Pan African Safari Lodge — Hotel in Nkomazi

Currently here with my husband and two teenage children, and we have had the most incredible experience.

From the moment we landed in Johannesburg, everything felt well-organised and safe. We were met at the terminal by a representative from Pan African Safari, who escorted us to the bus station where we met our driver. This was a lovely touch, especially as we had some concerns about safety around the airport after hearing about crime levels — I felt completely reassured. The drive from Joburg to the lodge is long, but the driver stops halfway so you can stretch, get food or drinks, which was much appreciated.

Check-in & Rooms Check-in was smooth and easy. Brenda on reception was so welcoming and explained everything clearly. Throughout the week we often went back to reception for advice or to book activities, and the whole team there was always friendly and helpful.

We stayed in rooms 5 and 6. Room 6 is a spacious family room with a large double bed and bunk beds, while both rooms were clean, comfortable, and well maintained. Beds were very comfy, linen and towels were changed regularly, and the air conditioning worked perfectly. Both rooms also had large balconies, a kettle with hot drink sachets, fridge, bottled water, and even a complimentary bottle of bubbly — such a thoughtful touch!

Facilities & Dining The lodge has two lovely pools that were always clean and inviting. Meal times offered a great variety of food, and as a vegetarian, I was really impressed that the lodge provided me with specific options after I emailed them in advance. My autistic son has a limited diet, and one of the kind kitchen staff noticed he hadn’t been eating much. She went out of her way to ask what he preferred and made sure he had meals he would enjoy for the rest of the week — an incredibly thoughtful gesture that made a huge difference to our stay.

The bar staff were equally wonderful — always friendly, helpful, and even offering to carry drinks over if needed. The owner, Modou, regularly came around at dinner to chat with guests and make sure everyone was enjoying themselves, which gave the lodge a really personal and welcoming atmosphere.

Wildlife & Activities The lodge grounds themselves are alive with monkeys, impala, warthogs, mongoose, and more, which was such a treat to see.

During our stay there was even a lion and leopard sighting in Marloth Park. While it was both exciting and a little unnerving, the lodge staff immediately reassured us by explaining clearly what to do (and not do) if we happened to encounter them. They also took the extra step of personally accompanying all guests back to their rooms to ensure everyone’s safety — we felt completely looked after.

We’ve done two morning safaris in Kruger with Louis, who is absolutely outstanding. He’s not only knowledgeable but also goes above and beyond to give guests the best possible experience. We’ve already booked an extra safari with him, plus we’re looking forward to two sunset safaris around Marloth Park before leaving.

We also enjoyed a morning bush walk with Hope, who was fantastic — he showed us different plants, trees, and animal tracks, and kept everyone entertained with games and jokes. The Panorama Tour with Elly was beautiful, with highlights like Bourke’s Luck, though I would have loved more time there to explore properly. The markets along the way were also a nice touch for souvenirs.

Overall I cannot recommend Pan African Safari Lodge highly enough. From the staff to the facilities to the unforgettable safari experiences, everything has been beyond expectations. We are already looking at rebooking — thank you to everyone who made our family...

This was my first trip on a South African safari holiday and I really didn’t know what to expect. The price of the holiday was extremely reasonable and so I was only expecting a basic lodge and service. I couldn’t have been more wrong. It was absolutely brilliant and incredible value for money. There were various types of accommodation from smaller chalets to a Presidential suite. There were 2 small pools with sun loungers, a bar and under cover eating area as well an an open eating area with fire pit, which was set out in such a way that encouraged people (if they wanted) to meet and come together chat and make friends which was lovely. |The manager and staff could not have been more friendly and helpful. |Drivers who took us on safari’s were helpful, friendly, informative and made every effort to ensure we saw as many animals as we could and were able to get close and take great photos. |The manager went out of his way to accommodate everyone and nothing was too much trouble. We had a leaky toilet and within 15 minutes of reporting maintenance came and checked it and within 30 minutes we were told the toilet needed replacing and so we were offered the Presidential suite as an apology for the inconvenience, the suite was beautiful. |The food was freshly prepared and cooked throughout the day, with full English breakfast, croissants and fruit, lunches and dinners all cooked beautifully and never repeated. The bar was well stocked and the prices exceptionally reasonable. |We had animals such as zebra, Giraffe, Gnu, small mammals and birds etc which actually came onto the lodge grounds.|A ten minute walk away takes you to the edge of the Kruger grounds where we were feet away from elephants and 100 yards from, hippos, crocks etc. needless to |say we an amazing holiday. I can’t thank the Manager and staff enough for their hard work, professionalism, kindness and for each and every staff member going out of their way to provide us with the perfect holiday....

We really enjoyed our stay at this lodge. The whole team gave their best to make our vacation magical! Our flight was delayed by a full day and we would have missed our first safari, but the team gave their best to accommodate for us, rescheduled our trips, and organised a pick up for us. Already on the drive to the lodge you can spot zebras or giraffes, and latest at the lodge you’ll be able to spot warthogs and other small animals close by. As there is still load shedding going on in South Africa the lodge has invested into a generator, which can be loud at times, but nothing earplugs can fix :), and you’ll still have lights, Wi-Fi and water on return for that. The safari tours we did were amazing as our guide gave his best to find the big 5 for us, and even more, so I can highly recommend that! The rooms are practical and the beds come with mosquito nets, but we were also told that they are spraying around the compound to reduce mosquitos. We haven’t seen a lot of bugs/mosquitos during our stay in May. Lunch and dinner were held outside and together on a big table, which gave us a chance to meet fellow travellers and make new friends. The food was really good and plenty! Thank you for this beautiful experience, we really had...