Pilanesberg National Park

I'm sure "Safari" is on most peoples to do list when traveling to South Africa. But which reserve to visit is the big question. Travelers to SA usually limit their trips to Cape Town and Johannesburg. Kruger National Park is most people's (including me) first choice Game Reserve, the amount of wildlife you see there is incomparable. But travelling to Mpumalanga/Limpopo may be a bit far out for some.

Pilanesberg Game Reserve - taken from Lenong View

One of my favourite getaways offers a convenient alternative - Pilanesberg National Park. I've visited here many times in the last few years, and I love it. Being a mere 2 hour drive from Johannesburg, means that its feasible to do a day trip. Its Situated in the North West Province, which is Malaria free, and its right next door to Sun City - added bonus! 

Game viewing:

There's just something so exhilarating about seeing wildlife in their natural habitat. When we stayed this last May that went by, we had 4 days to explore the park. You can take your own vehicle/hire a car and self drive, which is what we do most of the time. There are three main tarred roads and the rest of the roads are un-tarred dirt roads. 

At the heart of the park is the Mankwe Dam. I would say most of your game viewing will take place from here. Theres a big hide on the one side, where we spotted elephants coming down to bathe, hippos playing, crocodile's basking in the sun and so much more. You could just sit there for hours watching the wildlife coming and going about their daily business. There also happens to be a big pride of lions that roam this area, so if you're lucky you'll be able to spot them!

Mankwe Dam

Elephants coming down to play at Mankwe

We did an evening guided game drive, which I would highly recommend, as the gates close at 18h30 (19h00 during summer) and a lot of the wildlife only come out at this time. Mankwe Game Trackers is the company that runs the game drives (they also do other activities like hot air ballooning over the park, quad biking, archery...). Game drives run morning and evening and usually last 2-2.5 hours. On our game drive, we saw ample elephant, we even saw a rhino and her calf (a beautiful sight). A real treat was spotting the cheetah, Rain, and her 3 cubs! There are only 6 cheetah in the park, so to spot 4 in one sighting was special.

We really wanted to see lion, and as the sun went down and the drive came to a close, we lost hope. But then, on or way back, on Tlou Drive, we suddenly saw a herd of impala sprinting across the road, chased by three lionesses! The chase was unsuccessful but we got to watch them for a while. They were also joined by two big beautiful males - really impressive creatures! They hung around for a bit and we followed them down to a watering hole and after a drink of water, they disappeared into the bush. 

Rhino Mum and her Calf

Lioness after the chase

Wildebeest

Accommodation:

There are a few places you can stay inside the reserve as well as outside. Your choice will depend on your needs and budget. Like mentioned before, you can stay in Sun City next door and spend a day or two at the park. If you love camping, there's the Golden  Leopard Resorts, Manyane or Bagkatla. They also have chalets, in the three-star range which are affordable, but not as luxurious. 

If you're looking for the bush experience with more comfort, I would recommend either Bakubung or Kwa-Maritane. These two are 4-star lodges in the "mid-range" price tier. Kwa-Maritane is fabulous. The rooms are spacious and there is a beautiful restaurant that overlooks a small watering hole. We were having the buffet lunch on the deck (which was delectable) and two elephants made their way down to have a drink and splash - what a fantastic experience!

Thirsty Visitors at Kwa Maritane

They also have an underground hide that overlooks another small watering hole. There is a camera at the hide which links up to the T.V's in the guest rooms, so you can monitor the activity at the watering hole and pop down should anything interesting come around. Only downside to Kwa-Maritane is that it is located a bit remotely from the center of the park. With one dirt road to get to Mankwe, the drive can take 30-45 min to drive there. Bakubung is similar to Kwa-Maritane, and it has a tarred main road leaving from it, so if you're self driving, this might be a better option. A daily guided game drive and is usually included in both these lodges packages.

The other 5 star lodges (read: more expensive) offer luxury in the are Tshukudu, Ivory Tree & Shepard's Tree Game Lodge

Have you ever been to Pilanesberg? Let me know what you thought of it!