About
The Kruger National Park and its unfenced borders with Africa's finest game reserves is undoubtedly one of Mpumalanga's greatest highlight. Roughly the size of Wales, this is one of the easiest places to spot the 'Big Five' - lion, leopard, elephant, rhino and buffalo. The safari experience is perfected in The Kruger by sophisticated luxurious lodges offering the ultimate in luxury bush hideaways. To the north, the private reserves of Timbavati offer a completely different landscape to the popular Sabi Sands area in the south. Don't overlook Mpumalanga's other great sights: the spectacular Panorama Route, Blyde River Canyon, God's Window and Bourke's Luck Potholes.
Highlights
Rangers and trackers stay in radio contact to maximise their guests’ chances of sighting the Big Five – along with cheetahs, hippos, giraffes and many others. Most lodges follow a fairly standard but laid-back daily routine, with early-morning and sunset game drives, a guided late-morning walk, lazy afternoons, delicious dinners at the lodge or sometimes in the middle of the bush, weather and predator permitting.
Getting There
There are three main airports: Hoedspruit, Nelspruit (aka Kruger Mpumalanga International) and smaller Skukuza. Regular flights take just over an hour from Johannesburg; the one daily from Cape Town is about 2.5 hours. Transfers to the lodges can be arranged. Private charters from Johannesburg are also possible, taking you directly onto the reserves’ landing strips. Alternatively, the drive from Johannesburg takes about six hours, passing gorges and waterfalls along decent roads. Mpumalanga, with stellar attractions like Blyde River Canyon, is well worth a stop-off.
Best Time To Visit
While game viewing is sensational year-round, summer’s dense green bush allows animals to hide more easily, and abundant water means they don’t need to head to rivers as often – making spotting them trickier than during dry winter (June-September) months. Daytime temperatures in winter average 22°C, but it can get quite chilly in mornings and evenings. Less so in summer, when the average is nearer 30°C.
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The Best of South Africa Travel map displays the locations of the destinations and accommodation that we have selected and visited; for each item, hovering over or clicking the marker will display a short summary and photo of that place or hotel, and hotel pricing. Follow the links in the info box to the full page listing which has much more information.
Note that the online map offers both a satellite view (click satellite in the top right) and, for some locations, a street level view (Drag the person in the top left onto the map). These let you explore the country; and when you wish to explore in person, or if you have any questions about the places you see, give our staff a call, or request a quote. Our staff regularly visit the places and accommodation that we feature.
When you book a holiday with us we will provide full driving instructions for reaching your accommodation, where necessary; these can be used by yourself, or you could enjoy the luxury of a driver. Alternatively we will arrange private (car rather than coach) transfers for you; helicopter transfers are also possible for some destinations.
Definitely going back for more!
"We were referred to Ash by a mutual friend and were specifically looking for a unique experience for our family which involved a game park. After a brief discussion around what we would like to see and do, Ash then came back with a package that met us at Jo'burg airport, flew us into the Kruger where our three day …
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