Bakgatla Gate, Pilanesberg National Park 318, 0316 Pilanesberg, South Africa
#7 of 11 hotels in Pilanesberg
Guests' ChoiceBased on 1409 hotel reviews
8.9Cleanliness
9.4
Comfort
9.4
Location
9.3
Facilities
9.1
Staff
9.5
Value for money
8.7
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End of dialog contentReviewed: 28 April 2024
Jeffrey
South AfricaThis review has been hidden because it doesn't meet our guidelines.
Reviewed: 22 April 2024
Tony
South AfricaThe food
The staff were great
Stayed in April 2024
Reviewed: 16 April 2024
Jan
Belgiumnothing, everything was top!
the selection during breakfast was very good. Guests could choose from the menu and also use the buffet. Both lunch and dinner were catered with starter, main course and dessert and the quality of the food was very good. For participants in the game drives, a short refreshment was provided in the morning and a tasty snack with a wide range of drinks at 4 o'clock. The restaurant and terrace was also very tastefully decorated and the furniture was comfortable. Service was particularly attentive and friendly. The bungalow was extremely clean, very nicely decorated and equipped with all comforts and facilities. (Nice outdoor shower and spacious sitting bath) The bed had a mosquito net and the bungalow had a small outdoor terrace. The resort's swimming pool was clean and the sun loungers were comfortable and placed so that one had enough privacy. Finally, the game drives were extremely well organised, with well-versed guides and in sturdy and comfortable cars. What made the resort really special was the absolute cleanliness of everything and the friendliness of the staff.
Stayed in April 2024
Reviewed: 9 April 2024
Sven
GermanyPortions were a little small, BUT I was able to order additional dishes. There was also some miscommunication amongst the staff at time, mixed messages and unfortunately, getting confused with a group that checked out at 4 am and we got a call as well. For full board, I would've expected to have a few snacks, chips or nuts, when having a drink and not going on a safari. If you are hungry, you can order from a seperate menu, but at an additional cost. Perhaps be more specific about what you mean with full board inclusive, as I was surprised when we found out drinks were separate.
Very tasty, well prepared food. There was a good variety to choose from. It is a 3 course menu, for which I suggest one does all 3 courses. Room was fantastic, really enjoyed the outdoor shower, beds are extremely comfortable, the staff super friendly and the game drives (2 per day, morning and evening) were amazing.
Stayed in April 2024
Reviewed: 7 April 2024
Jens
GermanyWhen cats where seen and reported over the radio to the safari vehicles across the park it tended to create literal traffic jams in the bush around the animal spotting. This really takes something away from the experience and is definitely not something you want to share on insta.
An overall great experience with extremely friendly staff. Nice food mostly served at the table which added to the exclusive experience of the place. Really well equipped cabins with outdoor showers. My son very impressed with the wifi even if our cabin was located quite far away from the main building. Last but not least mostly great safari drives. We managed to get on five fine drives in total during our stay. Didn't get to see all of the big five though. But still an amazing experience for us being first time on a safari lodge.
Stayed in April 2024
Reviewed: 28 March 2024
Nadine
South AfricaThe reason for a 9 rating: The service at meals was not the best, on the first night for dinner we had a table outside in the far corner and we were totally forgotten until Aaron came over to us. Thereafter we were sorted whenever Aaron was around, but he was not there at breakfasts, and we felt the difference. For a 5 star lodge, the restaurant staff definitely need to up the game. After the first night, the restaurant manager did come over to us to apologise and we were offered complimentary mimosas which we were appreciative of as this showed that we had acknowledged. Other than that, the food was great and the facilities were superb. FYI - the rooms do not have an iron, which is offered at an extra charge with laundry...but you would be on game drives anyway so no need for perfectly ironed clothes in my opinion lol. The bees outdoors are the most hectic I have experienced at a game lodge, you literally cannot sit outside with a drink unless the staff burns coffee, which when requested takes forever to get sorted, so maybe the staff could be more proactive here.
Where do I start! We have been to Shepherd's Tree before, the sister lodge, and absolutely loved it, so we decided to try Ivory Tree on the other side of the park because of a great deal on Booking.com. Great decision - Love Ivory Tree, the rooms are clean and comfortable, the food is great, good selection of wines and my favourite - the game drives! Our ranger, Ikageng was phenomenal - he is super experienced and accurately predicted animals' moves and directions. Amazing sightings with the thrill of tracking lion and cheetah, which were the only two of the major game we didn't see, but the other sightings made up for it by far. Two leopard sightings amongst so much more, and Ikageng treated our drives as if they were his own and he was going on them for the first time as well. It was my mum and sister's first time on a safari holiday and they did not want to leave. Highly recommend this place! A special shout out to Ikageng, Aaron our waiter who took special care of us and a huge thank you to Alice, who was so warm and welcoming, and ensured we were allocated a room close to the reception as requested. The special effort really meant a lot.
Stayed in March 2024
Reviewed: 11 March 2024
Claire
South AfricaThe spa could be better.
Clean. Well maintained. Everything you need.
Stayed in January 2024
Reviewed: 5 March 2024
Mary
United StatesThe beds are too hard for me to be comfortable.
