Kruger National Park

Situated in the north-east corner of South Africa, Kruger stretches from the Limpopo River for 200 miles down the Mozambique border to Crocodile River in the south. Some 50 miles wide, it covers 14 different eco-zones, each supporting a staggering variety of plants, birds and animals.

But the more temperate southern and central sections of the park are where you will see the most game. There you will find sweeping grassy plains dotted with knobthorn and marula trees, riverine thickets and thorny copses and in the central north-west, forests of mopane and bushwillow, all of which offer an ideal habitat for a large variety of animals.

Once you head north of Letaba, however, game numbers thin out but it is here that nine major ecosystems collide in a patchwork of mopane, savannah, shrubveld, baobab forestsm, plains, sandstone kopjes and patches of rare sandveld. This is elephant country and home to species that you won’t find anywhere else in the park, such as Sharpe’s grysbok and the samango monkey.

But if it’s the Big Five you are after, Kruger is the place for you. Some 12,500 elephants reside in the park and can be seen throughout in large herds. Both White and the endangered Black Rhino were reintroduced in the 1960s while Buffalo graze in herds of up to 200. Lion are found throughout the central and southern areas. Leopard are solitary creatures and their shy nature makes them hard to spot but there are plenty of them living throughout Kruger.

Other species also living in Kruger include cheetah, wild dog, hyena, jackal, giraffe, zebra, kudu, impala, waterbuck, zebra and more than 500 species of birds. The subtropical temperatures reacg 40 celcius in December and January and the rains arrive between October and March. The best time for game viewing in Kruger is winter and spring.

The south and central gates are 4-6 hours drive from Johannesburg. There is a strict speed limit within the park of 30 mph on tarmac and 25 mph on gravel which means you should allow plenty of time to reach tour accommodation before dark. Game drives at dawn and dusk are the most rewarding and its important to remember never to get out of your vehicle.