Pilanesberg Game Reserve and neighbouring Sun City form the proverbial odd couple. Both are popular weekend retreats from congested Gauteng, but where the tranquil Pilanesberg dazzles with its Big Five game viewing, Sun City is an altogether more glitzy destination.
t The wide landscape of Pilanesberg Game Reserve
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t which can be toured by jeep
Pilanesberg and Sun City were established in what was then the homeland of the republic of Bophuthatswana, shortly after it accepted nominal independence from apartheid South Africa in 1977. The brainchild of hotelier Sol Kerzner, Sun City started life as a resort complex offering a bouquet of activities – gambling, pornographic movies, risqué stage shows – that were banned in South Africa but legal in Bophuthatswana.
Developed simultaneously to Sun City, Pilanesberg Game Reserve was forged from a 550-sq-km (193-sq-mile) tract of overgrazed, low-yield farmland. This was an ambitious process that culminated in the relocation and release of thousands of individual animals across 19 different mammal species.
During apartheid, Pilanesberg rather languished in the background while Sun City flourished as a domestic tourism venue. Today, Pilanesberg is perhaps the bigger draw; the reserve offers the closest bona fide game-viewing to Johannesburg, home as it is to all of the Big Five and an astonishing 350 bird species. It also ranks as one of the most rewarding malaria-free self-drive safari destinations anywhere in Africa.
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Balloon trips over Pilanesberg Game Reserve are a popular safari option. Drifting in total silence over the herds of wildlife that peacefully graze within the rim of the extinct volcano is a remarkable experience. The trips are operated by Air Trackers (hotairballoonsafarisa.co.za), and can be booked either through the Pilanesberg accommodation or at the Welcome Centre in Sun City. Rates include a one-hour balloon ride and a game drive before breakfast at one of the lodges.
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t African elephants walking through the reserve’s grass as the sun begins to set
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t A leopard in the dark, one of the park’s most abundant mammals
The circular layout of this park can be traced to prehistoric times, when this area was the crater of a volcano. Three rings of little hills – mounds of cooled lava – enclose the reserve and the whole area is raised above the plain.
The decision to establish a reserve here was economic: to benefit the local people, and to complement the nearby resort of Sun City. Re-stocking the overgrazed farmland turned into one of the most ambitious game relocation ventures ever attempted in South Africa. Appropriately referred to as Operation Genesis, it involved the release of 6,000 mammals into the new reserve. To ensure the success of this challenging venture, alien plants were removed and replaced with indigenous ones, telephone lines were diverted, farming structures demolished and the ravages of erosion repaired.
Elephant, black rhino and leopard head the impressive list of wildlife that can be seen at Pilanesberg today. More than 200 km (125 miles) of good gravel roads traverse the park, and there are a number of walk-in viewing hides. For visitors staying overnight, there is also the excitement of night drives.
The Pilanesberg is home to a number of birds, notably a variety of raptors. Cape vultures nest on the steep cliffs of the mountains and a number of feeding stations have been established to encourage the survival of this endangered bird.
The reserve offers a choice of accommodation, from the luxurious Bakubung Lodge, which overlooks a hippo pool, to pleasant campsites.
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STAY Although Sun City is the largest and best known hotel in the vicinity of the Pilanesberg, those seeking a more tranquil bush retreat have the choice of two upmarket lodges and a more budget-friendly rest camp within the reserve. Kwa Maritane Bush Lodge ⌂ 7 km (4 miles) NE of Sun City ∑ legacyhotels.co.za Tshukudu Bush Lodge ⌂ 12 km (7 miles) NW of Sun City ∑ legacyhotels.co.za Manyane Resort ⌂ 20 km (12 miles) NE of Sun City ∑ goldenleopardresorts.co.za. |
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t The honey-coloured walls of the Palace of the Lost City, Sun City’s foremost hotel
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t The sprawling layout of the elaborate Palace of the Lost City
Set in a fairly bleak part of the North West Province, Sun City was developed in the 1970s. The resort’s casino was a key part of its initial success, since gambling was banned in South Africa at that time. It soon became apparent that the complex could not cope with the influx of visitors, and a further two hotels were added in 1980 and 1984. Then in 1992, the Palace of the Lost City opened, and today it is still Sun City’s five-star flagship hotel. In the same year, the Valley of the Waves was constructed below the hotel and a second golf course added to the complex. The Valley of the Waves is one of Sun City’s top attractions – a huge waterpark featuring a “roaring lagoon” with a wave machine, a mock volcano and a number of thrilling waterslides, including the 70-m (230-ft) Temple of Courage.
Although changes in gambling law introduced in 1996 mean that casinos have since sprung up around the country, Sun City continues to attract visitors with its many other entertainment options, which include elaborate stage shows and music concerts, a man-made lake for parasailing, water-skiing and jet-skiing, stables and a ten-pin bowling alley. The complex also houses restaurants and boutiques, a cinema, a spa and swimming pools. At the entrance to the resort is Kwena Gardens, home to more than 7,000 Nile crocodiles that can be seen from elevated walkways.
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