Beautiful location, friendly staff, good service, enjoyable game drives.
Stayed in March 2024
Reviewed: 27 February 2024
Tara
United KingdomNothing to dislike, although it would be nice to have a gym.
Super friendly staff, really good food, safari drives were super and a very pretty location.
Stayed in February 2024
Reviewed: 25 February 2024
Nicolette
United KingdomIt meet our expectations. An authentic setting with silver service and a great menu selection
Good variety of breakfast available.
Stayed in February 2024
Reviewed: 23 February 2024
Omar
South AfricaWould have appreciated heads up on monkeys . Had an invasion . They took most of the complimentary items from the coffee station as well as some snacks.They then spent the rest of the day on the patio and drank water out of the pool .
Stayed in February 2024
Reviewed: 22 February 2024
Kelly
South AfricaOnly thing I would suggest is to do the Bushbumbles ride a little earlier or later when it’s more cool so that the kids have more of a chance of seeing animals. My son was very sad he didn’t get to see elephants and lions, we only saw 1 Rhino
Breakfast were amazing
Stayed in February 2024
Reviewed: 19 February 2024
Claudio
South AfricaFood was great, staff were really friendly and the facilities were fantastic.
Stayed in February 2024
Reviewed: 19 February 2024
Anjali
South AfricaRooms are a lot smaller than expected. All inclusive is great but zero drinks are included as part of this (not even soft drinks). The boma night was a cool experience but the food was not seasoned well at all and desserts were terrible - not at all 5 star quality here and at the restaurant (banoffee Swiss roll, tiramisu, pecan tart and cheesecake)
The staff were amazing, location within Pilansberg, facilities decent and food was lovely (starters and mains). Also unlimited game drives for your entire stay and we had an amazing ranger (Clifford). Great turn down service and complimentary bubbles for our anniversary.
Stayed in February 2024
Reviewed: 17 February 2024
Victoria
United KingdomLoved everything! The game drives were incredible with very nice and knowledgeable rangers, the food was non-stop and very tasty, and the staff made a special effort to decorate the place for the Valentine’s day and there was live music for dinner which made our day feel very special. Such a great place!
Stayed in February 2024
Reviewed: 16 February 2024
Daniel
United KingdomBrilliant game drives with knowledgeable rangers. Facilities and food all excellent. Staff were great, friendly and attentive. We stayed in the suite which had everything we could ever need. We were on our honeymoon and they made it extra special!
Stayed in January 2024
Reviewed: 15 February 2024
Gwendoline
South AfricaThe staff at lunch time seemed a bit confused by which table ordered what. Not a big deal at all but given the level of professionalism otherwise, it was noticeable 😉
Very nice lodge, amazing game drives (thank you Sean!), great food, we had a good time at Ivory Tree.
Stayed in February 2024
Reviewed: 10 February 2024
Juan
ArgentinaExcellent game driving experience. Thanks Perlo for some mind-blowing safaris! All meals were fantastic, too.
Stayed in January 2024
Reviewed: 8 February 2024
Ralph
United Kingdomhave a buffet option for lunch ,or sandwich option rather than only 3 course meal
quality food excellent
Stayed in February 2024
Reviewed: 6 February 2024
Derrick
United StatesNothing
Peaceful stay and friendly workers
Stayed in January 2024
Reviewed: 6 February 2024
Cristina
RomaniaAccomodation would not be good in winter because there is no indoor shower. A hand shower could be easily added to the bathtub ! Some of the stuff was not properly trained. The roads are really terrible, bad for your back after a few days...
The Game Drives with Sibusiso were great. Very knowledgeable, pleasant guy, discovered almost all the Big5 and not just once! The staff was very friendly, helpful and always smiling. The rooms were great - comfortable, original, quiet. The food was exquisite - creatively presented, tasty and right size !
Stayed in February 2024
Reviewed: 1 February 2024
Nikki
United KingdomWe were told it was all inclusive and we accept the bar was additional but to have to pay for water we felt was not acceptable, very little was left on our room at night.
Loved the premium feel and friendliness of staff. Location was perfect for the Reserve. We had an excellent guide Sibu for our Game Drives, he really had exceptional knowledge and took time to share it with us. The property matched us well with the guests who accompanied us on each game drive.
Stayed in January 2024
Reviewed: 31 January 2024
James
United KingdomNot a negative, but the children struggled a little sometimes with the food that was available in the evenings, the grown up's were fine though, No problems at all with the breakfasts!
The safaris were better than I could ever imagine, I traveled with my wife, 16 year old twins, and and our family friends who had a 11 year old and an 8 year old and everyone had such a great time, we saw so much, and experienced so much our guide Dylan was so knowledgeable. I was dreading the 4:30am wake-up calls, but after you've been out you cannot wait as you want to get out there to see what you might find the following day, could not rate the Ivory Tree Lodge highly enough, all the staff were so nice.
Stayed in January 2024
Reviewed: 31 January 2024
Yordan
South AfricaOutsourcing service from the staff. Beautiful surroundings.
Stayed in January 2024
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