During our stay we saw all but one of the big five and had the most jaw dropping encounters with lions. (It was scary, but then you can't come back from Africa without at least one near death experience story!) Our guide reliably informed us he had never seen anything like it before. Madikwe is less busy than Kruger, and the different lodges all work together and share information about sightings, increasing your likelihood of seeing what you've come to see.
We all love to travel. But sometimes world can be a scary place due to uncertain events like civil war, terrorist activity, strikes, natural disasters etc. The US State Department has an excellent tool "the Travel Warnings and Travel Alerts" (listed on www.travel.state.gov) to help us determine whether a destination is too risky to visit. If you are planning to travel outside the United States, checkout and understand the Travel Warnings and Travel Alerts issued by State Department.