Nicholas Plewman Architects

SERENGETI UNDER CANVAS

Designed to move with one of the world’s greatest wildlife spectacles, Serengeti Under Canvas is a mobile camp that relocates throughout the year to follow the Great Migration. By dismantling and rebuilding at carefully selected private campsites, the camp remains positioned close to the seasonal movement of wildebeest and zebra while maintaining a minimal physical footprint on the landscape.

The lightweight canvas structures, modular furnishings and transportable infrastructure are fundamental to the camp’s design, allowing it to be efficiently relocated without compromising functionality. Spacious guest tents, open-sided communal areas and a restrained palette of canvas, timber and natural fibres create adaptable spaces that respond to the changing conditions of each site.

Rather than being tied to a permanent location, the camp demonstrates how temporary architecture can be designed for adaptability, allowing the built environment to respond directly to the seasonal movement of the migration.

🏛: andBeyond Serengeti Under Canvas
📍: Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
🏗: andBeyond
📐: NPA Architects
🛋: Fox Browne Creative
📸: Dook Clunies-ross

DWYKA TENTED LODGE

The design of Dwyka Tented Lodge responds directly to the surrounding Karoo landscape, with each tent carefully positioned within the ravine to maximise privacy and views of the dramatic rock formations.

A considered palette of canvas, locally sourced stone and timber grounds the lodge within its setting, while exposed structural elements and natural finishes reinforce a simple, honest approach to materiality. Large glazed openings, generous decks and seamless transitions between indoor and outdoor spaces strengthen the connection between the built environment and the landscape.

By combining locally sourced materials with a considered architectural response, the lodge sits naturally within the landscape while maintaining a distinct contemporary identity.

🏛: Dwyka Tented Lodge
📍: Montagu, Western Cape
🏗: Sanbona Wildlife Reserve
📐: NPA Architects
📸: marc & debby • 🇳🇱🇲🇽 • travel couple

LITTLE MOMBO CAMP

The design of Little Mombo is guided by a simple idea, to keep the Okavango Delta at the centre of every experience.

Expansive openings, generous timber decks and private outdoor living areas dissolve the boundary between inside and out, while warm natural materials and a restrained palette allow the surrounding landscape to remain the focal point. From intimate suites to shared gathering spaces nestled beneath ancient trees, every space encourages a slower way of experiencing one of Africa’s most extraordinary wilderness destinations.

The result is a camp where luxury is defined not by excess, but by space, privacy and an uninterrupted connection to place.

🏛: Little Mombo Camp
📍: Okavango Delta, Botswana
🏗: Wilderness
📐: NPA Architects
🛋: Câline Williams-Wynn
📸: David Crookes And Nicola Jackson & various

AWARDS | BISATE RESERVE & ANDBEYOND SUYIAN LODGE

We’re pleased to share that Wilderness Bisate Reserve and andBeyond Suyian have both been shortlisted in the Scape Awards of Excellence of Excellence 2026 by SCAPE Magazine in the International Build by a South African Practice category.

Set within two remarkable conservation landscapes, each project responds directly to its environment while drawing on local craft, materials and architectural traditions.

Wilderness Bisate Reserve, overlooking Rwanda’s Volcanoes National Park, reinterprets traditional Rwandan forms through sculptural architecture that celebrates the surrounding volcanic landscape and supports Wilderness’ conservation vision.

It has been a pleasure working alongside Câline Williams-Wynn, DeVS-SiVEST Consulting Engineers, Town And Country Construction and Fox PCQ Pty Ltd in bringing this project to life.

andBeyond Suyian, located within Kenya’s Suyian Conservancy, is shaped by the site’s ancient granite formations and designed to sit lightly within the landscape, combining contemporary architecture with local craftsmanship and an off-grid approach to hospitality.

Designed by NPA Architects in architectural collaboration with Michaelis Boyd, with interiors by Fox Browne Creative and engineering by Continental Consultants LLP, the project is the result of a shared vision between the wider design team, client and consultants.

We are grateful to our clients, collaborators and project teams whose shared vision made these projects possible, and we’re honoured to see both recognised among this year’s shortlisted works.

Congratulations to all the practices shortlisted across the category.

Bisate reserve Images: Felix Studios and Mark Woodruff
Suyian Lodge Images: Dook Clunies-ross

MARATABA SAFARI LODGE

Designed with a minimal footprint within the Waterberg landscape, Marataba Safari Lodge is carefully positioned between the riverine vegetation and the surrounding cliffs.

