Nambiti Big 5 Private Game Reserve, in central KwaZulu-Natal, is the only Big Five reserve in the region, and is conveniently close to both Durban (a three-hour drive) and Johannesburg (a four-hour drive). The malaria-free reserve, which was established in 2000 and is growing its wildlife numbers each year, has a range of accommodation in its nine lodges and one tented camp, from budget self-catering to upmarket luxury.

The five-star Nambiti Hills Private Game Lodge, one of the most luxurious and stylish on the reserve, has a spectacular setting on top of a hill with panoramic views over the reserve. The lodge, made of traditional materials of stone and timber, has tasteful and elegant African-inspired contemporary décor with a muted palette of white, cream and grays.

Eight suites offer four-poster beds and private terraces. The spacious open-plan honeymoon suite is worth paying extra for: there’s a lounge, an outdoor deck where you can soak up the sun on comfy armchairs and spot game in the valley far below and a romantic stand-alone bathtub almost as big as a plunge pool.

Game drives take you through the 11,000-hectare reserve, which is scenically beautiful: a land of vast savanna plains dotted with acacia trees, bushveld, gorges, waterfalls and riverine forest. In addition to the Big Five (three of which I saw on my short trip), there are more than 30 other species of game, including cheetah, hyena, giraffe, hippo, kudu, eland, zebra, hartebeest and gemsbok, as well as more than 260 bird species.

Nambiti Big 5 Private Game Reserve forms part of KwaZulu-Natal’s historic battle route, and is a central base from which you can explore the region’s famous Anglo-Boer and Anglo-Zulu battlefields. The Drakensberg is only an hour’s drive away, where you can go hiking, quad biking, fly fishing, whitewater rafting, rock climbing, mountain biking and horse riding in South Africa’s most majestic mountain range.