Lezanne watched both the girls. They had such a fun time with her and we were not missed at all. I absolutely loved the baby-sitting service because mommy and daddy got some time off during our trip to just enjoy the game drives without having to worry about the girls.

Food:

The meals are PHENOMENAL. Every meal was a spread of something different. Lunches were so delicious with a spread of a variety of finger foods. Day 1 dinner was A la Carte while Day 2 was a traditional African buffet. The restaurant always called ahead of dinner to ask what Myrra would eat from their kids menu and had it prepared before we got there so she was not sitting too long without food.

Spa

The spa was under construction but they had part of it up and working. Their hydration facial was to die-for! It was so relaxing and amazing. They had a huge menu with different services priced fairly well.

More on the resort:

So the way you go up to the main resort is very interesting! You park your car at the main reception where you check in and are greeted by a cocktail. You then take along everything you will need during your stay and hope on a jeep. The jeep will take you from the main reception desk up to the resort. When you enter the resort, you are greeted with warm hand towels followed by a relaxing hand massage. It was all so new and so much fun for the girls and us!

A trip for you to read:

If you are looking for an East African Safari experience then you will be disappointed. The lodge is located on the north end of the Addo Elephant National Park. The jungle area is fenced off from the main park due to some issues with the main park organization. But the cool thing we got to see was a fenced rehabilitation area for Cheetahs. They also have a breeding program for Wild buffalos and the only place where you can find disease free wild buffalos. We saw a wide array of deer’s, lions, elephants, Kudu, Eland, Nyala, Cheetahs in their rehab area and wild buffalos.

If you are looking for giraffes, zebras and other animals, you may not see them here! To make up for that, we had done a self-drive through the Kragga Kamma Game Park before we made our way to the Kuzuko Lodge. Click Here to read more about our self drive safari through the Kragga Kamma Game Park.

Our verdict:

All in all, Kuzuko Lodge screamed of luxury. The staff throughout this resort were happily there to please. The game drives were mesmerizing. The resort was located in the heart of the jungle on a hill with a direct view of the waterhole; you could sit on the balcony and view all the elephants walking down the big slopes making their way to the waterhole. It truly was a great pick for us. In the midst of a very adventurous and busy holiday, we really got these two days to just sit, put our legs up and relax. If you are looking for a similar experience, Kuzuko Lodge is definitely your place to go.

If you have any questions on any aspect of this Lodge, please do not hesitate to reach us by commenting at the bottom of filling the contact form! Also, follow us on our social media platforms to see all the wonderful pictures from our many trips with the girls.