Tensile canvas roofs and timber structures reduce visual impact while allowing each suite to open directly to the surrounding bush. Raised decks, generous openings and covered outdoor spaces strengthen the connection to the landscape and support natural ventilation throughout.

Inside, a restrained palette of timber, plaster and canvas keeps the material language simple and grounded. The architecture balances comfort and practicality while remaining closely tied to its setting.

🏛: Marataba Game Lodges
📍: Marakele National Park, South Africa
🏗: More Family Collection
📐: NPA Architects
🛋: M.R.S
📸: Dook Clunies-ross, Francois Fourie

TOULON HOUSE

Organised as a series of connected indoor and outdoor spaces, opening directly to the surrounding garden and river edge.

A material palette of timber, steel, stone and glazing defines the architectural language. Deep overhangs create shade and provide protection from the elements, while large openings strengthen the connection between the interior spaces and surrounding landscape.

Timber columns and slatted screens introduce texture and privacy, while allowing natural light and ventilation to move through the spaces. This creates a calm and practical architectural response that sits comfortably within its setting.

🏛: Toulon House
📍: Sabi Sands, South Africa
📐: NPA Architects
🛋: Michele Throssell Interiors
📸: Elsa

BISATE LODGE

Inspired by the rolling hills of Rwanda and the traditional architecture of the King’s Palace at Nyanza, Bisate Lodge is designed as a direct response to place, culture and landscape.

The rounded forms are positioned along the slope, drawing on the shape of the surrounding hills and creating a strong connection to the site. Layered thatch, woven balustrades and volcanic stone root the buildings within the local material palette, while timber structure and large glazed openings bring in natural light and open each space to the surrounding landscape.

Inside, exposed timber ribs and woven wall linings give the interiors warmth and texture. Brickwork, handmade joinery and locally made finishes reinforce the sense of place, creating spaces that feel grounded, tactile and closely connected to Rwanda’s building traditions.

🏛: Bisate Lodge Rhawanda
📍: Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda
🏗: Wilderness
📐: NPA Architects
🛋: Câline Williams-Wynn
📸: Dook Clunies-ross
📹: Nicole Trilivas

TEMBO TEMBO LODGE

Rammed earth walls anchor Tembo Tembo Lodge within its setting, bringing thermal mass, texture and a material connection to the site. Their layered tones give the buildings depth and a strong sense of permanence.

Deep overhangs, dark timber detailing and carefully placed openings create shade, frame views and strengthen the connection between the interior spaces and surrounding environment.

🏛: Tembo Tembo Lodge
📍: Elephant Point Private Reserve, Kruger National Park, South Africa
🏗: Elephant Point
📐: Nicholas Plewman Architects in collaboration with Studio Asai
🛋: Studio Asai
📸: Adrien Dirand
🧱: Paul Marais

FEW & FAR LUVHONDO

Located within the Soutpansberg, designed as a direct response to site, climate and context.

The shared dining and lounge spaces open into the surrounding canopy, with curved timber elements and tensile canopies creating shelter while maintaining a strong connection to the natural setting. Warm materials, layered textures and carefully framed views shape spaces that feel both grounded and open.

The suites continue this approach. Timber structures, soft canvas forms and natural finishes create calm interiors with a light footprint. Open decks, filtered morning light and uninterrupted views place the surrounding environment at the centre of the experience.

🏛: Few & Far Luvhondo
📍: Limpopo, South Africa
🏗: Few & Far
📐: Nicholas Plewman Architects
🛋: Ohkre
📸: Jemma Wild

SANDIBE OKAVANGO LODGE

The design draws from the form and structure of the pangolin, expressed through a series of curved timber shells that lift off the ground to accommodate seasonal flooding and minimise site impact. Each unit is elevated on slender supports, allowing natural systems to remain largely undisturbed beneath.

A layered timber system defines both structure and enclosure, with glulam arches and bent ribs forming the primary framework, wrapped in a shingled outer skin. This creates a durable, climate-responsive envelope while establishing a consistent material language throughout. Internally, the exposed timber structure gives order and scale to the spaces, reinforcing the relationship between structure, material and form.

🏛: Sandibe Okavango Safari Lodge
📍: Okavango Delta, Botswana
🏗: andBeyond Travel
📐: Nicholas Plewman Architects in collaboration with Michaelis Boyd Associates
🛋: Fox Browne Creative
📸: Dook photography
👨‍🌾: Gordon Wilfred Kershaw