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Full Day Pilanesberg Experience in Open Vehicle

Badge of ExcellenceJohannesburg, South Africa

9 hours
Pickup offered
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

If you’ve only got a day to fit in a safari drive, then this visit to Pilanesberg Nature Reserve ensures you make the most of it. Begin with an early morning pickup, then head straight to Pilanesberg for a 4x4 safari drive. During the tour, look out for the “Big Five”, take a break for lunch, then take part in an afternoon drive for even more wildlife spotting.

Save time: Enjoy two safari drives in a day at Pilanesberg Nature Reserve
Possible sightings may include elephants, lions, leopards, and rhinos
Curb hunger pangs: This tour includes lunch
Boost your wildlife knowledge and enjoy guide narration along the way

What's Included

National Park fees
Lunch
Driver/guide
Morning open vehicle safari drive (+- 3 Hours Long)
Afternoon closed vehicle safari drive (+- 2 Hours Long)
Hotel pickup and drop-off
Onboard Uncapped WIFI

Drinks
Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Pickup points

Select a pickup point

Start time

06:00 AM

Pickup details

5:30am – 5:45am – Tambo Airport and Hotels in the area 6am – 6:15am – Hotels in the greater Sandton area 6:15am – 6:30am – Hotels in the greater Fourways area

What To Expect

Pilanesberg National Park

7 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Infant seats available
Wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Most travelers can participate

Child rate applies only when sharing with 2 paying adults
Children must be accompanied by an adult
Minimum numbers apply. There is a possibility of cancellation after confirmation if there is not enough passengers to meet requirements. In the event of this occurring, you will be offered an alternative date or a full refund
If infants are on the tour, the tour will have to be done on a private vehicle at an added cost
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 10 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.

Traveler Photos

Featured review

Ramzi_M

We were very lucky to have Lethabo as our guide in this adventure. The park is very big, with different landscapes. and animals roaming the park. Lethabo as a guide was very informative and very patient with us, took his time driving us around to have that perfect picture we all needed. The most exhilarating part was being chased by elephants. The tour operator picked us from our hotel and we drove around 2 hours to reach our destination. the van was very confortable and the driver was very friendly. We recommend taking the tour in any season.

Reviews

4.5

260 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

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Showing 1-10 of 260 reviews

A very exhilarating adventure

Ramzi_M, May 2024

Awesome experience. Totally worth it.

F_H, Mar 2024

This safari was fabulous from the moment we were picked up to the end. We saw many, many animals close up. Everyone was ultra friendly. Vehicles and facilities were in good order and clean. Lunch was good. Views were beautiful. Highly recommend. Note that the drive from Joburg to the park took a few hours, but very interesting drive too.

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Thank you for sharing your fabulous safari experience with us! We're thrilled to hear that from the moment you were picked up until the end of your tour, everything exceeded your expectations. It's fantastic that you were able to see many animals up close and that our team provided ultra-friendly service throughout your visit. We take pride in maintaining our vehicles and facilities to ensure a comfortable and enjoyable experience for our guests, so we're delighted that you found everything in good order and clean. We're also glad to hear that you enjoyed your lunch and appreciated the beautiful views during the safari. The drive from Johannesburg to the park may have been a few hours, but we're pleased that you found it interesting and enjoyable. Thank you for your recommendation, and we hope to welcome you back for another memorable safari adventure in the future.

Good tour but poor foode included

alegomessp, Feb 2024

Even on a raining day we coupd see most of the animals. Food included was not good I was expecting some local dishes not just sandwiches. They should offer better experience like a closed car for raining days. I got all wet.

Response from Host, Mar 2024

Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback on your recent visit to Pilanesberg with us. We're pleased to hear that despite the rain, you were able to see most of the animals, which is always a rewarding experience. Regarding your comments about the lunch provided, we understand your disappointment at not experiencing local dishes. The Pilanesberg Center is currently our only option for lunch within the park. This limitation is due to our commitment to maximizing your time for wildlife viewing. Exiting the park for lunch would significantly reduce the time available for the game drive, which we aim to avoid. We appreciate your input on this matter and will consider how we might enhance our food offerings within the constraints we face. Your feedback is invaluable to us as we continually seek to improve our services and ensure our guests have the most enjoyable and memorable experience possible. We hope to have the opportunity to welcome you back, possibly under sunnier skies, for another adventure. Warm regards Anthony

Amazing

Rachel_A, Dec 2023

We almost got left behind because of an address mixup but the driver and coordinator worked everything out and made sure made it. The park is huuuge and we saw 4 of the Big 5. The pip for lunch was great. It was an amazing day.

