ENVI Lodges is set to debut ENVI Addo Private Reserve, the company’s first property in South Africa, in summer 2026.
The solar-powered property comprises 10 safari tents and three lodges within a 1 800 hectare private conservation reserve, owned by Gavin and Lynn Biggs, near Addo Elephant National Park in the Eastern Cape. The lodge’s culinary offering includes open fire cooking experiences drawing from Xhosa, Afrikaans and Khoi San tradition. Activities on offer include guided walks, cycling trails, meditation, spa treatments and game drives.
The Biggs use their reserve as a rehabilitation field for animals they save from captivity, allowing them to reacclimatise to the outdoors for a period before releasing them into the private reserve.
“I have been fortunate in my life to have a successful business that allows me to invest in what is close to my heart: conservation,” said Biggs. “Throughout the years, we managed to rescue and release into the wild many game species and wildlife with rare genetic variations.”
The reserve includes serval and black footed cats as well as giraffe, sable antelope, black impala, zebra, buffalo, wildebeest and large herds of impala, kudu and nyala.
It is also home to five privately owned elephants and three cheetahs living freely within their natural game reserve habitat. The herd of “Asanta Sana” elephants was relocated in a landmark conservation initiative with the Wildlife Emergency Fund and Fisher Foundation. The reserve allowed for the preservation of their unique family structure and provides them with a safe, protected habitat.
Biggs’ objective is to attract more guests to partake in the conservation initiatives that he has been leading, allowing more people to learn about endangered species and support rewilding efforts. He is now planning to reintroduce brown hyena to the property – a scavenger last in the area around 150 years ago. “I want more people to be part of our mission, and I believe that hospitality and tourism can perfectly complement the work that we have been doing”, added Biggs.
“I am particularly proud of this new addition to the ENVI portfolio,” said Paul Jordaan, ENVI Executive Director. “Not only because it is in my home country and that it marks our brand’s entry in South Africa but also because of the incredible conservation work that Gavin has been doing, which resonates with me personally and with our company.”
