Greater Kruger Park, South Africa

Kruger Park Safaris & adjacent Private Game Reserves

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A safari is generally the impetus and a crucial part of any holiday in South Africa, and there is no better place than the Kruger National Park or one of its private game reserves. Words cannot describe the thrill of tracking a leopard on the hunt or observing a breeding herd of elephants at a waterhole. The Greater Kruger Park, as we call the Kruger National Park and its private game reserves, is the first safari choice for many of our guests, given the unsurpassed concentration and diversity of wildlife on offer. Indeed it is one of the top three safari destinations in Africa. It consists of the vast Kruger Park as well as the Sabi Sands, Manyeleti, Timbavati and Thornybush game reserves amongst others. These private game reserves all share an open border with the Kruger Park so animals move freely. The game reserves comprise a number of private game lodges, who cooperate in conserving their valuable heritage. Some of the world’s finest game lodges are found here, such as Singita, Ulusaba and Mala Mala, together with some less well-known bush camps.

Planning your Kruger Park safari
We arrange mostly tailormade luxury safaris to the Kruger Park so contact us for a quote. We recommend spending at least three nights on your Kruger Park safari, preferably more. Many of our guests like to combine two safari areas to see a different habitat and thus different wildlife. You can combine the Sabi Sand Game Reserve with the Timbavati or perhaps one of the private concessions in the Kruger National Park? Or you could combine a Kruger Park safari with Madikwe Game Reserve or the game reserves of northern KwaZulu Natal?

After the excitement, and very early mornings, of your Kruger Park safari, why not spend some time relaxing in the beautiful Blyde River Canyon region afterwards, with its choice of country house retreats offering good food and a convivial atmosphere?

See the following links if you want to know more about these specialist safaris:
Kruger Park Family Safaris
Kruger Park Walking Safaris

When to visit
The Greater Kruger Park is a year-round destination as, particularly in the private game reseves, you will get superb game-viewing year round. However if you are planning a trip to the Kruger National Park itself, you may want to consider more carefully when to go. See our section on Kruger Park Seasons in Reasons to Visit…

Travel to the Kruger
The Kruger National Park is accessible via direct flights from Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban into the Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport. From there you can easily get a road transfer, or short charter flight to your safari lodge. From Johannesburg you can also opt to fly in direct to many private game lodges on a scheduled charter flight which is very convenient if more expensive. There are also flights to Hoedspruit airport which is well situated if you are heading to the Timbavati, Manyeleti, Thornybush or the northern Sabi Sands lodges, and also a direct flight to Mala Mala Game Reserve which is convenient for Kirkmans Kamp and Lion Sands as well.

You can also drive to the Kruger area from Johannesburg. It takes a long time to drive to a game lodge (6+ hours) but it’s only 3-4 hours to the Blyde River Canyon area and half of that journey is extremely scenic heading through Dullstroom and over the highlands.