Tailor-made safaris. Since 1991
Exclusive use safari lodges explained
At dawn, coffee appears when the first person wakes. Children wander barefoot to breakfast, grandparents linger on the deck and nobody minds that one vehicle stays out longer because lions have begun to hunt. By evening, the fire is surrounded only by familiar faces and dinner waits until the whole family is back. For a few days, the lodge feels less like somewhere you are staying and more like a home in the wilderness.
That sense of freedom is what makes exclusive use so appealing on private group safaris. Villas generally accommodate four to ten guests, while small lodges may sleep sixteen to twenty. Once a group fills most of the beds, taking over the property can compare favourably with booking separate rooms – particularly when private vehicles, dedicated staff, flexible dining and single-room supplements are included.
What exclusive use of a lodge includes
Every bed at the lodge, so no other guests share the public areas
Dedicated game drive vehicles and guides assigned to your group
A private chef, with meal times set by your group rather than the lodge
No single supplements, as you pay for the property and not per bed
Exclusive use is written into the booking. The lodge closes to other guests for your dates, which releases the vehicles, kitchen, and daily schedule to your group rather than a shared timetable.
Separate rooms compared with full exclusive use
Consideration | Rooms booked separately | Whole lodge on exclusive use |
Other guests | Shared lounge, dining and pool | Property closed to everyone else |
Vehicles | Shared seating, often up to eight | Allocated to your group alone |
Solo adults | Single supplement of 25% to 50% | No supplement, beds priced as a whole |
Children | Age minimums usually apply | Often relaxed or waived |
Changing lodges | Easier to adjust mid-trip | Harder once the dates are held |
3 things we love about exclusive use lodges
A full lodge takeover changes more than who shares the property. It gives the group control over the small decisions that shape each day – when to leave, when to eat and when an exceptional sighting is worth staying out for.
The safari follows the group, not a fixed timetable. Morning drives can leave a little later, sundowners need not be rushed and breakfast can wait for the vehicle still following wild dogs.
Families have greater flexibility. Some lodges, including Mhondoro and Tanda Tula, may relax their usual age restrictions for exclusive-use bookings, making it easier for several generations to travel together.
Solo travellers are absorbed into the group rate. When the property is priced as a whole, individual single supplements – often 25% to 50% – no longer apply. For groups that include several adults travelling alone, this can materially change the overall cost.
Finding the right size property
Exclusive-use accommodation ranges from intimate villas to small safari camps that can be reserved in their entirety. The best fit depends on more than the number of beds: bedroom configuration, shared spaces, vehicle capacity and the mix of adults and children all shape how comfortably the group will travel.
Browse our current selection of exclusive-use safari villas.
Villas for smaller groups
A private villa works particularly well for one or two families travelling together. Guests share a lounge, dining area, pool and outdoor spaces while retaining separate bedrooms or suites. Many also include a dedicated guide, vehicle and host team, giving the group privacy without losing the service of a lodge.
Larger houses for extended families
Groups spanning several generations often need more than a high bed count. Interleading rooms, separate wings and enough communal space allow everyone to gather for meals while still having somewhere quiet to retreat. Flexible vehicle arrangements are equally important when children, teenagers and adults want different things from the day.
Small lodges for larger gatherings
For a reunion, celebration or corporate group, taking over a small lodge can offer more space than a single villa while preserving the same sense of exclusivity. The group gains several private rooms or tents, a larger team and more generous shared areas – without other guests shaping meal times, activities or the atmosphere of the stay.
Exact capacities and exclusive-use conditions vary by property and season. Our safari experts can match the group’s size, rooming needs and preferred level of privacy with the most suitable current options.
Wish you were here?
When exclusive use makes financial sense
The value of a takeover comes down to occupancy. Divide the whole-property rate by the number of guests travelling and compare it with the lodge’s normal per-person rate. When the group fills most of the beds, the difference may be surprisingly small; when half the property stands empty, the premium becomes much clearer.
The comparison should also include what the takeover provides beyond accommodation. Private vehicles, dedicated guiding, flexible meals and the removal of single supplements can materially change the total cost. Our safari experts use current rates and the group’s exact rooming requirements to determine whether exclusive use represents genuine value or whether a smaller property would be a better fit.
What to consider before booking a takeover
Exclusive use brings freedom within the lodge, but it can reduce flexibility across the wider itinerary. The property is being held in its entirety for fixed dates, so minimum stays, larger deposits and stricter cancellation terms may apply. Transport also becomes more complex as group numbers increase.
Before committing, confirm:
Whether the rate covers the entire property or requires a minimum number of paying guests
How many vehicles and guides are included
Whether the bedroom configuration suits couples, families and solo travellers
Whether child policies change for an exclusive-use booking
Which park, conservation and gate fees are charged separately
The minimum stay, deposit and cancellation conditions
The luggage allowance for any light-aircraft transfers
Availability matters just as much as price. Whole-property bookings are most difficult to secure during major wildlife seasons and school-holiday periods, particularly from May to October in much of southern Africa and during the busiest migration months in Kenya and Tanzania. Travelling outside these periods can bring greater choice and better value.
Families limited to July, August or December can read more about how we plan a family safari.
Frequently asked questions
An exclusive-use lodge is one booked in its entirety by a single group, so no other guests stay there. It is also called sole use or a takeover. The rate covers the whole property, and the vehicles, guides, kitchen and daily schedule work to your group alone.
There is no universal minimum, as it depends on the property. Villas taking four to eight guests can often be held by a family of that size, while some lodges apply exclusive use automatically above a threshold. Jamala Madikwe does so once a group exceeds eight.
Only when the group is smaller than the property. Fill the beds and you pay roughly what those beds would have cost anyway, while gaining dedicated vehicles and a private chef. Take over a sixteen-bed lodge with eight guests and you are paying for eight empty beds.
Frequently yes, even where the lodge sets an age minimum for shared stays. Mhondoro and Tanda Tula both relax their usual minimums for exclusive-use bookings, and several Welgevonden lodges welcome children of any age. Confirm the activity rules separately, as these differ.
Enough for the group to travel comfortably rather than one shared vehicle. Safari vehicles seat between four and eight depending on the level of exclusivity, so a group of sixteen is usually allocated two or three, each with its own guide and tracker.
Usually, yes. Exclusive use often costs less outside the peak, and availability improves considerably. Botswana from January to April, South Africa from November to March, and the East African short rains in November and December are the windows worth asking about first.
For peak-season dates, twelve to eighteen months. Holding every bed at a small lodge in the dry months competes with individual bookings made a year or more out. Green-season takeovers can sometimes be secured within a few months, particularly for groups of eight or fewer.
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