Tuningi Safari Lodge

Tuningi Lodge is situated in the world renowned Big 5 Madikwe Game Reserve, a 75,000 hectare malaria-free, protected area. Madikwe Game Reserve is a true African success story and Tuningi proudly showcases this in magnificent style.  This private and exclusive 5* lodge offers guests superior accommodation enhanced by an impressive Big 5 safari experience.

Daily game drives in open 4x4 vehicles allow guests to sense the excitement of the African bush. Lion, elephant, buffalo, white and black rhino, leopard and the rare and endangered wild dog are only some of the sightings that can be experienced during your stay. Bush walks can also be arranged.

Keen wildlife photographic enthusiasts will love the underground hide - sit and watch while elephants walk right passed the windows, offering a unique perspective of these enormous creatures. Amazing images can be captured with a wide-angle lens, and even some creative low angle photos of the giraffe, zebra, buffalo, kudu or impala bending down to drink.

The interior of the main lodge is 'Colonial African Chic' and the main thatched building offers beautiful indoor and outdoor lounges, an elegant dining room and magnificent rim-flow pool that overlooks the waterhole. These spaces are interlinked by a sweeping wooden deck that leads to a boma under an ancient fig tree. This boma deck is perfect for outdoor dinners around a blazing log fire where you can still see and hear the wildlife a few feet away.

Tuningi Lodge can accommodate 16 guests in 4 Luxury Suites and 2 Exclusive Family Suites, each consisting of 2 suites with an adjoining lounge and dining room. All rooms have air-conditioning, ceiling fans, fireplaces, en-suite bathrooms, beautifully appointed double baths, outdoor rock showers and private wrap-around wooden decks for enjoying the indigenous bush and wildlife on view.

Rates Include

All meals; the Madikwe Conservation Levy; the Madikwe Gate entry fee/FedAir landing/departure fee (if applicable); and twice daily morning/afternoon shared game drives are included.

Children Policy

Children of any age are welcome. Rates available on request. Children under 5 years of age are not allowed on game drives, but special 'Bush Bumbles' are available. Children under 16 years of age are not allowed on bush walks.

Bush Walks / Walking Safaris

Children under the age of 16 years are not permitted on guided walks in the reserve.  Guests over 60 years old wishing to join a guided walk are required to have a letter or certificate from their doctor confirming they are in good health and are physically fit to do the walk. A  guided walk can last a couple of hours and involve walking over uneven terrain that may contain dangerous wildlife in potentially high temperatures. Guests may need to move quickly and for a sustained period through rough bush terrain if instructed to do so by their guide.

Regardless of age or the provision of a doctors certificate, the final decision on whether a guest can join a guided walk remains with the guide and lodge manager.

Tuningi is one of few lodges in a Big 5 reserve specialising in families with children of all ages. Children over the age of 5 can join the first game drive with their parents where their behaviour will determine whether they continue joining normal drives or whether they will be moved to kiddies drives. All children under the age of 5 will be taken on short 'kiddies bumbles' after breakfast in the mornings.

Babies will be looked after by housekeepers who all have professional training, including First Aid. Babysitting will be charged extra.

Lots of toys, lego, colouring books and puzzles are available any time of the day, while the lodge managers host formal activities every day, which include treasure hunts for natural items collected from the bush such as bones, feathers, nests, eggs, etc; t-shirt painting with animal stencils; clay building competitions; and tracing of tracks around the waterhole.

Older children are issued with an activity book where they can record sightings and animal behaviour every day.

On boma evenings children can make their own bread on sticks, or toast marshmallows on the fire.

Guest Rating: 4.4 / 5.0 based on 8 ratings

Directions For Drivers

PLEASE NOTE: The main gates open at 06:00 and close at 18:00. Guests who arrive after this time will not be allowed to self-drive to the lodge. The lodge will send a representative to escort guests to the lodge at an additional cost. SUGGESTION: Refuel at Sun Village/Zeerust as there is no fuel available inside the reserve. DO NOT follow your GPS after Zeerust/Sun City - it will take you on the wrong roads. 

