Pilanesberg National Park
- MK
- Jul 15, 2016
- 2 min read
Updated: Jan 16, 2022
Entering into our third week settling in in Johannesburg, we decided to go for our first safari trip. Pilanesberg is the easiest choice because the park is home to some of the more kid-friendly lodges, it is malaria-free, and it is also not too far out of Joburg. It is home to the Big Five game animals as well; so for a safari virgin, Pilanesberg is a great choice.
We (I mostly) were super excited to celebrate my 39th birthday in the bush. The lodge we chose is the Bakubung Bush Lodge, in the southwest part of the park. It is a relatively large lodge complete with conferences facility and large dining areas. With a large lodge comes also a larger game vehicle with roughly double the size of the regular game vehicles.
Our first game drive was a success. Since it was a large-ish game vehicle, the children were not too intimated with the ride. At least when we ran into an elephant bull in full musth, we didn't feel like we were about to be stepped on by a giant as he prepared to charge our vehicle.
The lodge has a large waterhole in front of the common area/restaurants and animals come and drink especially in the early morning and late afternoon. It was such a treat for the children.
*edited after a few safari trips: We like game drives in July since the vegetation is very thin and we can spot the animals easier than during the height of the summer when everything is lush and green.
Places we have stayed in Pilanesberg National Park (in order of our stay):
1) Bakubung Bush Lodge
Situated in the southwest part of the national park. It is larger size bush lodge and is frequently visited by tour groups. The game vehicles are larger than the rest of the lodges' vehicles in the park. It's small-kid friendly with a large pool and a playground area. The children can also opt to go to their little rangers activities while parents go on the bush drives.
2) Kwa Maritane
A sister lodge of Bakubung, situated in the southeast part of the park. Its got a very similar setting - a larger size bush lodge. It's also very kid-friendly. The tunnel that leads to the waterhole is a great way to view some animals up close while they're busy drinking. Especially crowded with animals in the early morning and in the afternoon.
3) Ivory Tree Game Lodge
The lodge is located in the northeast part of the park. This is a great size lodge to visit once the children are more used to game drives. I would say this is a medium-size lodge and is very kid-friendly. Since the game vehicles are smaller than those of the above two lodges, we can interact more with the ranger.
4) Black Rhino Game Lodge
The lodge is situated in the private concession in the northwest tip of the park. In the morning drive we cross over to the national park and in the afternoon drive we venture the private concession. There is no fence between Pilanesberg and the private concession; the animals roam around freely and there is no restriction as to what animals you would see.
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