Not the most beautiful of the animals found in the Timbavati, but most definitely one of the most memorable and rather interesting too. Although warthogs are incredibly entertaining, they are rather odd looking which has earned them a spot in the “Ugly 5”. This seems slightly unfair considering they are in fact one of only a few species that are ferocious enough to take on any of the big cats, perhaps they should rather earn a place under a category of the “Brave 5”!
Warthogs have incredibly sharp, short and dangerous tusks, these deadly weapons help to ward off any would-be predators. Most big cats will think twice before taking on an angry pig armed with a pair of razor sharp tusks.
They are also able to run around the bush at break neck speeds, reaching over 40km per hour. That’s faster than Usain Bolt! This amazing speed is greatly needed when you form an integral part of the food chain.
If their tusks or speed don’t work, then, luckily, the warthog has the amazing ability to reverse underground and into their burrows to get away from any predators. These burrows are usually repossessed aardvark holes that the warthogs excavate, providing perfect hide outs. However, this doesn’t always stop predators from attempting to wait them out or even dig them out of their underground chambers.
Many animals have what we call a “follow me” sign, with the warthogs it is their tail shooting straight up into the air. This is an involuntary reaction in order to help the youngsters maintain visual contact with each other or their mom during dangerous and high paced situations.
Warthogs are actually omnivores, not aggressively hunting and meat-eating creatures, but they will feed off carrion and insects, but preferring grass, roots and fruit.
Warthogs have a very unusual eating stance, they get right down on their haunches by folding in their front feet which allows them to move about on their knees and get closer to the food in a more comfortable manner. Their snouts also help them dig up roots, move branches to get to tasty things and are extremely useful when it comes to excavating burrows.
Rates are quoted in South African Rand (ZAR) and include VAT. Rates are reviewed quarterly and are subject to change.
PROVISIONAL:
Bookings can be held as provisional for up to 14 days, after which the booking is required to release or confirm. A 20% refundable deposit is required to confirm the booking.
CONFIRMED:
Once confirmed with a 20% deposit, the booking is held on a status of ‘confirmed with refundable deposit’ until any of the following becomes true:
Final payment is due 60 days prior to arrival. Any outstanding balance on the total reservation value shall be required to be settled at 60 days prior to arrival.
All refundable deposits, commitment fees and full payments are held in a separate call account and do not become part of the operational cash flow until the guest has stayed.
The amount stated on the invoice is what must be received by Tanda Tula nett of bank charges.
CANCELLED
Cancellations must be received and acknowledged by Tanda Tula in writing.
‘Confirmed with refundable deposit’: bookings carry no cancellation fees up to 61 days prior to arrival.
‘Confirmed with commitment’ or ‘Confirmed with full-payment’: in the event of any reservation being cancelled after Tanda Tula has issued a confirmation, for any reason other than a WHO-recognised pandemic that impacts the booking, the following cancellation fees will apply:
All cancelled bookings that qualify for a refund, will be refunded less a handling fee valued at 5% of the refund amount.
PANDEMIC DISCLAIMER
Tanda Tula will allow postponement of a booking for up to 12 months, if travel is cancelled with a commitment fee or 60 days or less prior to arrival due to a WHO-recognised pandemic directly impacting the guests’ ability to travel (e.g. lockdown, no flights, guest not allowed to board a flight, guest falls ill due to a pandemic and unable to travel).
In the event of a WHO-recognised pandemic directly impacting the ability of Tanda Tula to meet its obligations with respect to the booking, all monies received, including the commitment fee, will be fully refunded (e.g. lockdown in RSA, government restrictions on trade).
Any refund is given at the discretion of Tanda Tula management and will be charge a handling fee valued at 5% of the refund amount.
All travellers are advised to take out fully comprehensive travel insurance with ‘cancellation for no reason’. This insurance must be able to fully cover cancellation of travel fewer than 60 days prior to arrival.
The Terms and Conditions are subject to change without notice.
