Back in 1978, under the speckled shade of old leadwood and jackalberry trees, Carolus Brink stopped walking. He just stood there… still, quiet, listening to the hum of life in the Sabi Sand. Something about that place felt different. The trees seemed older. The air carried a calm that only the true wild can give. He knew, right then, that this was where his family’s story would take root.
At first, Chitwa Chitwa wasn’t a business or a dream of luxury safaris. It was simply a family hideaway, a small bush retreat where the Brinks came to rest, laugh, and sit by the fire while hyenas whooped in the distance. But life has a way of steering us toward bigger things.
When Carolus’s son, Charl Brink, took over, he saw something more in that land. He wanted others to feel what his family had always felt there: that quiet awe of waking up to a lion’s roar echoing across the plains. And so, in 1991, Chitwa Chitwa opened its doors.
Beginnings in the Untamed Wilderness
Those first few years were raw. No roads, no radios, no other vehicles with guests, just determination and a handful of people who truly loved the bush. Every drive was an adventure, every sighting felt like a small miracle earned by patience and instinct. Here the traditional 'old school' style of tracking during the day to try and find something to show the guests that evening, was imperative.
There’s one story from that time that’s become a bit of Chitwa legend. During the lodge’s first year, Charl’s safari vehicle broke down near the Manyeleti River, miles from camp. Dusk was closing in fast. His tracker half-joked that he wasn’t walking back - not with the lions waking up and the night coming alive.
But Charl had guests to rescue. So he set off on foot, armed only with resolve and a deep respect for the wild. It took him hours, through darkness and silence thick with unseen eyes, but he made it. He reached the lodge, grabbed another vehicle, and drove back to bring everyone home safely.
That story still gets told around the fire! Not because it’s dramatic, but because it captures exactly what Chitwa stands for: courage, care, and a kind of quiet resilience that runs in the family’s veins.
The Spirit That Still Defines Us
That same spirit breathes through Chitwa today. It’s still family-owned, still personally run by the Brinks, and still guided by the same devotion that started beneath those towering trees.
The lodge may have grown into one of Africa’s most celebrated luxury escapes, but its heart hasn’t changed. The historic trees still stand watch over the plains, their roots tangled with decades of laughter, stories, and unforgettable moments. And every guest who visits - every person who sits under that same African sky - becomes part of the Chitwa Chitwa story.
Today, I (Matthew Bring) represent the next generation of the Brink family, carrying forward a legacy of hospitality, conservation, and heart, born under the wide and wild skies of Chitwa Chitwa.