About Kateka
INCLUDES DRINKS! The first top-end luxury lodge to open in the Klaserie, this unashamedly contemporary, minimalistic and luxurious lodge overlooks an active waterhole - the state of the art Spa and unrushed game drive experience are also highlights!
There has been a wave of new ultra top-end game lodges that have opened in South Africa in recent years, achieving heights of style and luxury that would have been scarcely believable a decade ago! Kateka, which opened in the Klaserie reserve in 2023, is very much in the forefront of this trend towards ever more upmarket lodges, but with 3 quite unique points of difference compared to their competitors.
The first is the lodge’s location – whilst many of the new lodges have been located in reserves like the Sabi Sand (South Africa’s best known and most prestigious private reserve) Kateka is located in the up to now slightly lesser known Klaserie reserve. This is another prime Big 5 reserve open to the greater Kruger and thus allowing the free movement of animals – however it has hitherto lacked the brand awareness of places like the Sabi Sand due to it only having quite recently sprouted commercial game lodges which are open to the public (previously virtually all camps in the Klaserie were private use lodges) So the arrival of Kateka as the first unarguably top-end lodge in the Klaserie represents an exciting new development for this relatively unsung reserve.
The second point of difference lies in the style and décor exhibited in the new lodge. Whilst Kateka has aimed for an ambitiously top level of luxury and contemporary style, they have also carved out a very different aesthetic style to competitors in that they’ve incorporated only a minimal amount of the typical traditional, sometimes clichéd game lodge styling elements – instead both the architecture and the décor is unashamedly contemporary, minimalistic and luxurious, but with only a minor nod to actually being located in a game reserve.
So you’ll find the extensive use of concrete, metal and glass elements along with things like LED shadow lighting, automated fittings as well as superbly luxurious contemporary furniture and light fittings - the main nod to this actually being a game lodge lies purely in the use of large, stylish black and white wildlife images as prominent wall decorations above the bed in your Suite as well as in the lodge’s main lounge area. Otherwise, the lodge’s style could quite easily be at home in a top-end property lying on a beach of a tropical island or even in one of the world’s major cities. So décor and architecture aficionados will definitely delight in the cutting edge aesthetic that Kateka offers, but for those guests preferring a more traditional game lodge look and feel, they may be better off looking elsewhere.
The third main unique selling point of Kateka lies in its positioning as a “Safari and Wellness Experience” – quite frankly the Spa/Wellness facilities here are absolutely superb and quite unmatched in this country in our experience! Apart from the usual massage rooms, the wonderfully attractive state-of-the-art facilities include an infra-red sauna room, jacuzzi bath and a superbly equipped gym featuring the leading edge F45 fitness system – after your exercise session (if you’re brave enough that is!) you can even recover in the infamous ice bath! The rooftop deck of the Wellness Centre meanwhile is the perfect location for yoga sessions.
When it comes to accommodation at Kateka, couples have the choice of 5 Suites – 3 Classic Suites and 2 Deluxe Suites. Whilst similarly very luxuriously styled and equipped (for example they both feature cutting edge automation systems controlling things like blinds and lights), the 2 room types are also quite different in other respects. The Classic Suites are more compact with a small seating area in front of the bed looking out through the floor to ceiling glass doors and over your private deck (complete with heated private plunge pool!) towards the water hole. A steel staircase outside spirals up towards a small roof deck offering you even better views. But it’s the 2 slightly more expensive Deluxe Villas that would definitely be our choice, as they are both more spacious (they include a separate lounge area) and also better located much closer to the lodge waterhole. We also found them more attractive visually with the larger private decks and heated plunge pools playing a role in this respect. Definitely worth paying the extra money for!
Then for families or groups of friends, there’s the lodge’s stunning 3 bedroomed Villa which comes complete with its own private chef and private game vehicle! Located in a prime position with its expansive deck and heated pool overlooking the adjacent lodge waterhole, this superbly stylish and spacious Villa is quite frankly one of the most attractive we’ve seen in our travels!
Whilst all the rooms are equipped with private plunge pools, there’s also an attractive heated infinity pool which is the main focal point of the lodge’s public areas – this is the perfect place for families or friends travelling together to socialise during the heat of the day, especially with the friendly barmen being right there and ready to pour you a refreshing drink! With the elevated deck proving great views over the active waterhole, this is a great place to enjoy the delicious meals on offer here (and all our guests have invariably raved about the great service and superb food on offer at Kateka!) The wine cellar downstairs is another particularly attractive dining venue.
As you can from the description above, the lodge and its facilities are absolutely cutting edge and state-of-the-art – it’s quite an interesting juxtaposition then that the safari experience at Kateka is wonderfully old-school! Twice daily game drives (with some of the finest guiding we’ve experienced anywhere!) take place through the uncrowded expanse of the Klaserie wilderness. You’re likely to have fewer sightings than in the Sabi Sands for example, but they’re also likely to be of better quality and refreshingly unrushed! This is explained by game densities being slightly lower and the fact that there’re also far fewer vehicles and hence pairs of eyes out on drive calling in sightings – however when you do get on a good sighting, that means that there’s far less pressure to make way for other vehicles at a sighting. When we stayed there, guests were able to follow a pack of wild dogs on the hunt for almost 2 hours just by way of example!
Back at the lodge after game drive, you can chat to fellow guests over a drink or 3 around the atmospheric fire pit. And if the skies are clear, then before heading off for dinner, chances are that you can do some star gazing from the rooftop deck using the lodge’s superb telescope which zooms in automatically on requested constellations – another very different and enjoyable activity that, in a way, just exemplifies the uniquely different safari experience you’ll enjoy at Kateka!
