South Africa is famous for its nature, fauna and flora. South African wildlife is highly famous among travelers. So if you are planning on going to South Africa then the Kruger National Park is a must visit. One should know a few things about this world-famous park before you visit there. The park is one of the oldest and largest parks in Africa and it offers many opportunities for game viewing, learning, recreation, and nature photography.
Here is an overview on some of the important this about Kruger National Park:
1. Uniqueness – The Kruger National Park is home to a striking number of breed: 49 fish, 34 amphibians, 114 reptiles, 507 birds, 336 trees and 147 mammals. The park is 350 kilometers from north to south, about 60 kilometers wide and has five perennial rivers traveling across through Park.
2. Location and History – The Kruger National Park is located in the North East of South Africa in two provinces named, Mpumalanga and Limpopo. The Park borders Zimbabwe to the north and Mozambique to the east. The Kruger Park was first proclaimed in 1898 as the Sabie Game Reserve and in 2002 the fences between Kruger and Mozambique’s Limpopo National Park and Zimbabwe’s Gonarezhou.
3. Size – Nearly 20,000 square kilometers just in South Africa. The Kruger parks gets about 1.5 million tourists per year making it South Africa’s second most popular tourist attraction behind only the city of Cape Town so if you are visiting South Africa; Kruger National Park is a must visit.
4. Popularity – A combination of affordable accommodation, quality of roads, comfortable rest camps, unique diversity of wildlife and an amazing photographic opportunities for animals both in and out the camps is the reason of its very much gained popularity.
5. Roads – There are about 850 kilometers of tarred roads, 1450 kilometers gravel roads and more than 4250 kilometers of fire breaks within the Kruger National park. The qualities of the roads are very well maintained so that the tourists won’t face any sort of problems.
6. Weather – Unlike South Africa, the Kruger Park has two main seasons; the rainy season and the dry season. The subtropical climate has hot rainy summers starting in October and ending around March. The summer rains transfigure the park into a lush flowering Eden but the game viewing and photography could become more difficult due to large number of trees. The winter months are from April to September are delightful with warm dry days and cool to cold nights. The best game viewing is in late winter as the growth becomes infrequent and water is restricted to rivers and water holes but we have had good game viewing in all seasons.
7. Accommodation – The Kruger National Park has the full spectral from deluxe lodges to camping and if you love a self-drive budgeted safari then Kruger Park is the Park for you! There are 25 rest camps with huts, tents, guest houses, cottages, and bungalows; most with fully equipped kitchens, air conditioners, en-suite bathrooms and all the units are serviced daily by the local staffs.
8. Facilities and Activities – People can choose from 4×4 adventure trails, 5 wilderness trails, mountain bike trails, night drives, backpacking trails, self-drive safaris, bush walks and bush barbeques. There are nearly 3000 kilometers of game viewing roads, 11 bird hides, 14 picnic sites, shops and restaurants at all the main camps and swimming pools at most main camps with in Kruger National Park.
9. Safety Tips – Always try to stay within your vehicles when in the park and maintain the speed limit. People have been attacked by animals when getting out of their cars while others have died when speeding caused their vehicle to end up in the Letaba River!
10. Things to look for in the Kruger National Park:
- The Big Five – Buffalo, Elephant, Leopard, Lion and Rhino.
- Sunset dam and Lake Panic bird hide for excellent game viewing.
- Africa’s Small Five – Buffalo Weaver, Elephant Shrew, Leopard Tortoise, Ant Lion and Rhino Beetle.
- The Big Six Birds – Ground Hornbill, Kori Bustard, Lappet- faced Vulture, Martial Eagle, Pel’s Fishing Owl and Saddle-bill Stork.
- Africa’s Super Seven – The Big Five plus Cheetah and Wild Dogs.
- Big Five Trees – The Baobab, Fever Tree, Lala Palm, Sausage Tree, and Umbrella Thorn, all make ideal photographic subjects due to their unique shapes and colors.
- Africa’s Elusive Eleven – nocturnal animals that are rare so don’t put your camera away after the sun goes down!
- Pafuri and Mlondozi – the two best picnic sites in the park.
- Natural/Cultural Features – Letaba Elephant Museum, Jock of the Bushveld Route, Stevenson Hamilton Memorial Library, and the archaeological sites of Thulamela, Masorini and Albasini.
- The superb views from Olifants camp, Tshanga and Nkumbe lookout points.
The Kruger National Park offers a safari experience that ranks with the best in the whole Africa and the park’s genuine African atmosphere has a charm that attracts the visitors to return again and again. Visit our website for more information on trips to South Africa.
