DINOKENG
Dinokeng Game Reserve
A safari close enough to fit, without pretending to be Kruger. Dinokeng Game Reserve is approximately 1 hour from Pretoria and 1½ hours from Sandton, depending on traffic and the destination within the reserve. That makes it the most accessible Big Five safari option near the city. It’s a genuinely different trade-off from Kruger or Madikwe — smaller, closer, and built for travellers who need a safari to fit into limited time rather than anchor an entire trip.
When the safari needs to fit the journey.
Dinokeng’s biggest advantage is not that it tries to replicate a longer safari elsewhere. It is that meaningful time in the bush can sit naturally alongside a Johannesburg or Pretoria stay without requiring another flight or a long transfer across the country.
That makes it particularly useful for shorter South African itineraries, first or final nights around Gauteng, and travellers who want to include a safari without making it the entire focus of the trip. With only a day to spare, the Mongena game drive, full-day safari or sunset safari with dinner run as day trips from Johannesburg.
MONGENA DAY SAFARIS
Mongena day safaris compared
Three ways to spend a day at Mongena Private Game Reserve in Dinokeng. Each includes return transfers from Johannesburg hotels or residences and a professional ranger guide.
Morning or afternoon game drive
About 6 hours including travel, built around one 2.5-hour open-vehicle game drive. R3 940 per person for 2–4 travellers.
Full-day safari
About 8–9 hours: a morning and an afternoon 2.5-hour game drive, with lunch at the lodge in between. R4 545 per person for 2–4 travellers.
Sunset safari with dinner
About 8–10 hours: a late-afternoon game drive of about 2.5 hours, a sunset stop in the bush and dinner at the lodge before the night return. R5 775 per person for 2–4 travellers.
Rates are valid for departures to 31 December 2027. Beverages and any applicable conservation fees are extra, and children under 12 pay 50% of the adult fare. To stay overnight in the reserve, see Dinokeng safaris and Dinokeng accommodation.
WHO IT CAN SUIT
A different answer for a different itinerary.
Shorter South Africa Trips
When there simply isn’t time to travel to Kruger, Dinokeng can put a safari experience within practical reach of Johannesburg and Pretoria.
Johannesburg + Safari
Pair time in the city with time in the bush without turning the connection between them into a major travel day.
A Short Safari Stay
For travellers who want a night or two away rather than a safari that anchors the whole journey, Dinokeng can be a very practical fit.
THE TRADE-OFF
Closer does not mean the same.
Choosing Dinokeng instead of Kruger or Madikwe is not simply choosing the same safari closer to Johannesburg. The reserves differ in scale, setting, accommodation, travel time and the way a safari fits into the wider journey.
For some travellers, Kruger’s scale deserves the additional time. For others, a lodge-based Madikwe stay may be the stronger choice. Dinokeng makes sense when accessibility and itinerary efficiency genuinely matter.
Explore Kruger National Park →
Explore Madikwe →
Plan a Safari →
THE EXPERIENCE
Plan the safari, not just the drive.
The reserve is only one part of the decision. The accommodation, number of nights, game-drive arrangements, arrival time and onward journey all affect how the experience works.
Spurwing can help put those pieces together rather than treating the game drive, transfer and stay as unrelated bookings.
The Stay
Choose accommodation around the traveller, the length of stay and the kind of safari experience they want.
The Safari
Consider the available game-drive arrangements and how they fit around arrival, departure and time at the lodge.
The Journey
Coordinate the road transfer with the rest of the itinerary so that time in Dinokeng fits naturally into the trip.
Close enough to make the logistics work.
Dinokeng’s location makes it particularly relevant to journeys beginning or ending in Gauteng. Spurwing can coordinate private transport from Johannesburg, O.R. Tambo International Airport and surrounding areas according to the actual itinerary, passenger numbers and luggage.
Safari does not have to stand alone.
A Dinokeng stay can follow time in Johannesburg or Pretoria, sit near the beginning of a longer South African itinerary, or provide a final change of pace before travelling home.
The important question is not how many destinations can be squeezed into the trip. It is whether each one earns its place.
WITH SPURWING
Experience Dinokeng with Spurwing
A Big Five reserve about an hour from Pretoria and 1½ hours from Sandton — Spurwing arranges the lodge, the game drives as day or overnight experiences, and the short road in.
- Stay in the reserveDinokeng accommodation — Mongena Main Lodge and Little Mongena Tented Camp
- Go on safariDinokeng safaris — morning, afternoon, full-day and sunset game drives from Johannesburg
- Get thereJohannesburg to Dinokeng transfers — about 1½ hours by road from Sandton or O.R. Tambo, with a driver
PLAN DINOKENG
Is Dinokeng the right safari for your trip?
Tell us how much time you have, where you will be travelling from and what you want from the safari. We will help you decide whether Dinokeng fits — or whether another safari region would make more sense.