Tau Game Lodge

Tau is a South African luxury safari lodge situated on the far northern border of South Africa, in malaria-free Madikwe Game Reserve, the 4th largest game reserve in the country.

27 major species of game roam this South African nature reserve, making Tau Game Lodge the ideal place for a safari holiday, offering Big 5 game safaris and bird-watching safaris.

Tau Game Lodge, situated in the North West Province, can accommodate up to 60 people and offers an ideal South African conference venue as well as an idyllic wedding venue overlooking a natural waterhole.

Enjoy an authentic South African safari vacation in the midst of natural wildlife, complete with great game viewing and luxury private facilities, at our South Africa luxury safari lodge.

The décor and furnishings of Tau Game Lodge are Africa-inspired, and the rooms are equipped with both air-conditioning and ceiling fans.

Thirty luxury thatched chalets are spread out in U-formation on either side of the lodge, offering excellent views of animals approaching the water from the opposite bank.

All Chalets have views of the game approaching the water hole. Each Chalet ensures privacy with its own viewing deck, en suite bathroom. All Standard and Deluxe Chalets have open-air showers.

The more spacious Deluxe chalets with comfortable seating areas, can accommodate parents and children wishing to share the same room. The sliding doors allow for spectacular views of the breath-taking beautiful tranquillity of the rugged surroundings of the diverse bushveld.

The Family suite and Family unit are both consisting of two bedrooms which are semi inter-leading and share a comfortable lounge.

About Madikwe Game Reserve

Madikwe, a South African private game reserve created in 1991 from 75,000 ha of farmland, which had been extensively degraded by overgrazing, was chosen as the site of Operation Phoenix. The government-sponsored, biggest-ever game- relocation programme in Africa involved re-stocking and conserving flora and wildlife, which had long since disappeared from the region.

Ten thousand animals of 27 major species, including wild dog, cheetah, lion, white and black rhino, buffalo and elephant, have been re-introduced to the Madikwe Game Reserve over a six year period with animals coming from various reserves and breeding centres and game viewing is now at its prime.

Northwest Parks Board (formerly Bop Parks) has adhered to a strict policy of introducing only those species, which once occurred in the area). Madikwe is run as a three-way partnership between the State, the local communities and the private sector.

Madikwe, therefore, should not be looked at as solely a protected area or tourism destination, the reserve acts as a major social and economic core and engine around which the development of the region can be based.

The name of Operation Phoenix is appropriate: like the mythical bird that burnt itself to a crisp on the pyre and then rose from the ashes to live again with new vigour, nature has regained a stronghold on the land and the programme has been hugely successful.

Madikwe Game Reserve is currently the country's fourth largest game reserve. It is situated in the North West Province and is bordered by Botswana in the north, the spectacular Dwarsberg Mountains to the south, the Marico river to the east.

The diverse habitat in the reserve, from acacia, savannah to riverine, ensures a unique combination of species such as springbok, gemsbok, sable and impala. The birdlife is also spectacular, and this is one of the few South African private game reserves that are malaria free.