Seasonal stays from two nights, with dinner, breakfast and the Lowveld arranged around you. Available until 16 December 2026.
See the offers
African hospitality, Asian luxury
Five private-pool villas overlooking the Sabie Valley, just twenty minutes from Kruger National Park. Thai and Balinese in spirit, unmistakably Lowveld in setting.
The name
Zarafa
Zarafa comes from the Arabic زَرَافَة, the word for giraffe and the root of the English word itself. A similar Arabic word has also been translated as lovely one, a second meaning that suited the place rather well.
The lodge is built into its surroundings rather than imposed on them: five private villas set among landscaped gardens and bush on the edge of the Sabie Valley outside Hazyview, with hills unfolding in every direction.
Thai and Balinese influences appear throughout in teak, stone, water and shade, while the warmth and ease of the service remain unmistakably South African.
The Zarafa is adults only, which helps preserve the quiet, unhurried atmosphere of the lodge.
The villas
Your own rim-flow pool, an extra-length king canopy bed, and an outdoor living space looking out over the bush and the valley beyond.
Dining
Five courses that change every day, each evening inspired by a different country, served above the valley, in your villa, or privately in the garden.
Kruger & the Panorama Route
Game drives, canyon viewpoints, waterfalls and wildlife encounters, all arranged for you, all within an easy day from the lodge.
Private dining
A table in the garden, just for two
Dinner set apart in a private corner of the garden, under fairy lights, lanterns and candles. The same five courses, served slowly and entirely in your own time, with no last order and no table to turn.
Booked for anniversaries, birthdays and proposals, and just as often for no occasion at all.
Private dining
Guest reviews
9.7 out of 10
Rated by 294 verified guests on Booking.com, and ranked first of 47 hotels in Hazyview.
The proposition
Luxury without the safari-lodge premium
The Zarafa was created for guests who care about the quality of where they stay as much as where they go on safari.
With only five villas, service stays genuinely personal. Every villa has its own private pool and generous indoor and outdoor living space, and breakfast and a five-course dinner are included each day.
What you are not paying for is a room inside a private game reserve. Kruger is twenty minutes away and private safaris can be arranged whenever you want one. You get exceptional accommodation, food and service, explore Kruger and the Panorama Route at your own pace, and spend considerably less than you might at a comparable luxury safari lodge.
At a glance
The short version
The Zarafa is a five-star, adults-only nature lodge in Hazyview, Mpumalanga, 17 km from the Phabeni Gate of the Kruger National Park. There are five villas, four one-bedroom and one two-bedroom, each with its own private rim-flow pool above the Sabie Valley.
Dinner and breakfast are included in every stay. Dinner is five courses, changing daily, with each evening inspired by a different country. We arrange private and shared Kruger safaris, Panorama Route and Blyde River Canyon tours, airport transfers from KMIA, Skukuza and Hoedspruit, spa treatments in your own villa, and private dining in the garden.
Check-in is from 14:00 and check-out is at 11:00. The lodge is adults only, 18 and over.
Special offers
Reasons to stay a little longer
The Zarafa Signature Stay
Three nights with a private Kruger safari, a day on the Panorama Route, a massage for two and a private dinner. R 27 200 for two.
Romantic Escape
Two nights with a massage for two and dinner by lantern light in the garden. R 14 400 for two.
Kruger Escape
Two nights with a private morning or afternoon safari, arranged around you. Phabeni Gate is 17 km away. R 14 100 for two.
Current rates and inclusions are confirmed at the time of booking. Talk to reservations.