Written by Courtney Drysdale

Singita is a remarkable collection of lodges and private villas spread across South Africa, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zimbabwe. This group has a mindful and extensive approach to sustainability, enabling them to protect the beautiful locations their lodges sit in while uplifting local communities, ensuring they are on track to help create a better future for all those big and small. They are so good at it that we’ve included them in our Top 10 Sustainable Stays in South Africa.

Here at Viatu, we strive to partner with suppliers who champion sustainability and make meaningful contributions to the communities and the wilderness in which they operate.

Singita stands by 3 core principles in all of its initiatives: biodiversity, sustainability and community. Offering secluded escapes in the most exclusive biodiversity hotspots, Singita upholds these principles in various ways. Read on to discover why Singita is a top sustainable destination…

Sustainability and One Planet Living

All of Singita’s lodges and stays offset their carbon footprint using Bioregional's One Planet Living Framework. The aim is the incorporate this throughout their stays across Africa. Their one-planet action plan encompasses various principles aimed at rewilding spaces and looking for a brighter future. As a result, Singita offers sanctuaries for the animals and wildlife that call these spaces home and a rejuvenating return to nature for those who visit them.

This framework offers a hands-on approach to sustainability to create meaningful impact and work towards creating a sustainable future. The 10 aspects that make up the framework are all science-based, straightforward and developed with the WWF.

These 10 principles are:

1. Health and Happiness

2. Equity and Local Community

3. Culture and Community

4. Land and Nature

5. Sustainable Water

6. Local and Sustainable Food

7. Travel and Transport

8. Materials and Products

9. Zero Waste 

10. Zero Carbon Energy

Biodiversity

Singita manages several conservation funds and trusts across Africa and is focused on restoring and protecting roughly 1 million acres of wilderness.

Above all else, Singita aims to mitigate any human presence in an environment and work towards restoring it to its original biodiversity, while spreading a sustainable message across the globe. Singita’s active approach to conservation and biodiversity is 3-fold and as follows:

1. Reserve Integrity

2. Ecosystem Integrity

3. External Influences

Singita’s main conservation partners are the Grumeti Fund, Singita Lowveld Trust and Malilangwe Trust. Their projects range from:

• Reintroducing the eastern black Rhino and the Canine Unit in Grumeti, Tanzania.

• Endangered Wildlife Trust and Birdlife South Africa, Panthera Partnership Leopard Research and the Rehabilitation and Rewilding of Rhino Orphans in Sabi Sand, Kruger, South Africa.

• Akarabo Nursery and Garden, Singita Kwitonda Lodge Orchid Project in the Volcanos National Park, Rwanda.

• Rhino Conservation and Anti-Poaching in Malilangwe, Zimbabwe. The incredible efforts of the Malilangwe Trust have produced excellent results. They have only lost 2 rhinos since 2007 and are now in a position to start sending rhinos elsewhere in Africa, including Botswana. 

Community

Singita is all about community partnership and its knock-on effect on the wild places it operates in. Education initiatives are focused on across the board, along with supporting and championing local businesses and enterprises, gender empowerment, and environmental awareness.

Singita’s approach is based on trust and mutual respect; their main partners are the Grumeti Fund, Singita Lowveld Trust and Malilangwe Trust. 

Some of these significant initiatives, to name a few, include:

• Child Nutrition and Ranger Training Programs in Malilangwe, Zimbabwe

• A Scholarship Program and Environmental Education Centre in Grumeti, Tanzania

• Singita Community Culinary School and Holistic Early Childhood Development Support in the Kruger National Park in South Africa

• The Community Culinary School in Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda. 

Some of our favourite Singita Stays

Named after the Shangaan word for ‘Place of Miracles’, Singita offers incredible stays and destinations that highlight the very best of a sustainable safari experience.

Boulders Lodge

Settled on the Sand River in the Sabi Sands Reserve of the Greater Kruger, Boulders is designed to blend into the beautiful bushveld in which it sits. A testament to luxury and sustainability, Boulders is a fantastic place to reconnect with the natural world while giving back.

Ebony Lodge

Ebony Lodge is located in the exclusive Sabi Sand Reserve and offers the ultimate safari escape. Situated overlooking the Sand River and under the canopy of large trees, this lodge is a sustainability success story and, as a result, offers fantastic game viewing experiences - including the Big 5.

At Viatu, we pride ourselves on how we select who we choose to partner with. Learn more on our website, or hop over to our Instagram to create your sustainable dream holiday.