Tshukudu Bush Lodge
Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa
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About the Hotel
Marvel at the grandeur of wide open plains. Savor the flavors of African cuisine. Ponder the magnificent silence of the bush around a blazing evening fire. This is a typical day at Tshukudu Bush Lodge, in Pilanesberg National Park just a few hours north of Johannesburg. This Legacy Hotels & Resorts International affiliates, whose name means "place of the rhino," features six luxury cottages and an individual private balcony ideal for potential sightings of over hundreds of bird and animal speciesâ€"including the Big Five.
Location
Tshukudu Bush Lodge
Pilanesberg National Park, , South Africa
Pilanesberg National Park, South Africa
2000
Nearest Airport: HLA
Features and Amenities
Reviews for Tshukudu Bush Lodge
Fabulous place and guides for a short safari
Pilansberg is great for a short safari experience. It's easily accessible, pretty compact, but large enough to to have a fantastic array of game, and a beautiful combination of mountains, plains and lakes. Tshukudu is a fabulous base, being inside the park, giving the opportunity to start your game drives as the sun is coming up and get out again late afternoon until it's dark. The lodge also has beautiful views over a largish plain, backed by hills, with a waterhole, so you can just keep on game watching right from your balcony! The service at the lodge is excellent and the food and wines,etc. plentiful and good quality. Special mention to our guide Jafari; he was excellent. Very knowledgeable about the bush, the animals, birds, flowers and a whole lot more. He was considerate on the drives and has a great knack of getting you to a good viewing point when one of the big 5 make an appearance. His colleague JR, we heard is equally knowledgeable and skilled,he was certainly super enthusiastic and obviously commited to the park when we spoke to him. The rooms are comfortable, spacious and have everything you might need. The balconies over looking the plain are sublime. The lodges will though need updating soon.. The thatched rooves are past their best and bathrooms dated and whilst the bath/shower with plain and game view is a great idea, be careful getting in and out. Yes, you need not just to be able to get up and down the 130+ steps to the lodge, but to be able to do it several times a day and get in and out of the shower successfully!
Quest12173856935
A faultless safari experience
Tshukudu provided us with a faultless experience. The location and construction of the lodge provides an idyllic setting overlooking a busy watering hole. The villas are immaculate and equipped with every amenity we could ask for. The catering was excellent and the staff unfailingly polite and obliging. The highlights were the game drives and we could not have asked for a better guide than Jann-Rick (JR to everyone). Having spent his whole life in and around the park he provided us with answers to all our questions and just the right amount of interesting information about the park and its wildlife. We understand that there is an element of luck in what animals you are going to see, but we got very, very lucky! We cannot recommend this lodge highly enough.
Alan M - London, United Kingdom
Anniversary Stay Cancelled After Confirmed Booking
We booked Tshukudu Bush Lodge in mid-March 2025 for a special wedding anniversary stay in mid-March 2026. After thorough research, we chose it specifically for its unique hilltop location in the heart of Pilanesberg National Park and its exclusivity, with a maximum capacity of just 20 guests, making it perfect for an intimate romantic getaway. After receiving confirmation, we promptly booked our flights and rental car, confident everything was set. At the end of November 2025, with just little over three months before our stay, we received an email saying they could no longer accommodate us due to unforeseen circumstances. Their proposed ‘alternative solution’? A transfer to Bakubung Bush Lodge, an affiliated property under Legacy Hotels with about 100 rooms and capacity for roughly 200 guests — hardly the exclusive experience we were looking forward to. Upon calling the lodge, we were informed that Tshukudu will be closed for extensive renovations from January 11 to May 31, 2026 — covering our entire booking period. Given how long such major renovations must take to plan, it is very difficult to believe that this decision was only made recently. Yet we were only notified now, despite having a confirmed reservation since March 2025. This abrupt cancellation on such short notice has forced us to scramble for a comparable alternative while dealing with non-refundable travel expenses. For a high-end lodge under Legacy Hotels, this level of poor communication and disregard for confirmed bookings shows a complete lack of professionalism and customer care. It has completely ruined the excitement for our anniversary celebration and caused a great deal of frustration and disappointment. Extensive renovations that shut a property for months are not last-minute decisions — and yet that’s exactly how they were communicated to us. This lodge clearly cannot be relied on to honour confirmed stays. I strongly recommend booking somewhere more dependable in the park. We booked Tshukudu Bush Lodge in mid-March 2025 for our wedding anniversary in mid-March 2026, after thorough research. We selected it for its unique hilltop location in the heart of Pilanesberg National Park and exclusivity—limited to just 20 guests—ideal for an intimate romantic getaway. With confirmation in hand, we booked flights and a rental car, feeling secure. At the end of November 2025, just over three months before our stay, we received an email saying they could no longer accommodate us due to unforeseen circumstances. Their proposed ‘alternative solution’? A transfer to Bakubung Bush Lodge, an affiliated property under Legacy Hotels with about 100 rooms and capacity for roughly 200 guests — hardly the exclusive experience we were looking forward to. When calling the lodge, we were informed that Tshukudu will be closed for extensive renovations from January 11 to May 31, 2026 — covering our entire booking period. Such major work requires months of planning, making it hard to believe this decision was recent—yet we weren't notified until now, despite our confirmed booking since March 2025. This short-notice cancellation has us scrambling for alternatives amid non-refundable travel costs. For a premium lodge under Legacy Hotels, this displays shocking poor communication, unprofessionalism, and disregard for guests. It has ruined our anniversary excitement, sparking immense frustration and disappointment. Extensive renovations aren't last-minute decisions, but that's how they were communicated to us. This lodge cannot be trusted to honour confirmed bookings. I strongly recommend choosing a more reliable option in the park.
ThriftyTravelBug
Super safaris on the door step!
Don't bother traipsing out to the Kruger and paying a fortune for it into the bargain. Tshukudu is luxurious heaven and is only a short drive from Joburg. The guides are amazing and we saw everything so well - close up big 5 (all except buffalo this time) that we started bird watching at the end of our last trip.
helenmhudson - London, United Kingdom
The most amazing place for safari !
Was my 50th celebrations and wanted safari, couldn't have picked a better place ! The lodge is in the pillansberg national Park so you get to see animals come to the lodge on a daily basis, we were lucky to see - elephants, Rhino, zebra, lion, wilder beast, hippo, impala - amazing sat on your balcony and seeing them Staff at the lodge are second to none, so friendly and them smiles are infectious!!! Such attention to detail making sure you are looked after and a impeccable service, food by Elvis and Johnny was fabulous 👌 The lodge itself is beautiful, has a log fire of needed as can be a bit cool, beds are comfy and cleaners turn up whilst on game drives to clean your room and turn down bed ;) Game drivers - we had Jarari to begin with, he was so conscious on making sure you saw what you wanted and asked when I did see the elephants if I was happy ! I was ecstatic!!! As he went home we then got JR he too was fabulous and made sure he got to the animals for us to see, was very important to him over the animals safety which being an animal lover thought his was fantastic! Pierre spoke daily and was lovely too - massice applause to all 3, your stars The safari, well what can I say other than the best 50th birtbday prescription I could have ever wished for from my husband, we saw lots n lots of animals and 4 out of the big 5 (buffalo unfortunately had gone to the other side of the park due to fires) highlight for me definitely seeing a 2 week old baby elephant, tears appeared !! But all the animals were equally special When they say holiday of a lifetime, this it was and I will remember it forever !!
sarahbK2436KS - Sheffield, United Kingdom
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