MADIKWE GAME RESERVE
Although in South Africa, this large 765-square kilometre wildlife reserve lies up against the border with Botswana and is just 20km from its capital Gaborone. Established in 1991, largely from reclaimed farmland, Madikwe has been very successfully restocked with a full range of wildlife and is totally non-malarial.
Madikwe is a state-owned park, but operates as a private game reserve. No self-drive visitors are allowed, and all drives are conducted by the private lodges dotted around the reserve. Also off-road driving, night drives and walks are allowed.
Flora & Fauna
It is an excellent Big 5 reserve to find the more elusive animals, such as cheetah, wild dog, and lion. The rare brown hyena numbers dominate the normally more abundant spotted hyenas and finding them on their own kill is not uncommon. Leopard are still present, and rhino are plentiful.
The landscape is dominated by savannah and light woodland, with considerable escarpments and free-standing inselbergs, with a network of waterholes drained by the Marico River to the eastern side.
When to travel
Madikwe gets much less rain during the November to March green season than the Greater Kruger Reserves and subsequently does not get uncomfortably hot and humid.
How to get there
Access is easy, being only a four-hour-drive in a straight line from Johannesburg on a good tar road, or via light aircraft from the Kruger.
Madikwe is a state-owned park, but operates as a private game reserve. No self-drive visitors are allowed, and all drives are conducted by the private lodges dotted around the reserve. Also off-road driving, night drives and walks are allowed.
Flora & Fauna
It is an excellent Big 5 reserve to find the more elusive animals, such as cheetah, wild dog, and lion. The rare brown hyena numbers dominate the normally more abundant spotted hyenas and finding them on their own kill is not uncommon. Leopard are still present, and rhino are plentiful.
The landscape is dominated by savannah and light woodland, with considerable escarpments and free-standing inselbergs, with a network of waterholes drained by the Marico River to the eastern side.
When to travel
Madikwe gets much less rain during the November to March green season than the Greater Kruger Reserves and subsequently does not get uncomfortably hot and humid.
How to get there
Access is easy, being only a four-hour-drive in a straight line from Johannesburg on a good tar road, or via light aircraft from the Kruger.
where to stay...
From our visits to Madikwe Game Reserve, we have first-hand knowledge of the hotels and below you can find the ones we most commonly use. Those hotels include mainly our favourites sorted from low-key to deluxe, which are usually smaller hotels with very personalised service, but also some bigger places, if they are the best or only option available. Open, close, then open each tab again to display the images fully.
MADIKWE ITINERARIES
Below are links to various itinerary suggestions, sorted by standard. For bespoke itineraries please contact us directly. Madikwe is renowned for the high quality of its accommodation and as a result, all the lodges are either classified as midrange or luxury.
