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.

Karoo Retreats

These are standalone cottages a short distance from the main homestead. Ideal for couples, each spacious suite contains a four-poster bed, fireplace, air-conditioning, and luxury en-suite bathroom with a large separate bath and shower and two washbasins. Private covered patios with outdoor seating looking out over a waterhole, providing the ideal location for morning coffee or a nightcap under the stars. These suites have outdoor showers fashioned out of natural Karoo stone, offering an authentic al fresco experience with views over the mountain landscape.

Homestead Suites

Located within each reach of the communal dining room and living areas, these suites are spacious and light, with air-conditioning and an en-suite bathroom with a large freestanding bath and shower. Each suite has its own semi-private outdoor seating area, located on the wide wraparound verandah that is synonymous with traditional Karoo farmhouses. Two of the suites (one of each type) are wheelchair-accessible – both have grab bars by the loo and one also has a shower seat.

Sibela Family Suite

The Sibella Family Suite is a unit comprising two interleading rooms, located a 5-minute walk away from the main lodge building. The suites share a private deck overlooking an indigenous garden and a waterhole where birds and wildlife abound. The first suite contains a King-sized bed and the second suite contains twin beds. Both suites have their own ensuite bathroom with a shower. The unit provides ideal accommodation for families with young children or for two couples travelling together.

The Main Lodge

Karoo Lodge offers a warm and inviting living room with a fireplace as well as a cozy bar area. There is a small TV area off the bar. A large dining room with a fireplace is used for indoor crystal dinners. When the weather is clement, candlelit dinners are set up on the verandah, on the lawn under the stars, or in the boma, a traditional reed enclosure warmed by a roaring fire.

Karoo Lodge is fenced with a low-angled electrified fence designed to keep large wildlife out. The pool is fenced off from the spacious main lawn and has a covered gazebo area for warm summer evenings. There is also a children’s outdoor play area – the Cheetah Cubs’ Den – where the kids program activities take place.

Guests can also choose to strike out on the Sibella Trail which meanders the grounds of Karoo Lodge, ending at a bench overlooking the koppie which Sibella herself used as a vantage point over the valley.

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.

Milky Way Star Bed

Samara's raised tented platform on the Milk River provides a breath-taking romantic wilderness experience. Arrive at sunset for a picnic dinner and drinks. Watch as the local wildlife descend to the water to quench their thirst. Take in the spectacular views over the mountainous landscape, free of light and noise pollution. As the night sky develops, marvel at the Milky Way, pointing out different constellations with the aid of star books, before drifting off to sleep wrapped in a thick mohair blanket. The star bed platform comprises a bespoke handmade four-poster king-sized bed with draped mosquito net. A small seating/dining area looks out over the river.

About Samara Private Game Reserve

Spanning 27,000 hectares of breathtaking wilderness, 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.