Kruger National Park

The "Big Five" within 4 hours

Crossing the Crocodile River and starting at the Malelena Gate on a cloudy afternoon, we saw our first african leopard after just 10 minutes of driving. It was a big male, slightly underfed. We could enjoy the sight of the majestic predator for approximately one minute until he disappeared in the bush.
We kept on driving and encountered a big male elephant wearing a radio collar. The bull was in the musth and he discharged temporin from the temporal ducts on the sides of the head. After he left the scenery we drove on towards Voortrekker Road towards Numbi Gate. Within the next 30 minutes we saw a male and a few female lions as well as a single black rhino and a group of white rhinos. Moreover a huge buffalo herd appeared, joining the white rhinos for grazing.
Our guide told us that other people will need to return three times to Kruger Park to accomplish the "Big 5" mission, and we just reached that goal on a single afternoon game drive. We were so lucky.
This was approved by the next full day game drive. It was considerably hotter than the day before, so the animals stayed in the shadows most of the day. Nevertheless we encountered a few sleeping lions, some elephants, several antelopes, hippos and lots of baboons.
On our sundowner game drive we had the rare opportunity to spot a male cheetah. It began to rain and the cheetah climbed on a big tree to observe the surrounding area. I was aware of tree climbing leopards, but a cheetah? This was new to me and a truly unique experience.

Great park experience

Amazing park, many animals, excellent facilities, especially Skukuza. Different landscapes.

Great, but often has too many people, and there can be too many cars at good sightings.

Visting Kruger National Park was the best experience of my life

Staying in both Punda Maria and Skukuza, I was able to get a huge diversity of landscape and wildlife. Although I was on a private research program, I was able to see more wildlife than I could have imagined. I saw over 200 species of birds in the Kruger and numerous other animals. I saw 8 leopards, elephants every day, numerous rhinos, giraffe every day, multiple lion prides, and many other incredible sightings. The food and acomodations were equally wonderful. Punda Maria was great as was Skukuza.

A bit lacking in atmosphere.

Staying in one of the larger lodges with lots of other people around & driving on tarmac roads a fair amount of the time with a number of private vehicles on the roads then I did think the actual safari experience was a bit lacking. (Private concessions & smaller lodges would be completely different). You do get close to the animals - closer than in a lot of places as they are used to the vehicles so it really depends what you go for. Having only spent a couple of days in one area then again it would make sense to go to different areas for slightly different experiences (although obviously if you drive down the same road an hour later you might see different things). Guides & vehicles are good. Weather wasn't particularly good when I was there - so this probably tempers the review !

We were captivated by the pulse of the bush and variety of wildlife encountered.

We were very fortunate to see plenty of wildlife & had the awesome experience of coming across a pride of lions with their zebra kill at 4.30am very near our camp. The recent drought had taken its toll on the vegetation but the scenery was still interesting. We stayed at Satara & Lower Sabie Camps which were both very adequate & allowed us to self-cater breakfast & lunch & to either bbq or eat in the restaurant for dinners. I would recommend taking your own groceries as the choices at the camps we somewhat limited. We self-drove which was fantastic because it gave us flexibility in gaming times & when we could stop. We were on the road each day at 4.30, back at camp for lunch, swim & rest then out again late afternoon. I am a keen photographer and was like a kid in a candy store with all the photo opportunities that Kruger National Park presented but I am now keen to visit Sabi Sands and/or Okavango Delta where I understand the sightings are more frequent per kilometre travelled. This trip has certainly put the unique African bush & wildlife in our hearts & we can't wait to return in the near future.

Good views of Leopard, lion, elephants, many white rhino, honey badgers, wild dogs and the highlight was a cheetah and a fair number of birds although less than in Sabi Sands.
We stayed at Lukimbi in South Krüger. To sum things up: Friendly, good guide, good food, nice lodge with a nice room (number 9, without a nice view though), many mammals seen and some nice bird species such as Ground Hornbill and Secretary Bird.

Another fantastic safari in Kruger

This was our second visit to Kruger, and once again it did not disappoint. On our first day, we were treated to the sight of 4 male lions and one female at kill. One of the male lions walked right by our vehicle - amazing. Another highlight was a huge herd of 50-60 elephants crossing the road in front and behind our vehicle - essentially surrounding us. It was magical! During our four days at Kruger, we saw plenty of other animals, including hippos, crocodiles, giraffes, hyenas, wildebeest, buffalo, impala, kudus, warthogs, baboons, and vervet monkeys. On the last day, down near Pretoriaskop, we saw several rhinos - a good area to see these magnificent creatures.

We stayed in the rest camps inside Kruger. The first two nights were at Skukuza and the third night was at Pretoriaskop. In both camps, we stayed in rondavels (round huts), which were very comfortable, including air conditioning, private bathrooms, and outdoor kitchens. There are lots of facilities in both camps, Skukuza being the biggest of the two. There were nice views overlooking the Sabie River from Skukuza - we could see lots of elephants and hippos. The pool at Pretoriaskop - built into the rocks - is especially nice. My only minor complaint is that I found the food in the camps not quite as good as when I was last at Kruger in 2006, but it was still fine overall.

It's like being inside a nature documentary!

I could not believe the density and diversity of wildlife we saw in a single day's drive. My previous frame of reference remained confined to National Geographic, ZooBooks, and other popular media. I had always believed these professionals to have camped out for days and weeks on end, just to glimpse a few species here and there, and perhaps some do, just to capture the "perfect shot." However, as mere tourists, we were only too delighted to find ourselves immediately confronted with giraffe, families of elephants, baboons, myriad of antelope species, rhinos, and even hippos, something we did not expect to see in the dry season. Occasionally our spotter pointed out reclining leopards, cheetahs feasting on fresh kill, and lions tucked away in the shade, avoiding the heat. The acute vision of our eagle-eyed man could not be lauded more.

It may be the goal of some visitors to spot all Big Five, which our group succeeded in accomplishing, but it surely would not have been any less rich an experience if we had not. It is not every day we see an eland stand majestically around a bend in the road. It is not every day we see hyenas lurking in the shade. It is not every day that we see any fan of fauna traverse the bush-lined roads. We nearly missed a giraffe standing practically next to our truck because eight of us sat snapping shots of another creature on our right side. Every thirty seconds brought with it a new herd or species to admire or photograph. Absolutely one of the most surreal days of my life.

In the evening we stayed at Nsele Lodge, full of individual bungalows, each equipped with a gigantic shower, sink, and oscillating fan or two. Optional access to a centrally-located chlorine pool or cushioned camp fire paired superbly with our homemade, al fresco dinner, all set against a backdrop of palm trees and starry skies. We slept exceedingly well. Bonus: two to three chubby small dogs could be found trotting around!

The Best Honeymoon Imaginable

My husband and I spent two weeks in the Greater Kruger area while on honeymoon. We spent six days at Gomo Gomo and six days at Arathusa. Overall, our experience was amazing. The vast array of species left us in awe. In fact, on multiple occasions we experienced the Big Five in a single game drive.

Having stayed in the area during winter, we were able to avoid the pestering bugs and the bush that hides the wildlife. I would highly recommend this time of year. At each of the locations we enjoyed our guides and our accommodations. While Arathusa was certainly a more polished destination, you certainly pay for it. That being said, it was a better all around experience--in terms of food, guides, and scenery. Their watering hole was absolutely superb.

If I would make one change to our trip it would be our decision to drive from the OR Tambo to the park. Being from America, driving on the other side of the road was a difficult transition for my husband. Taking this stress out of the vacation would have been wise.