When most people think of Africa they think of the vast wildlife and the impressive safaris. It isn’t everyday that someone has the opportunity to experience African wildlife, so we budgeted on doing so. We decided to do a luxury safari rather than a self-drive type as we have never been on a real family vacation and it has been challenging living here in Africa with all my work rotations to Botswana etc. We deserved a well earned break. After searching for child friendly lodges we decided to do a safari in the Madikwe Game Reserve which is a 4 hour drive from Johannesburg and is located in the North West province of South Africa where it borders Botswana to the North. It is a malaria-free reserve so it makes it a great kid-friendly choice.
We found the perfect place, Jaci’s Tree Lodge. They gave a us a stellar deal for two nights as it is Winter in South Africa and not the high-season for them. The lodge was built into the trees which was very fun for the kids and Jimmy (it reminded him of the Ewok Village in Star Wars). The staff were great and attentive. They were so good to the kids. It did get cold in the evenings and the lodge was mostly open air so we stayed cozy with lots of layers and hot water bottles. The food was very yummy and very English with tea service and brunch rather than lunch. I suppose it reflects back to British Colonial times.
Day 1- Arrival:
We had a very slow start to our departure from Johannesburg- our vehicle battery was dead after we loaded in the luggage and the kids into their car seats. My companies CEO lent us his company SUV and we left it sitting in our parking garage for a month without starting it. Oops. That was frustrating for us but we managed to get going and after a long four hour drive we arrived in time for the first night safari drive. Seeing as Jimmy rarely has time to himself while we are here in South Africa I was happy for him to go solo on the first drive (as kids are not allowed on the 3 hour safari drives so I stayed back with the kids). He had enough time to unload the SUV and give us quick hugs and kisses. This left the kids & I plenty of time to wonder the trails and check out the lodge. We met Jimmy for a late dinner where he told us his stories from his drive and showed us the amazing photos he captured. We made plans for the next days early morning game drive which was to start at 6:30am. We all fell asleep that night to the sound of crickets, monkeys and other animals that lived around our tree house.
A Jackal takes a cautious drink:
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Day 2:
The safari guide woke us up the next morning with a light tap on our door. While the kids slept Jimmy was able to make it to the lodge to make some coffee and bring it back to the room for me and snacks for the kids before he departed on his morning safari drive. The amount of animals he saw during his drive was really great. They had a mid-way rest stop at some caves where they enjoyed coffee outside. We met for a late brunch which was so nice. They hosted us on the large patio that had stairs leading down to some trails. Brunch was a long affair so the kids were able to go down the steps and safely play while we sipped coffee- bliss! Our safari guide informed us that the kids jungle drive that we booked wasn’t necessary as we would be the only guests for the afternoon game drive so they would allow us to bring the kids along. Yay! Rather than a 45 minute kids jungle drive we would be able to experience a 3 hour drive with the kids. Lucky us! After brunch we visited the amenities at the lodge- a pool and a look-out over a water hole. We headed back to our room for an outside showers and a little nap before we had to depart on the game drive. The evening drive was great. We saw a herd of elephants!, zebras, lions, kudu, impala, giraffes, etc. The kids did wonderful even though the ride was very bumpy. Half-way through the drive we had a rest stop with drinks and snacks which recharged Claire & Rhys for the rest of the drive. On our way back to the lodge for dinner Rhys fell asleep in my arms. The had such a great day 🙂 Dinner was yummy yet again and our safari guide joined us this time so we were able to ask her plenty of questions. A perfect day.
C/W: Lilac-Breasted Roller, Crested Barbet, Red-billed Hornbill & Southern Carmine Bee-eater:
Claire asked us to take a photo of her here so she could ‘remember it forever’:
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Day 3- Departure:
On our last day at the lodge we woke up early again but this time with the kids in tow. We dressed in several layers as it is freezing in the early morning before the sun comes out. It was just our family again in the game drive vehicle as we drove to the southern portion of the park. Our mission was to find some Rhinos. Jimmy saw two on his first game drive but I have never seen one in the wild so I was excited. We didn’t see a lot of animals prior to our mid-drive break. It was so nice to get out of the safari vehicle and run around with the kids, have some coffee & hot cocoa. It re-energized us all and the sun was out so it started to warm up. Shortly after our break we located a Rhino! I was so excited. After watching it graze for a long time we headed back to the lodge. Claire & Rhys both fell asleep in our arms and Jimmy & I soaked up the sun and marveled at how great this trip was for our family. We had a nice brunch when we arrived back to the lodge and packed up our SUV for the long ride home.
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The trip was amazing and one we will never forget 🙂
