Safari

Addo is a South African National Parks (SANParks) reserve offering a unique opportunity to experience Elephants up close in an unthreatening environment.

Addo Main Camp is approx 72 km from the coastal town of Port Elizabeth.

Four wheel drive vehicles are not necessary within the main game area and road south to Camp Matyholweni.

Vegetation can be thick and bushy in parts however there are many open spaces and plains. There are a number of scenic waterholes with viewing areas - some where you can get out of your car.

In the main game area there are over 450 elephants, Cape buffalo, lion, and black rhino. Throughout the park there are a variety of antelope species and a wide diversity of bird life. The unique flightless dung beetle is found almost exclusively in Addo.

Established in 1895, the KZN Wildlife "Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park" is (along with nearby St. Lucia Reserve) the oldest Game Park in Africa.

It is situated in the KwaZulu Natal Province in the heart of Zululand, on the Eastern coast of South Africa. It covers 96 000 ha and contains an immense diversity of fauna and flora.

The park is divided into 2 sections; the Hluhluwe game reserve in the Northern section, and the iMfolozi game reserve in the Southern section of Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park.

It has a number of rivers flowing through it with small waterholes, picnic sites and viewing hides offering a wide range of game viewing experiences.

It is the only reserve under formal conservation in KwaZulu Natal and is home to the Big 5 - lion, rhino (black & white), elephant, buffalo and leopard.

It has eighty species of mammal including the Big 5, cheetah, hyena, wild dog and giraffe, and one of the largest concentrations of black rhino. It is one of the best places to see Nyala.

There are also in excess of 300 species of bird.

This stunning reserve, tumbling a thousand meters down into a deep valley, is a must-see paradise. Ithala is home to some of the oldest rock formations in the world, dating back 3 000 million years.

It has a huge diversity of habitat from riverine valleys to high-lying grassland plateaus, ridges and cliff faces.

Wildlife includes both black and white rhino, elephant, buffalo, zebra, giraffe, blue wildebeest and a wide variety of antelope.

With no lion on the reserve, the animals are more relaxed and offer excellent close encounters. Predators range from the reclusive leopard, spotted hyena and brown hyena.

Large birds include black eagles, vultures, ostriches and secretary birds.

Kgalagadi is a SANParks reserve which offers a true wilderness experience in the Kalahari Desert.

It is in the far North Eastern Cape on the border of South Africa with Namibia and Botswana.

Four wheel drive vehicles are recommended. There are no tar roads, the area is susceptible to flooding and the gravel roads can get corrugated.

Kgalagadi has two seasonally dry riverbeds running through it - the Auob and the Nossob. Boreholes along these riverbeds allow for excellent close-up sightings of large predators and rare antelope.

It is famous for the black-maned Kalahari lion, cheetah, meerkat (suricate), pangolin (scaly anteater), brown hyena, giraffe and pygmy falcon.

Kruger National Park is an untamed African wilderness, where nearly 2 million hectares of unrivalled diversity of life forms roam.

It is managed by the South African National Parks board and offers an attractive and low cost alternative to the private luxury safari lodges available throughout South Africa.

The ability to self-drive offers a personal itinerary, freedom to explore your own path and experience truly exciting, close-up encounters with wild life.

It has a number of rivers flowing through it, with small waterholes, picnic sites and viewing hides offering a wide range of game viewing experiences.

It has excellent game viewing with a large concentration of wildlife including predators, elephant, rhino, giraffe, herds of buffalo, hippos, crocodile, antelope and a wide variety of bird life.

The private concessions within the Kruger National Park are parcels of land leased from SANParks by private operators licensed to offer environmentally friendly safari lodges on a private reserve.

The concessions average 10,000 ha of unspoilt wilderness and are found in all biomes of the park.

Guests are taken on guided game drives and walks to experience close encounters with wildlife in the concession.

All lodges have luxury accommodation and facilities and offer a fully inclusive safari package.

Lodges are situated on a riverbed or at a waterhole where animals can be viewed coming down to drink.

Wildlife highlights include tracking game on a professionally guided walk, listening to the birdlife and night sounds from your safely elevated suite, seeing antelope and mongoose in the bushes and monkeys playing in the trees around camp, getting right in among the elephants with a tracker on a guided game drive.

A joint venture between the Kruger National Park and the Associated Private Nature Reserves, this area is today known as the Greater Kruger Conservation Area. It incorporates the Sabi Sand, Manyeleti, Timbavati, Thornybush, Kapama, Tshukudu, Balule and Makaladi Game Reserves.

Covering a total area of more than 20,000 Km², this conservation area is managed under their joint conservation.

There are 6 perennial rivers flowing through 4 Eco zones.

The area ranges from savannah with thorn thickets and bush willow woodlands, to moderately dense bush savannah with Mopane Woodlands, to scrub and open tree savannah with mixed woodland.

These diversities offer visitors a wide range of choices.

Guests experience excellent wildlife sightings , tracking wildlife on a professionally guided walk, getting right in among the elephant and buffalo herds with a tracker on a guided game drive.

The Motswari region is home to a pride of the exotic White Lion; a unique and endangered species.

Madikwe game reserve encompasses 75,000 ha of prime game viewing in South Africa on the border with Botswana.

It is run as a joint venture between the Nature Conservation authorities of the State, the private sector and local communities. The parks board manages the infrastructure and the conservation projects, and the private sector manages the game lodges.

