Often, visitors choose to stay in one of the many privately owned properties surrounding the park and entering as day visitors which makes sense, all accommodation options within the main borders of the park are owned and managed by SAN Parks, so quality can vary quite substantially. From the much loved, and sometimes hated, but reasonably affordable, chalets & bungalows, and more recently glamping tents, in the rest camps, to more luxury, and expensive, options operated in partnership with private concerns.
Private Game Lodge
The lowveld, as the region surrounding the park is known, has so much more than just the Kruger. Hoedspruit and Hazyview are blessed with plenty of private accommodation options, from luxury to budget, and are both located close to access gates. Hoedspruit is a little over 30km from Orpen gate and Hazyview is even closer to Phabeni gate at a little under 15km. Both towns also have good shopping facilities, although, the parks shops found in all the rest camps are well stocked with all the necessities, and are most reasonably priced too.
Best Times to Visit
In January, after a good rainy season, the Kruger Park is really green and lush, with fast flowing rivers and abundant water. There’s plenty of places for prey and predators alike to hide, so game viewing isn’t at it’s best. Nevertheless, if spending more than a day in the park there is a good chance of spotting most of the Big 5, although seeing the ever elusive Leopard is always a special treat.
Lioness
The summer months can be hot in the lowveld and it’s also the rainy season, so grey skies and violent thunderstorm can be the order of the day, not always the best for photography, but, the African bush after a summer storm has a special quality. Water is abundant, so the water holes are less essential for the animals, who are more widely scattered in the thick bush. Many veteran Kruger lovers prefer the dry, and cooler winter months. At this time the bush is less dense, water is less abundant and the animals are more concentrated around waterholes, making viewing them considerably easier.
Kruger Park Elephant
The Kruger is home to one of the largest elephant, impala and zebra populations in the country, so they are almost guaranteed. Also good numbers of buffalo, hyena, giraffe and even rhinos are to be found by the sharp eyed.
Giraffe
Not to forget the river dwellers, hippos and some HUGE crocodiles.
The area surrounding the Kruger Park is absolutely filled with incredible sights and hidden secret places. The Panorama Route, which runs roughly parallel with the park, to the west, is easily accessible and boasts plenty of accommodation options and some stunning natural wonders, like the Blyde River Canyon. It’s the 3rd deepest canyon in the world after the Grand Canyon in the USA and the Fish River Canyon in Namibia, and it’s the largest “green” canyon on the planet.
Don’t believe us, read independent reviews from past clients.
