In spite of the Covid-19 pandemic that has all but ground the hospitality and travel industry to a halt, certain players in the field are making plans to provide some of the most exquisite experiences to their clients once it is safe and acceptable to throw open their doors. Kruger Shalati is one of these.

The Kruger Shalati luxury hotel train on a bridge — **The Kruger Shalati luxury resort is literally a train on a bridge. Image courtesy Kruger Shalati**

Now under construction in South Africa, this unique luxury resort sits partially on the historic Selati Bridge over the Sabie River in the stunning Kruger National Park. Kruger Shalati, which means The Train on the Bridge, is a newly refurbished train featuring 24 carriage rooms that will be permanently stationed on the bridge’s disused tracks.

The opening date for this innovative luxury hotel is still up in the air given construction has been paused due to Covid-19, but staff say that they’re confident it will be operational by December 2020.

Kruger Shalati luxury resort on the Selati bridge — **The luxury resort sits partially on the historic Selati Bridge over the Sabie River in the Kruger National Park, Image courtesy CNN**

The glass-walled, large train rooms, all of which overlook the river, feature decor created in collaboration with local artists, while there’s also a separate dining area and swimming pool – also on the bridge

Now comes the bad news for families with young kids. Only travellers 12 years and older will be permitted to stay in the train carriage rooms, though another seven land-based family-friendly “Bridge House” rooms will be added to the property in early 2022.

Swimming pool and outdoor dining on the Kruger Shalati — **The Kruger Shalati features an outdoor dining area and a swimming pool- both on the bridge. Image courtesy of Kruger Shalati**

Inspired by history

Kruger Shalati pays homage to the national park’s origins as a travel destination nearly 100 years ago, when the first visits to the park were permitted in the early 1920s. At the time, trains would park overnight in the exact spot where Kruger Shalati will be positioned.

The Kruger Shalati room — **The Kruger Shalati will not be open to travellers younger than 12 years. The resort owners plan to open a ‘land-based’ alternative by 2022. Image courtesy of Kruger Shalati**

The resort is adjacent to the Skukuza Camp inside Kruger National Park, where the so-called “Big Five” – lions, leopards, rhinos, elephants and African buffaloes – roam freely. Rates, which start from about $520 per night per person, will include all meals, house-drinks and two daily game drives.

The resort’s name was inspired by Shalati, an African warrior queen who, according to legend, was one of the first female warrior chiefs of the small Tebula clan, part of the Tsonga tribe that lived in the bush around the Murchison Range in the present-day Limpopo Province.

The bathroom of the Kruger Shalati luxury resort — **Even the bathrooms have a stunning view of the river. Image courtesy of Kruger Shalati**

As for the national park itself, Kruger is one of the largest game reserves in all of Africa. Covering 2 million hectares of land, it’s filled with hundreds of animal species as well as cultural heritage and archaeological Stone Age sites. It closed on March 25 as part of South Africa’s nationwide lockdown to combat coronavirus but has recently reopened to self-drive excursions for day visitors.

Source: CNN Travel