Marakele National Park
Marakele National Park
4
About
Valleys give way to grasslands and finally to mountains in this rolling, soaring wildlife sanctuary. Rare rhinos, African elephants, wild dogs and the prehistoric Cycad plants are among its amazing sights.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

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4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles172 reviews
Excellent
64
Very good
72
Average
23
Poor
7
Terrible
6

Phill_Driver
Caboolture, Australia59 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2023 • Couples
Marakele is a great little national park for scenery, but not much good for game viewing.
We stayed in Tlopi Tented Camp which was fabulous. This is camping at it's best. You have a large tent with bathroom and toilet, and a separate private kitchen. All of this is on a platform overlooking a dam.
We didn't see a lot of game at the dam, but I believe from time to time it can be quite productive.
The road up to the lookout is tar, but very narrow in places, where passing an oncoming vehicle can be challenging.
Unfortunately, most of the park is inaccessible, and we got the feeling that the majority of the game are probably in the areas we can't go.
There isn't a lot of road to game drive on. and the scrub in most of the accessible area is too dense to see much.
Read up as much information as you can find before you go, as there is some unusual things about the park.
Probably won't return, simply because we have done it once, and we would prefer the game of Kruger.
Written 27 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

HenriCloete
Trondheim, Norway220 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2022
On a recent trip back home to South Africa, we visited Marakele National Park for the first time. We stayed at Tlopi Tented Camp, watching the finches build their nests around the dam and spotting a variety of kingfishers (I should also mention the very friendly room service). After good summer rains, the vegetation was very lush and game viewing difficult, but we were still rewarded by 6 rhino sightings (4 of them from very close) and 2 leopard sightings in our 5 days there. The drive up the mountain to the lookout point is also worth it for the view over the spectacular landscape of the park. We also really enjoyed how quiet the park was, despite visiting over Christmas.
Written 28 January 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mary A
3 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2022
Beautiful and remote area with breathtaking views and few visitors. The roads were horrible. The Tlopi tented camp was quiet and peaceful, well set up for self catering. The wind was wild however, setting the tents to flapping loudly at night. I got used to it and slept better the second night. Game was not as plentiful as in some parks but I still had many beautiful sightings. Because the roads were so poor i would have like to gone on more park led game drives. Because the park was so empty and I was a single traveler, I would have had to pay two fares as no one else was signed up for most morning and evening drives.
Written 21 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Pieter N
Hartbeespoort, South Africa140 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2022 • Family
If you want your batteries charged and relax in pristine bushveld , camp here. Friendly people, clean ablutions and wonderful scenery…
Nothing to do for youngsters except enjoying the bush
Vervet monkeys a bit of a nuisance, they will try to get to foodstuffs, so be aware. Lots of wild animals and camp has very affordable rates…
Written 24 March 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

padayacheee@gmail.com
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2021 • Family
A majestic park with nature at its best. You get to enjoy the huge mountains, valleys, rivers , fauna and flora in abundance. Peaceful to take in. Almost visiting God's home.
Best was the drive up to Lenong Look out Post on top of the mountain. Driving up the pass requires skill. Not for the feint hearted. Once you are at the top its almost like being up Table Mountain. Refreshing amongst the clouds.
Written 29 November 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

John I
Port Elizabeth, South Africa45 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2021
We stayed at Tlopi tented camp (1 night) and at Motswere guest cottage (3 nights) Both are top-notch but Motswere was superb!

We saw many rhino, elephants, various buck species and smaller animals, and heard lions roaring at night without being lucky enough to see them. Interesting and varied vegetation but saw few birds during our stay.

Now one of our favourite National Parks but plan on visiting for at least a week next time.
Written 16 July 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Ryno
Centurion, South Africa112 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2020
We went Camping in the Bontle Rest Camp 19 - 20 September 2020. The Camp in itself is clean and up to standard with animals walking freely through the camp as the camp is not fenced, this camp is in the section of the park which does not have the big 5. The ablution facilities is very clean and up to standard. Excellent camp to camp for a weekend, would not suggest much longer especially in winter as it can get very very dry. A weekend is more than enough to explore the beauty of this park. You will be lucky if you see any of the big 5. This park is more about the beauty of the landscapes, birds and the smaller animals etc.
Written 21 September 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Ryno
Centurion, South Africa112 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020
We stayed at the Tlopi Tent Camp (Tent no 1 Plover), amazing camp. The kitchen stands alone and is fully equipped with everything one will need, it can close and lock as there is a sliding door. The braai is well maintained and in a good condition. Then you have the tent itself, comfortable bedding, a large fan, a toilet, shower and basin with a mirror, the tent is well maintained and very comfortable. Then you have your deck with the amazing views over the dam and the mountains and now and then some animals come down to drink. Be careful of the monkeys as they like to hang around, but we had no problems as we kept our kitchen and tent closed. Amazing camp to say the least and I will definitely recommend this camp. Absolutely wonderful for a relaxing weekend.

The park itself is in two sections, the big 5 section and then a general game section. The Tlopi Tent Camp is in the big 5 section. One dont see many animals in the big 5 section, we saw a white rhino in the distance, Klipspringers, Vervet monkeys, Waterbuck, Kudu, Baboons, Warthog and a number of birds and insects. You visit this park to see the amazing mountains, plant and bird species and the Lenong Lookout is a must, stunning views from here, also amazing to see the vultures flying around in their numbers. The other section of the park has a number of general game and as we did we went to the Bird Hide and sat there from 12:30 to 14:20 and saw a lot of animals such as Impala, Nyala, Zebra, Kudu, Warthog, Jackal, Bushbuck and Giraffe

An amazing park to relax and enjoy the views nature have to offer, not the park for long hours drives in search of animals.
Written 17 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Romie T
24 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020
We stayed 3 nights at the Tlopi tented camp next to a dam. The view on the dam was beautiful, animals (different types of antilopes, monkeys, elephants, a secretary bird, bee-eater birds... ) came by to drink and even bath (for elephants), it was really silent and relaxing. We also used our car to do the paths but it was very really difficult to spot animals (except rhinos), we also went to the Lennong Viewing Point (that was disappointed, only there is a beautiful view). So we decided mostly to stay and relax on the terrasse of our tent, watching the dam and the animals coming by, relaxing on the sun, reading, hear the nature's sounds (birds, monkeys...). The tent is really nice, big, with confortable beds, nice bathroom (be careful of the scolopendre!), very nice sunny terrasse and a nice and big kitchen (watch out the monkeys). The cleaning of the tent is done every day.
We recommand this place for nature lovers
Think to have a full tank of fuel and food (you can buy nothing there).
Written 7 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

David G
Crowthorne, UK1 018 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2019
A beautiful park, with some remarkable views. Not particularly large and split into two, connected by a gated tunnel.
One side where camps our, general game, but the other side supposedly had big five, of which we saw only Ellies and Rhino. Unfortunately , the week before there had been a major fire , so guess a lot of wildlife had moved away. Probably would not visit again, as it is a long drive and we found that sat nav was useless.
Written 26 November 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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MARAKELE NATIONAL PARK: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

Frequently Asked Questions about Marakele National Park