Perfect day the staff & guides amazing. I gained at least 10lbs. Very clean resort and everyone is very friendly.

Shepherds Tree  is a holiday destination that offers peace & tranquility  located  in the heart of Pilanesberg Game Reserve & a few minutes drive from Sun City.  The lodge is designed in a modern style &  has luxurious amenities that gives a comfortable & cozy stay. The bedrooms are decorated to give an ideal resting space.  I was completely impressed with the Shepherds Tree Game Lodge staff professionalism and customer centric attitude. Their staff is not only friendly but also highly skilled & their service consistent every day & exceeding my expectations.  The ambiance is inviting, welcoming & comfortable. The rooms were immaculate & incredibly comfortable. The facilities, including the pool and spa, were top-notch! The full board meals were  exceptionally delicious & healthy - we really enjoyed the food. They made provision for  all dietary needs.   The sunset game drive outing rewarded us with incredible up & close views of wild animals. Our ranger Mingo gave us great insights throughout the game drive.

The national roads leading to the lodge are not well maintained & have lots of potholes. The payment policy should be communicated properly to the guests in advance.

The staff are always welcoming and happy. The game drives were incredible and our ranger Peter was fantastic. The food was also great with a good variety on the set menu. Service is exemplary.

There were small things that can be improved.. Housekeeping was not consistent. e.g the tea and coffee sometimes was not replaced. One night only 1 side of the bed had the little chocolate with water. One night there was no chocolate at all. The bath would be better with a hand shower attachment for washing hair. Drinks are expensive. A complimentary bottle of water (or even a reduced price first bottle) at dinner would be appreciated.

it is my third time at the Shepherds Tree Game Reserve. This year was exceeding expectations! everything was perfect! The room , the food, the staff! the staff is so attentive with an eye for details . I was surprised because all the points i mentioned during my previous comment have been improved! The room was renewed the staff at the restaurant was faboulous. The food was so yummy and the plate decoration too!

I can´t think about anything ! maybe a small improvement that will make the customers more happy would be more interaction during the safari. The first year i had an amazing ranger that took the time to show us different species of animals and vegetation telling us stories and animals behaviour. In the last 2 year i had 2 rangers , professional and nice but they only replied to our questions without adding extra explanations and they kept manly on the classical route missing sometimes the opportunity to see more animals

Shepherds Tree exceeded my expectations. From the arrival to departure, the staff were so attentive and friendly. The rooms were very comfortable and spacious. The boma diner was amazing. The food was so flavourful, and as a vegetarian, there were so many options. We had the option of morning and afternoon game drives. We did all for the 2 days we were there. Saw the 3 of the big 5, but many other animals. It was fantastic. Our game driver, Goitsi, was super. My 9 and 10 year old kids had such a good time and were so excited waking up at 4.30am to go on the game drives. The pool in the afternoon was a big hit for them. It is definitely a place I'll go back to. I miss the tranquillity already.

Could have done with at least another 2 days.

EVERYTHING - absolutely gorgeous experience, the staff really were the highlight of the trip, Katlego is the most patient, caring and lovely human being. The rooms are absolutely gorgeous and well air conditioned with an amazing outside shower and bath area. We had to be moved halfway through the stay and were expertly handled throughout the move including being given complimentary snacks and fruit. The team made this a once in a lifetime experience and I couldn’t be more grateful.

Our stay at Shepherd’s Tree Game Lodge was absolutely wonderful! We were blown away by the beauty of the hotel and the breathtaking view from our room. The game drive was an unforgettable experience, especially with the lodge being so close to Pilanesberg National Park—it was truly perfect. The food was exceptional, and as a vegetarian, I often struggle to find good options in South Africa, but I felt completely catered for here. The attention to detail and hospitality exceeded our expectations. I would highly recommend this lodge to anyone looking for a remarkable getaway!

My only suggestion would be a later checkout time, perhaps around noon, to fully enjoy the room after the early morning game drive, especially since we were only there for one night. Overall, an incredible experience that I would highly recommend!

Lovely location and well kept. Staff are overall very friendly and helpful. Rooms are gorgeous and spacious. The game drives are great and I would be back.

This is our second visit and one of the reasons we came back was due to the great food on our last trip. Sadly, the food wasn’t quite up to the standard we experienced last time. Presentation gets 10/10 and the flavours are great, however the Crispy pork wasn’t crispy, prawn briyani was so spicy it was almost inedible, and the desserts left quite a bit to be desired as there was a lack of balance with the pure sweetness levels. Our waitress also was unfortunately poorly trained and mistook our order a few times. We also did not receive a turn down on our room which we found quite odd as historically we’ve had a beautiful turndown with a welcome note and a chocolate but this time nothing. A bit disappointed.

Everything was simply amazing. Starting off with our lovely ranger Goitse, who was not just a competent guide with the ability to find those animals for us to watch, but is also incredibly charming and funny. She made our stay particularly special, as she's letting you feel her passion for nature and wildlife. Her knowledge is wide and she's always respectful towards the animals, giving them space to avoid to much impact on their business, as well as towards us and the other guests. She always made sure everybody got the chance of a special sighting and made space for others to see as well. We consider ourselves being very lucky to have her shown us so many things. Going on game drive safari with her, you won't be disappointed. Big thanks to you, Goitse, we won't forget the experience you gave us. The hotel staff (waiters, chefs, reception, drivers, cleaning) are all very nice and polite, starting to remember us after a few days as we were staying longer than most of the guests (6 nights). We really felt home after a short time because everybody gave us a warm welcome. The food is delicious, from breakfast to dinner, nothing to complain, and even special requests are never a problem. Because we were staying for so long, we were even offered to be served food that's not in the menu for us not to get bored (which isn't even possible with the great choice you get). The rooms are well equipped with everything you could possibly ask for, a spacious bathroom with bathtub that'll leave you with a calming view of the bush when taking a bath and an outdoor shower where you can watch the stars when using. Coffee and tea also provides as well as hairdryer, fridge, storing space. The perfect place to come back to when having an exhausting day out in the bush on safari.

There's really just one small detail that stuck in my mind. As mentioned above, our ranger Goitse always gave space to other visitors too during special sightings on game drives. I think it's the right thing to do. Unfortunately not everybody is like that. There's in particular one ranger working for Shepherds Tree who's neither calling their coworkers for a special sighting, nor making space for them, rather blocking them, when at the same place watching something. One time when coming back from a game drive, she even bragged about it, telling us she could send us the pictures. This situation didn't compromise our all in all experience at Shepherds it was just something that left a bad taste and I wanted it to be mentioned as this happed a few times to a few people around.

The whole stay was excellent, from the greeting on arrival, complete with a cold drink and lovely desk manager, to the departure with a driver organised to take us back to Johannesburg. Everything in between was amazing - the game drives, starting with a cheery 5.30am “morning morning” phone call from our ranger - then the skillfully led and informative game drives - thank you Mingo for making it such an amazing stay. The ‘big’ 5 were all seen if you believe in counting these things, but it was so much more than this. Endless food with a significant danger of eating too much. A beautiful clean room with a view over the veld. Such welcoming staff. 3 days was not enough. A truly life changing experience.

Having to go home at the end of our stay.