Pilanesberg National Park
Got a day to spare and want to experience the real African bush and its wildlife? Then take yourself off to the malaria-free Pilanesberg National Park in North West province, only a couple of hours’ easy drive from Johannesburg. At 55 000 ha, this is one of South Africa’s largest game reserves and one of its most popular.
It’s home to nearly every South African mammal, including the Big 5, and is a mecca for birdwatchers, with over 300 species of birds.
The 1979 Operation Genesis, which restocked Pilanesberg, once a desolate and overgrazed wasteland, is still one of the most ambitious programmes of its kind ever undertaken anywhere in the world. Today the park is home to over 7 000 animals, including 24 of the bigger species.
Pilanesberg National Park lies in the caldera of an extinct 1 200-million-year-old volcano, and is dramatically beautiful with mountains, wooded valleys, plains and dams.
Hire a vehicle (preferably a van or a 4x4 so you sit up high and get great views of the game) or take a guided safari from Sun City or Johannesburg in an open-sided game-viewing vehicle. There are over 200km of excellent roads, several picnic sites and game is abundant.
Buy a map at any of the park gates.
If rhinos are on your must-see list, then Pilanesberg is the place to see them – both white rhino and the endangered black rhino. You’ll come across them grazing on the plains or lumbering through thick woodland.
Be sure to visit Mankwe Dam in the centre of the reserve, a huge man-made lake that is a magnet for game and birds. Try to get there early in the morning or just before sunset, when thirsty animals are coming to drink. Park at the big comfortable hide, arm yourself with a pair of binoculars (essential), sundowners of your choice (a South African sunset drinks ritual) and prepare to sit for at least an hour and watch Africa’s magical passing show.
There are also other smaller dams throughout the reserve, all with hides, from where you can spot everything from lions, giraffe and elephants, to crocodiles, waterbirds and wallowing warthogs.
Or just meander along in your vehicle and see what crops up – you never know what’s round the next corner!
There’s accommodation in the park to suit all pockets, from upmarket safari lodges such as Tshukudu Game Lodge and Kwa Maritane, to camping sites and simple self-catering chalets at the very affordable Manyane camp.
Glitzy, iconic Sun City is right next door to Pilanesberg, so you can choose to stay there in the opulent comfort of The Lost City or Cascades Hotel, or go rustic in the park itself.
And if your adrenalin still needs a boost after a day spent watching hippos, hyenas or a solitary leopard, then roll the dice or spin the wheel at the glamorous Sun City casino.
Admission
Adults: R60
Children and pensioners: R20
Vehicles: R20
Visiting hours
March and April: 06h00 to18h30
May to September: 06h30 to 18h00
September and October: 06h00 to18h30
November to February: 05h30 to 07h00
Directions
150km north-west of Johannesburg. By road the Pilanesberg is situated 60km from Rustenburg on the Thabazimbi road R510. Pilanesberg is well sign-posted
Contact details
Information office
Tel:+27 (0)14 555 1637
Email: tidcpberg@mweb.co.za
Physical address
Next to Sun City, North West province