Explore St Lucia – Travel Tips, Wildlife & Lodge Stories

Warm weather, wide horizons, and the kind of nature that still sets its own rhythm – St Lucia isn’t just another dot on the map. It’s a coastal village where the wild moves freely, the air smells of salt and forest, and the days seem to stretch just a little longer.

Kosi Bay Mouth is the kind of place that makes you slow down without even realising it. It sits in the far northern reaches of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park – a UNESCO World Heritage Site that begins down in St Lucia – and it feels worlds apart. The journey there takes about two and a half hours, carrying you past open grassland and rural homesteads before the road starts to twist through the coastal forest.

There’s no quick shortcut to Sodwana Bay. It lies within the iSimangaliso Wetland Park – a UNESCO World Heritage Site that begins at St Lucia, its most southern point – and getting there is a journey in itself. It’s a good two-hour drive north, through villages, past fields where goats graze, and under wide, open skies. By the time the road narrows and the forested dunes begin to appear, you’ve already slowed down a little – and that’s exactly the point.

You won’t find signs pointing to Lake Sibaya from the main road. No cafés nearby. No crowds, either. It’s the kind of place that doesn’t ask for attention — and yet, the silence here has a way of holding it.

Just 2 hours north of St Lucia, the lake lies tucked between coastal forest and wide sky. It’s still. Undisturbed. Most days, you’ll have it to yourself — just you, the call of a fish eagle, and the soft rustle of reeds on the breeze.

There’s something about Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park that stays with you. It could be the history - this is the oldest game reserve in Africa, after all - or maybe it’s the untamed feel of the place. The valleys, the ridges, the deep wildness of it all. One thing’s for sure: it’s a proper Big 5 safari, and an easy day trip from Ingwenya Lodge.

Just over an hour’s drive from the lodge (or even less if you go via Nyalazi Gate), this is one of the most popular outings for our guests. Some choose to self-drive, some prefer to book a guided safari - but either way, most come back full of stories. Hluhluwe isn’t a park where the animals are on display. You have to work for your sightings - and that’s part of the magic.