Great

michael_l, Dec 2023

Everything was so nice and special my family did enjoy and was great experience for them the animals ,the driving

Spectacular Vacation

Sharon_C, Nov 2023

We had a spectacular experience. We travelled with a large group of family and we were able to see a variety of animals together. We had wonderful tour guides that were able to laugh along with us, as well as educate us. My family was thoroughly satisfied with the meal and overall experience. All of the staff were very friendly and accommodating. We look forward to visiting again.

Saw more than expected

Evan_M, Oct 2023

Saw way more than expected, four out of five of the “big five”. Logistics was very smooth, tour guide very knowledgeable, and lunch was enjoyable. Thanks

Well organised in the morning but faded a little

PETER_C, Oct 2023

Smooth journey and nice experience in the morning safari. Afternoon game drive almost non-existent as guide failed to keep the group moving.

Pilanesburg Safari

Twyla_J, Sep 2023

The tour was wonderful but we were only able to see 2 of the big 5. Sonny, our guide, that drove us to the park was great. Thembi or T, the guide inside the park was great, too. He tried to go everywhere there was a sighting reported but most time the animals were gone. He followed their tracks to no avail. We did see zebras, giraffes, warthogs, hippos, rhinos and several deer species. No lions, leopards, water buffaloes or cheetahs.

Spectacular

Sonny_K, Sep 2023

The safari was fantastic ! Bright, our guide was wonderful and very knowledgeable ! We got to see a lot of game & it was an awesome experience !!!

Seeing many animals

Maxwell_C, Aug 2023

It was a great and smooth experience. We did saw a lot of different species of animal during the day, and the guide at the park is very knowledgeable to explain their characteristics. Although we did not see the lions, as the guide said that the chances are lower recently, but overall is a good try of safari experience if you are short on time to try the Kruger one.

Greattt

Guillermo_G, Apr 2023

I love everything of this trip, animals, people , staff you would join it and enjoy this great experience

Great trip if you have short time

Tatiana_K, Feb 2023

We were able to see a lot of animals on the first ride. The driver was amazing and had the best attitude.

Great tour

Quiana_W, Dec 2022

Great tour and convenient hotel transportation. The lions did not come out during my visit to the park. Overall it was wonderful.

Five stars

Miran_C, Oct 2022

The guide on the actual safari was amazing, charismatic and very knowledgeable. Very good in informing us of what we could see. You are not guaranteed too see everything, and our guide was brilliant in relaying that message to everyone so we had a great time with the wildlife we did manage to see.

Good site

Sara_d, Oct 2022

The park itself. It was a short visit as the drive from Johannesburg is quite long, which made the day a bit less enjoyable.

The Safari was absolutely...

Dylan_F, Oct 2022

The Safari was absolutely fantastic. We saw all sorts of animals: giraffes, lions, hippo's, zebra's but the best of all was the elephants. Our driver Anolt was very good, on time and accommodated breaks. Also out tour guide Bright was fantastic, he was such a pro. He was so good at tracking animals and was so knowledgeable. So glad I wen't with a tour rather than self drive.

Good.

Ida_B, Oct 2022

Good and easy if you only have one day. We didn’t see any lions unfortunately. The lunch is boring if you don’t eat meat.

Response from Host, Oct 2022

hi there thank you for your opinion and feedback , however we cannot guarantee any animal sightings as these animals live in their correct habitat and environment in the Pilanesberg nature reserve. the lunch unfortunately is done only at the Planesberg nature reserve as there is only 1 restaurant within the park with beautiful views . Regards

Lots of big animals

Elizabeth_M, Oct 2022

Loved this tour! Buffalo Soldier is a great guide. Saw rhinos, elephants, giraffes, and cheetahs. Highly recommend

Decent game drive experience

Binu_G, Aug 2022

The trip was good. I was picked up on time from my hotel - real early 5:30am or so. The van made couple of other spots on the way to pick up customers. We reached the reserve around 9 and were transferred to a nice open jeep for morning drive. We saw a few elephants, giraffe and lots of gazelles. We came back for lunch (which was covered). The lunch location has viewpoint where we saw more antelopes and a rhino. After lunch we went for evening drive and saw a few more elephants and giraffes. But no big cats. Overall a decent experience. But we did Masai Mara afterwards - so this wasn't the highlight of our trip.

Response from Host, Aug 2022

Good day Thank you for honest feedback I’m glad you had a good time , With regards to you not spotting any big cats , but we usually spot them at least once a day and we must also note these animals are in a proper wilderness environment which is extremely important within the Pilanesberg reserve. Hope you had an awesome experience at Masai Mara. Regards

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