The De Wildt Sanctuary is about an hour’s drive from Johannesburg. It breeds with cheetah and African Wild Dogs when requested by establishments like the Kruger National Park. The staff takes you on a guided tour through the entire farm while feeding cheetah, wild dogs as well as caracal. They also have a few honey badgers, a ferocious little animal. It is an educational experience that is highly recommended. It can take up to five hours.

Everyone meets at either 8h30 or 13h30 next to reception. There will be coffee & tea available. If you were early you can wander around a bit and check out some cheetahs, king cheetahs, honey badgers and more. They normally start 5 minutes late as the Jo'burg crowd always run late due to traffic, but won't wait longer than that. Next up is a introduction to De Wildt - the humble beginnings, history, successes & other info like basic genetics - this takes about 20 minutes. Note that if you arrive after this you won't be able to join but will get charged if they showed other people away. Alternatively they might have sold your places. So after this you will get on a vehicle & do a rough 2,5 hours all over the place - owls, vultures, brown hyena, wild dogs, some tame game, more wild dogs, cheetahs, cheetahs & cheetahs. The time will really fly & before you know it it will be over. You will then have a chance to have a pic taken with Byron or 1 of the 4 other trained cheetahs. This is an extra at R100 for 1 or 2 pax together or R150 for a maximum of 4. You can also support their Curio shop or adopt a cheetah for a fee, it all goes for a good cause.

The tour is very popular and often booked out long in advance - numbers are limited to 24 per session in the week & 48 pax on weekends. So a booking is necessary. Don't even think of trying to just arrive as you won't get past the security gate if your name is not on the booking list.