From Johannesburg Airport via N4 tar road: Follow the R21 north, to Pretoria (Tshwane) through Kempton Park. After 40 km follow N1 north to Pretoria (Tshwane), Pietersburg (Polokwane). After about 12 km, take N4 west into Pretoria (Tshwane), to Rustenburg or Hartebeespoort Dam. Follow the N4 to Hartebeespoort Dam.

Take the N4 to Zeerust past Brits, Rustenberg, and Swartruggens. Zeerust is approximately 220 km from Pretoria. In Zeerust turn right on the R47/R49 to Gaborone/Madikwe Game Reserve. After +/- 90 km you will see a sign on the right for the Abjaterskop Gate of the Madikwe Game Reserve.

Continue on this road past the Abjaterskop Gate for 7 km. You will find a small thatched gate (Wonderboom Gate) on the right into the reserve - turn in here.

Once you are in the reserve, follow the signs to the lodge. Allow between 20-30 minutes to drive from the gate to the lodge. : Do not get out of your car until you reach the lodge. You may see some wildlife on your way - if you do, slow down and maintain a good distance. Do not drive off-road in any circumstances.

From Sun City via N4 tar road: Turn right from as you leave Sun City onto the R565. After a few km you will come to a junction with the R565 to the left, and the R556 signposted straight ahead. Turn left here to keep on the R565 signposted Phokeng and Rustenberg, and it is 38 km from here to the junction with the N4 tar road. When you reach the N4, turn right onto the road (signposted Swartruggens and Zeerust) and continue for around 130 km on this road to Zeerust. In Zeerust turn right on the R47/R49 and follow the directions as above.

From Johannesburg or Sun City via gravel roads: There is a gravel road from Sun City to Madikwe - this route is a lot shorter than the current tar road route, however as the roads are gravel and the signs to Madikwe are rather inconsistent, we would not really recommend this route to customers.

General Information For Guests

All rooms have air conditioning and heating, a fireplace in the bedroom and bathroom, an outdoor shower, mini bar (stocked on request), a telephone, mosquito netting, a hair dryer,umbrellas, a safe, tea/coffee making facilities, mammal and bird reference guides and a private wooden viewing deck.

The 'Colonial African chic' main thatched lodge includes a lounge, dining room and a well-stocked bar with an impressive rim flow pool that overlooks a waterhole, all interlinked by a wooden deck that leads to the boma area.

There is complimentary Wi-Fi in the main reception and lapa area.

All credit cards are accepted.

The lodge has a small curio shop and a gym (fitted with a treadmill, spinning bike and cable cross weight trainer). There is also an underground hide on ground level with the wildlife that comes to drink at the waterhole.

There is a satellite TV showing sport channels only.

The lodge is a 20 minute drive from the Madikwe Airstrip.

Please note that the use of drones is strictly prohibited in the Madikwe Game Reserve.

Bush Walks / Walking Safaris

Children under the age of 16 years are not permitted on guided walks in the reserve.  Guests over 60 years old wishing to join a guided walk are required to have a letter or certificate from their doctor confirming they are in good health and are physically fit to do the walk. A  guided walk can last a couple of hours and involve walking over uneven terrain that may contain dangerous wildlife in potentially high temperatures. Guests may need to move quickly and for a sustained period through rough bush terrain if instructed to do so by their guide.

Regardless of age or the provision of a doctors certificate, the final decision on whether a guest can join a guided walk remains with the guide and lodge manager.

Popular Alternatives to Tuningi Safari Lodge

These are the top properties booked by people who considered staying at Tuningi Safari Lodge, but for one reason or another booked a different property. It may have been that Tuningi Safari Lodge was not available on the nights they wanted to stay, or they decided that somewhere else was better suited to their budget or itinerary.

If you're not sure which place might be best for your own trip then either give us a call or get in touch via the website, and we'd be delighted to run through the options with you.