Madikwe Game Reserve

The Madikwe Game Reserve in South Africa was announced to the public in August 1991 and officially became part of the Board’s estate on 31 October the same year. A detailed feasibility study showed that wildlife-based tourism was the most beneficial option for this remote and economically depressed area.

Madikwe Game Reserve is home to 66 large mammal species including the Big Five and approximately 300 resident and migrant bird species. It is one of South Africa’s largest game reserves.

Madikwe also has the distinction of being one of the few game reserves in the world to be proclaimed purely on the grounds of being the most appropriate and sustainable land use for an area. Madikwe represents an extension to this philosophy in that it is run as a joint venture between the State, the private sector and local communities. The success of this approach has made Madikwe the role model for similar ventures being started up elsewhere in South Africa.

The luxury game reserve consists of vast plains of open woodlands and grasslands, dissected by the rugged Rant van Tweedepoort, and bordered in the south by the Dwarsberg Mountains. The area is dotted with huge rocky hills or inselbergs.

The entire reserve has been enclosed in a 150 km perimeter fence which has been electrified to prevent the escape of elephants and the larger predators.

Guests staying at our luxury safari lodge are taken on conducted day and night game drives or bush walks. There are no day visitor facilities; only residents at a lodge may enter the reserve. If you’re ready to visit the Madikwe Game Reserve in South Africa, book your stay with us at Mateya today.