Day 109 - Safari Travel : Arriving At Hamiltons Tented Camp

 

Our day started with an early morning breakfast on board the ship in Durban. We (our full group is only 3 couples) then grabbed our suitcases and met a minibus to take us to the airport. I was surprised by how small the Durban Airport was, although it was very clean, well laid out, and efficient. Our flight was on an Airlink Embraer 135 aircraft flying into Nelspruit, which is 40-50 miles southwest outside of Kruger National Park. It was a small airplane for Allison, but she did great on the flight and was very smooth. We also had a really nice view of the farmland (citrus and avocados) on approach.

Another bus picked us up at the airport, and we started a 3+ hour drive into the park to our destination, Hamilton's Tented Lodge. Our voyage got off to a great start, and we drove our driver crazy (although he is probably used to it) by asking him to stop so that we could all take photos of baboons, crocodiles, and elephants. We finally arrived at the lodge mid-afternoon and had about 60 minutes to unpack, change, and recover before partaking in afternoon tea and departing for a quick late pm/evening safari trip. 

Allison and I were in Tent #5 (of 6), which was about 3-4 minutes on an elevated wooden walkway away from the main lodge. Although it is (technically) a tent, as there is indeed canvas over the top of you - it's anything but a tent. There are teak floors, a king-size four-poster bed with mosquito netting (not needed, but a nice touch), an antique tub, a full bathroom, and a separate large wooden shower. Outside, there is a large deck with a plunge pool (freezing) and a spacious outdoor covered lounge. 

You're really slumming it. 

The main lodge has a large covered area with old-style travel chests, sofas, and chairs. There is also a large area for afternoon tea and a number of tables overlooking the nearby river. So you can have breakfast with the water buffalo and dinner with the hippos. Absolutely gorgeous.




And then a mention of the food. We had tea/coffee/snacks at 6am before our first safari ride and then a full-cooked breakfast at 9am. Lunch at 1pm, afternoon tea at 3.30pm, and then a complete three-course dinner around 7.30pm upon our return from the evening safari ride. Despite that busy schedule, we managed to sneak in a massage.



Overall, it was a wonderful place to stay - highly recommended. 

Next up - two full safari days and plenty of animal pics. 















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