“The best Big Wild Cats Sanctuary in South Africa”
I am an avid wildlife photographer and I have visited Tenikwa many times to join the photographic tour. Tenikwa is in a class of its own. Great care is taken to ensure that the animals there are kept in enclosures which give them privacy, companionship and ample vegetation to create the feeling of “nature surrounding”. The first introduction to your tour is a short but entertaining video to give you some insight and history of the animals there. The photographic tour is wonderful. In some instances you are allowed into the enclosures (excluding the leopard and the lions) to take some more close-up shots. The guides are always good. They can tell you anything and everything about each different “big cat” you meet on your tour, be it about the species or one or two of the animals themselves. These animals are definitely not circus animals and are semi-wild. They are treated with great respect and visitors are expected to do so as well. There are also other tours such as walking with the cheetahs etc. For refreshment there is a coffee shop and for the shopper a curio shop with some wonderful items. The love and respect for the inhabitants of Tenikwa are well reflected in the manner in which they are treated, respected and revered. Many are rescue animals and all are ambassadors for their species. Wildlife awareness is emphasized and taught. Yet when leaving there one has the distinct feeling that you have really seen, and have lived an experience with the Big Cats of South Africa. I personally love Tenikwa!!!!