The landscape is open grasslands and bushveld plains, with several dams, rocky outcrops and small mountains.

Entry to the park is only permitted for guests staying at one of the private lodges. Madikwe is a malaria-free area.

Wildlife includes the "big 5" (lion, buffalo, elephant, rhino and leopard), cheetah, wild dog, sable, giraffe, brown and spotted hyena, eland, gemsbok. It has over 350 bird species.

It is a SANParks reserve on the Northern border of South Africa situated on the banks of the Limpopo River with breathtaking views over Botswana and Zimbabwe.

This is a magical park with all the mystery you would expect situated on the Limpopo River and surrounding forest. The World Heritage Mapungubwe historical site depicts life in a stone age community. Tours are available.

Vegetation includes Mopane woodlands, unique riverine forest and Baobab trees. Four wheel drive vehicles are not necessary within the park, however some roads can become impassable after heavy rain.

Wildlife includes elephant, giraffe, white rhino, eland, gemsbok occur naturally in the area. Predators include lion, leopard and hyena. Birders can tick off 400 species, including Kori Bustard, Tropical Boubou and Pel's Fishing Owl.

Situated in the Waterberg region, Marakele is only 3 hours north-west from Johannesburg.

Meaning “place of sanctuary”, Marakele is surrounded by breathtaking mountain vistas.

Wildlife includes the famous Tuli elephants (released in 1999), white and black rhino, tsessebe, mountain reedbuck, eland and kudu. There are also a number of predators including lion, leopard and brown hyena.

Wind up to the top of the Sentech Towers to view the endangered Cape Vulture colony or marvel at the beauty of zebra galloping along the valley floor.

Mkuze has a great diversity of habitats ranging from mountains, swamps, woodlands, to riverine forest and wide stretches of acacia savannah.

There are three game viewing hides overlooking the Kubube, Kamasinga and Kwamalibala pans. In the dry season, guests can view huge herds of animals coming down to drink.

Wildlife includes both black and white rhino, elephant, giraffe, blue wildebeest, warthog, eland, hippo, kudu.

Rare species include leopard, nyala, cheetah, hyena, and suni.

With over 420 species, Mkuze is ideal for bird-lovers.

Ndumo is a KZN Wildlife game park situated In the KwaZulu Natal province of South Africa, on the Mozambique border close to Kosi Bay.

It has many picturesque pans with stunning yellow fever trees, extensive wetlands and reedbeds. Acacia savannah and sand forest is also found in the park.

Nearby Kosi Bay is excellent for snorkelling and beach.

Wildlife includes black rhino, white rhino, nyala, bushbuck, impala, red duiker, suni, hippo and plenty of Crocodile occur naturally in the area.

Birders can tick off 430 species, including Pell's fishing owl, the broadbill, and southern banded snake eagle. Many tropical East African birds are found in the park - the southern limit of their range.

Phinda is a 23,000 ha private game reserve close to the KZN Greater St Lucia Wetland Park west of the Lebombo Mountains.

It borders the KZN Mkhuze game park and has seven distinct habitats - woodland, grassland, forest, mountain ranges, river courses, marshes and pans.

Phinda means "the return" in Zulu. With careful conservation and management, Phinda has been returned from farm land into native pristine wilderness.

Featuring the Big Five (lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino), cheetah, endangered black rhino, and 415 bird species.

Pilanesburg is a "Big 5" (lion, buffalo, elephant, rhino and leopard) game park situated within an ancient extinct volcano formed some 1300 million years ago.

It is surrounded by hills and ridges, embracing 55,000 ha of prime wilderness.

This is a Malaria free zone, approx. 2 hours from Johannesburg.

Various rivers run through the park and there are a number of small dams with one large central lake, the Mankwe Dam.

It has a range of viewing hides, an information centre and cafe and fenced picnic areas.

As well as the big 5, wildlife includes giraffe, cheetah, springbok, wild dog, zebra, brown hyena, sable, hippo and crocodile.

Shamwari is a private game reserve encompassing 25,000 ha of wilderness covering 5 different eco-systems along the Bushman's River.

It is close to the Addo Elephant National Park, and an extension of the famous Garden Route along the Eastern seaboard of South Africa.

Strong focus has been given to returning the ecosystem to a natural state after taking it over from farming.

Shamwari has an animal rehabilitation program. A sanctuary jointly funded by the Born Free Foundation cares for lions and leopards rescued from poor conditions in circuses or zoos around the world.

Wildlife includes the "Big 5" (lion, elephant, rhino, buffalo and leopard), cheetah, hippo, serval, bat-eared fox, brown hyena, variety of antelope and an abundance of birds

This Private 35,000 ha game reserve lies in the Waterberg plateau adjacent to Marakele National Park. It is a 3 hours drive north-west from Johannesburg in the Limpopo Province.

Combined with Marakele, it encompasses a World Heritage conservation area of 100,000 hectares. Wildlife roams a variety of habitats in the splendour of the Waterberg mountain wilderness.

Management is deeply committed to ongoing conservation research and development. Activities include guided visits to bushman paintings estimated at over 2000 years old.

A Big 5 wildlife destination, Welgevonden is home to one of the largest concentrations of white rhino within a private game reserve in Africa as well as rare and unusual nocturnal species like the aardwolf, aardvark and brown hyena. It has over 300 bird species including the Blue Crane.