North West Province

North West Province is one of the least explored regions of South Africa, attracting only a smattering of visitors compared to the country’s busy coastal regions and major safari territories. Yet for many this adds to the region’s appeal. Away from the hustle and bustle of South Africa’s busy urban centres and the somewhat contrived tourist hotspots along the Garden Route, North West Province offers a more authentic escape.

North West Province’s most popular attractions are the Pilanesberg National Park and the Sun City Resort—the former one of the country’s most impressive game parks, the latter a gargantuan mega-resort and casino complex that you’ll probably want to avoid! Few visitors to the region explore beyond these attractions, but those who do will find plenty to discover. While the North West offers few fixed attractions, the countryside is beautiful. Much of the region is farmland, with seemingly endless fields of golden maize and sunflowers, but there are also large areas of raw South African bushveld, as well as great walking terrain in the Magaliesberg Mountains.

Pilanesberg National Park is the prime wildlife attraction of North West province. One of South Africa’s lesser known game parks, it is close to Johannesburg (3 hours’ drive) and thus popular with locals, whereas foreign travellers tend to head straight to the Kruger. The terrain is a unique blend of Kruger-like scrubland and very arid semi-desert terrain, not unlike the Kalahari. Rather uniquely, the park is set within an old caldera (collapsed volcano), much like Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania, though the walls of the Pilanesberg crater have been eroded away.

Pilanesberg is not the only big game park in North West Province. Close to the border with Botswana, Madikwe Game Reserve is a huge ‘big 5’ park that attracts only a smattering of visitors. You have to go out of you way to get here, but with marvellous safari lodges such as Madikwe Hills, it’s worth the effort, particularly for those wanting to escape the crowds of Kruger and, to a lesser extent Pilanesberg.

In and around the North West, South Africa
Keen safari-goers should pay Pilanesberg a visit. It’s close to Johannesburg and offers great game-viewing in a unique setting. It’s just about possible to visit Pilanesberg on a day trip from Jo’burg, but more practical to spend a night or two in the park. Those with more time on their hands may want to venture further north-west to Madikwe, on the border with Botswana—a remote wilderness with few visitors but plentiful game.

Those interested in pre-history should head to the Cradle of Mankind, a world heritage site and the source of many important archaeological discoveries, while those with an interest in the colonial era might like to spend time in Mafikeng, the provincial capital and site of a major battle during the Second Anglor-Boer War.

Outdoors enthusiasts will find be able to discover great hiking trails in the Magaliesberg Mountains, or engage in any number of adventure activities: hang-gliding, parasailing, abseiling, river rafting and ballooning.