We serve 3 meals per day including snacks throughout the day, all traditional South African food. You will not go hungry, we promise

We try to always prepare your game if requested, so you will probably have some sort of game steak which can be prepared 50 different ways, potatoes, vegetables, dessert, and more. We always have Red and White Wine in stock as well as Beer, Mixed Drinks, Sodas, Water, etc. If you have any dietary restrictions, please let us know in advance and we will cater our meals to suit your needs.

•  You will have daily laundry service while staying at our lodge, so no more than 3-4 sets of safari clothes are needed. 
•  The weather will be between 34-80 degrees, some days, those exact temperatures in fact. For the months of May to August, typically in the morning, you can expect temperatures in the upper 40’s, then warming up into the mid 70’s.
•  You want to pack a light coat or jacket, long sleeve shirt or two, short sleeve shirts, pants or jeans, hiking or hunting boots, hat, socks, underwear and/or brassieres 

• Your day begins at 6:30 with a big breakfast, then off to hunting around 7:30. We hunt until lunch, take an hour break or so, then return and hunt until Sundown. After the hunt, return to the lodge, shower, sit by the fire under the African Sky, have a huge Exquisite African Dinner and cocktails. 

We do not offer riffle or bow rentals and we suggest you bring your own equipment.

Temporary Importation of Firearms into South Africa

South Africa requires a temporary import/export permit for firearms and ammunition when traveling to South Africa. Firearm Import/Export permits can be issued at both our international ports of entry, Johannesburg and Cape Town International Airports, or applied for before your arrival in South Africa.

1. Oxford Safaris Letter of Invitation – Complete two, the first to be presented to custom officials in Johannesburg, and the second as a spare.

2. SAPS 520. Downloadable Form

3. Notarized copy of your passport.

4. Notarized copy of the US Customs form 4457 or Rifle License (Whichever is applicable to proof ownership).

5. Hard copy of your flight itinerary.

You only pay for the animals you harvest (or wound) at the end of the day. We can change packages to fit your desires or needs, and can also build custom hunting packages for you. If you want to substitute an animal, we can do so, though due to our already discounted packages, we may not apply all 100% of the substitution based on our trophy fees. You might get 80-90% of the value instead.

The average shot with rifle for Plains Game would be under 200 yards. If you are comfortable taking longer shots, that is OK as well, but please practice shooting from sticks and standing up, as this is the scenario most of the time. We will range the animal for you, so you will know the distance. All rifles will be shot in and calibrated on arrival at the range.

Yes our hunts are fair chase. Though most of South African hunting concessions are high fenced, most of our land is thick bushveld, and there are animals which we will never see in their lifetimes. These animals are not tame, they are wild. They were born in the concession, therefore know how to hide in that area. South Africa has perimeter fences to keep our Trophy game from leaving our concessions, as well as to keep predators out of our concessions. A Leopard can wipe out an entire herd of Impala or Blesbok in months. There are still plenty of game which we will hunt near rivers and mountains such as Warthog, Bushpig, Caracal, Klipspringer, etc.

South Africa is as safe as anywhere else in the World. We will pick you up at OR TAMBO International Airport just north of Johannesburg, and escort you to our lodge located approximately just off the Botswana border, approximately 20km from the small town Steenbokpan and 75km from Lepalale.  This is a quiet town, and our lodge is located in the bush about 20 minutes outside of this town. To date, we have never had an issue with security.

We will skin and salt your capes at the lodge free of charge, anyway you like, i.e. Life Size, Shoulder Mount, Rug, etc. A trusted dipping company will come to the lodge to pick up your trophies to dip, boil the skulls, clean horns, crate and process paperwork for export. They will send you an invoice for this 1-2 months later via email. Then the crate is picked up by an export agent, and they will send you a quote for shipping back to your country, typical via Air Freight. It is recommended to have an import agent in your home country to receive this crate with your trophies, and then they can either forward on to your taxidermist, or send directly to your home via Ground freight. We recommend Well Worldwide Energy Logistics in Houston, TX as an import agent

You are allowed to bring 2 guns per hunter of different caliber, and up to 200 rounds of ammunition per rifle. If you are hunting dangerous game, you must have a .375 minimum. For Plains Game, we recommend a 300 mag or similar. Ammunition we prefer would be Nosler Bonded or Barnes Triple X.

Mobile Phone (Call your service provider before you leave to make sure you have international service. We do have WIFI at the lodge, but it can be intermittent (this is Africa). Your mobile phone will work in most areas, but we encourage you to turn-off your data, so you are not billed at data rates which can be excessive. Alternatively, we suggest getting a South African sim card with a call and data package.

We will be waiting outside of Customs for you once you pick up your baggage. Look for a person holding a sign with your name on it! If you brought a rifle with you, we will then take you to the South Africa Police station to pick that up next.

We will typically provide you with a final invoice the evening before you depart for home. Any deposits you’ve made previously will be applied, and you can either pay your balance in USD or RAND Cash, Traveller’s Checks, or Credit Card. There is a 3.5% fee to be charged when using a credit card. Gratuities are not mandatory, but they are typically expected on an African Safari. Ten Percent, 10% is the standard gratuity to be divided amongst your Professional Hunter, Cook, Cleaners, Skinners and Trackers.

This is season dependant but here is a rough indication. We suggest checking on Weather.com https://weather.com/weather/today/l/-23.67,27.74?par=google or search for the town. Lephalale, Limpopo

March & April 50-80 °F Limpopo (North)
May & June 40-70 °F Limpopo (North)
July & August 35-70 °F Limpopo (North)
September & Oct 50-90 °F Limpopo (North)

The electricity in South Africa is 220 Volt. Please check that any of your electrical equipment’s’ charges accept 110 – 240 Volts or else you will need to bring an inverter from 220 Volts to 110 Volts. You will also need a pin plug that fits into the South African system.

All of John X Safari’s hunting areas in South Africa are Malaria-free. There are no mandatory inoculations required for travelers visiting Southern Africa, we do however advise that tetanus shots are up to date.