Jamala Madikwe

What a top notch, extraordinary and classy place. The elegance and richness is truly SPECTACULAR ✨ Words cannot do the beauty of Jamala Madikwe Royal Safari Lodge justice.

There are no words which can describe what Jamala has to offer. It is probably the most luxurious, unique and unforgettable experience we have been to. Just a short trip from Australia (haha), we flew into Johannesburg and were driven about 3.5 hours (easy drive) to this property. The first thing you see is the water hole right in front of the property which is a beautiful area which various animals come to, and you can literally watch them in awe from the pools or sofa or breakfast table. The property itself is stunning, built for royalty, huge bedrooms bathrooms and outdoor areas with private pools. The food was just so so good. So much variety, quality and flavor whilst also incorporating vegetables and fruit for a balanced diet. The game drives are sensational, each one was different and so many animals to see. We were very very lucky to be able to see so many. Every single staff member is kind, caring and courteous. We also had a massage and we highly recommend it, the therapist was highly skilled and it really was so relaxing and therapeutic. Really want to thank KG our safari guide and game driver. He is so passionate and caring and made us feel safe and looked after. This place is what dreams are made of! Don’t hesitate and just book what could be the best trip of a lifetime. Thank you so much Nico and Rodney for creating this out of this world experience and for your kindness and hospitality. We hope one day to come back to this incredible place!

We spent several nights at Jamala Madikwe as part of our South African honeymoon. If you are considering coming here, I highly recommend it! The lodge: The rooms were about 3X the size of my first San Francisco apartment, beautifully designed and curated with plenty of room to relax after a game drive. Can we talk about the watering hole?? I could sit in the lodge for hours just watching the elephants; one morning, we counted over 50 at one time! The food: Lovingly crafted, you can feel the passion that the chef puts into every meal. We were treated to a pre-dinner tour of their kitchen, and they even gave us a cookbook of their recipes to take home. Service: You can feel the love that every staff member has for this magical place, and for giving guests an unforgettable experience. We loved chatting with Rodney at dinner, hearing his stories of animal sightings, and KG (our guide) was so warm and friendly and always made us feel very safe. On one drive, my husband mentioned that he loved the morning cookies...on our departure, they made us a batch to take home and printed out the recipe for us. The game drives surpassed all of our expectations of a safari, we saw all the Big Five and then some, and had some very thrilling close encounters (where our guide always checked in to make sure we felt safe, and moved on if things got too close for comfort). Overall, Jamala helped us to have a honeymoon that we will never forget. Thank you to the whole staff for an incredible trip!