Southern Kruger

Kruger Shalati

Q: How much does it cost to stay at Kruger Shalati?

Stays at Kruger Shalati start from around US$580 per person per night as part of a tailor-made trip. The exact price depends on your travel dates, room type and the shape of the rest of your itinerary. A Timbuktu travel specialist can give you an accurate quote for your dates.

Travel and Leisure Worlds Best Awards for number 1 tour operator in the world 2024 and number 2 tour operator in the world 2025

We're one of the World's Best Tour Operators!

Named three years running in Travel+Leisure World's Best, including No.1 in 2024

Kruger Shalati

About Kruger Shalati

A novel train-hotel located high above the Sabie River and surveying the southern Kruger.

When the Kruger Park’s first warden, James Steven-Hamilton, hosted visitors nearly one-hundred years ago, they would arrive by train. The eccentric entertainer would wine and dine them in the bush in a make-shift boma, complete with live piano music, fine china and rangers pacing the periphery. When it was time for bed, they would retreat back to the train cars to sleep in plush cabins. Kruger Shalati aims to conjure memories of this exceptional history by setting itself in a restored train, right on the now disused Selati Bridge – right where ol’ Hamilton once parked his. Though it's no longer a locomotive (and entirely stationary) this is an arresting destination, with elevated views and exalted hospitality.

Southern Kruger , South Africa

From $580 per person/per night

Safari

31 Rooms

Open Map

Property details

The property

The Shalati station platform dually serves as the hotel’s reception and an extraordinary restaurant for both hotel guests and visitors. From here, you'll have exceptional vistas of the horizon, the riverbanks and the hippos directly below. It's difficult to hold back on the adjectives here – unparalleled, enchanting, dizzying all lurch to mind, and they would be justified. Attached to the bridge, between the expanded deck and a bolster, is a retrofitted swimming pool that juts out beyond the train tracks (surreal, vertiginous – extremely cool!).

The rooms

There are 31 rooms – 24 in the train carriage and 7 in the bridge house - that have the historic integrity but add the necessary upgrades of modernity and luxury. An external walkway attaches to the bridge, giving each room a private outdoor entrance and inside, floor-to-ceiling windows offer plummeting views to the river below and the bush beyond. The Afro-chic décor also helps reinvent the experience– think smart contemporary furnishings and intricate local textiles. And then of course, there's the spacious ensuite bathrooms with walk-in showers and deep, deep tubs.

Activities

Located near Skukuza Camp in southern Kruger, this region is ripe for the exploring. Although a stay at Shalati appears decidedly more hotel-like than bush-like, it compliments a traditional safari swimmingly. Spend one or two days in the lap of luxury on the train, peering over the precipice – hearkening back the the good ol' days of slow travel – and a week maxing out on game drives, guided walks and all the Big Five action you can handle at a camp of your choice.

Why we love it

Everything about this made-to-measure experience! The architecture, the innovation, and the ingenious up-cycling of an old train.

Insiders Tip

It's best you come to Shalati with no preconceptions whatsoever – not that your expectations shouldn't be high - just don't think too much about it...

Something to think about

Perhaps it goes without saying, but those wary of heights will be testing their vertigo.

Plan your stay

How to book Kruger Shalati

How do I book Kruger Shalati?

Kruger Shalati can be booked with Timbuktu as part of a tailor-made South Africa trip, rather than as a standalone room reservation. Start online, customising one of our recommended South Africa trips featuring Kruger Shalati or get advice and suggestions from one of our South Africa specialists who will design the trip around your dates, check availability and handle every booking for you.

How much does it cost to stay at Kruger Shalati?

Stays at Kruger Shalati start from around $580 per person per night as part of a tailor-made trip. The exact price depends on your travel dates, room type and the shape of the rest of your itinerary. A Timbuktu travel specialist can give you an accurate quote for your dates.

South Africa

Southern Kruger

Teeming with wildlife, this easily accessible portion of the Kruger is a favourite among safari-goers.