Thornybush Game Lodge

We had a wonderful time at Thornybush. Everything was perfectly organized—the game drives, the daily program, the meals, and the lodge itself. Our room was spacious and beautifully located. our driver-guide Sarah and our tracker, who were incredibly knowledgeable and made every safari unique. The whole team, made us feel truly welcome.

TLDR: Thornybush Game lodge is a great option for first time safari goers, families, and couples. Great experience for what you will spend on this trip in South Africa. We stayed at Thornybush this past May for our wedding anniversary trip in South Africa. It was about a 30-mins drive from the Hoedspruit airport so fly there if you are coming from CPT or JNB. We had a couple of preferences when we were working with our travel agent for our first safari trip. We wanted all inclusive of everything (alcoholic drinks included), semi private, not too crowded, and 5-star. Thornybush met all these requirements. The service was phenomenal. We stayed here for 3 days and it was one of the best places we’ve stayed at and we’ve been to over 30 countries. Now it’s super hard to go back to Safari in a national park because the Thornybush game reserve is amazing. Our game drives happened 2x/day with the same tracker & guide who were btw phenomenal. Make sure you request for Delta and Freedom if you are coming here. They are the best in the business. Literally they’re so good at finding the animals that we literally saw a leopard at least once a day which is not common at all! For the 2 days we were there, we saw a leopard 2x a day! We also witnessed a once in a lifetime scene of a lion hunt, just like in the lion king. It was so amazing. The staff is incredible and they are so attentive we felt like kings and queens! The food is amazing and the drinks are always available. Shout out to the awesome staff and manager! The spa is also great and we did other things like a bush walk and bush dinner. There’s so many activities to do that we didn’t get to enjoy the pool and I wish we stayed more days to be honest. At one point I got really ill because of my motion sickness patch and the staff was so helpful to us and even delivered my dinner to our room. Laundry is also included in the stay. We also hired a photographer on our last night game drive which was the best idea so I highly recommend doing that because we got nice photos of us in the bush. I think the only improvement I can suggest is having an option for either a doctor or nurse practitioner that can provide medication in case guests got ill because that happened to me but thankfully I was fine. The other thing that I think they missed was that they didn’t really acknowledge our wedding anniversary which is kinda disappointing like the room wasn’t decorated or anything like that. I know that they do this for honeymooners but I wish they would also do it for everyone who is celebrating something. Regardless, I highly recommend Thornybush if you have the budget for it!

Wow! This was our first safari experience and we had no idea what to anticipate. Thornybush exceeded our every expectation. The staff was so accommodating and gracious, and the lodge itself so welcoming. We loved our suite, the view and the lovely bathtub! The public spaces were beautifully decorated, and we especially enjoyed both the outdoor and indoor fireplaces. The food was superb, from game drive snacks to the breakfast buffet to the gourmet dinners. Everything was truly divine! And of course, the game drives! Our guide Johannes and tracker Tabogo were informative, fun and went out of their way to be sure we had the very best experience. We cannot recommend Thornybush Lodge enough to those looking for a most spectacular safari experience!

Exceptional experience - honestly the best place we have ever been! Everything was perfect - there are just no words! Huge thank you to our ranger Freedom and tracker Delta who made this experience unforgettable. What a fantastic team and so knowledgeable and friendly. Special thanks also to all of the exceptional staff at the Lodge including our butler Noshem, Cathrine the duty manager for running such an amazing operation and Clarinda for her super friendly attitude. Also thank you to the invisible housekeeping team who kept our room immaculate. So many lovely touches including the personal water bottles, the baskets to use on safari (just a shame we didn’t get these to take home), the jars of sweets, nuts and biscuits in the room and the well stocked mini bar which even includes fresh milk. We loved just loved the ambiance of the lodge from being woken at 5am and going down to the main area for coffee and pre-breakfast, the game drives with Amarula coffee stops in the mornings and sundowner drinks on the afternoon drives, the absolutely amazing dinners, boma and bush dinner (an unforgettable birthday dinner). A bit of free time during the day to swim. Be prepared for an absolutely full on experience- we realised that showers needed to be taken before the afternoon game drive as there was only time for a quick freshen up/change of clothes upon return and before dinner. And then, of course, the main attraction - the animals! So close to them and to see them in their natural habitat was just overwhelming that at times it just made us so emotional. We are definitely planning on returning with our daughter and her partner, hopefully September 2027 so we can experience the Kruger at different time of year. See you all then!

It was a once in a lifetime wildlife experience. The lodge and service were amazing! The food was incredible. The morning and afternoon evening safaris were once in a lifetime experiences where we saw the Big 5 in our 3 days there. I would love to one day return.