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South Africa Trips - Which are
the Best Safari Destinations?
South Africa trips are the ideal safaris to go on because the
infrastructure and accommodation is superb in all the wildlife parks there and
it is still highly affordable in comparison to other African countries.
But given a choice some of the national parks and game reserves are better than
others.
Here is a top five list ranking them according to travel reports received at the
African Safari Journals website, my safari experience of twenty plus years,
industry forums, magazines and the general consensus of the experts.
The Kruger National Park has to rank as one of the best South Africa trips
destinations, only slightly behind the Masai Mara and Serengeti when it comes to
wildlife viewing because the vegetation in Kruger can be dense and sometimes
mars the ability to see longer distances.
But the variety of animals, birds and ecosystems that you can experience here
are unparalleled anywhere else in Africa and the accommodation, roads and
facilities are top notch and all at a very affordable price.
It's not unusual to see lion, leopard, cheetah, a pack of wild dog, rhino,
elephant, buffalo and a whole host of antelope, crocodile and hippo in the
course of a single trip including a variety of insects and reptiles.
On the bird front you will be spoiled with a seemingly never-ending supply of
eagles, hawks, water birds and a host of migratory and indigenous species to the
tune of about 510 different varieties.
You can easily do a self drive safari here and still see a decent amount of
wildlife especially if you stick to the central and southern portions of this
massive park (larger than Ireland). The north has fewer animals due to dryer
conditions but also less tourists which makes for a more isolated and intimate
wildlife experience.
If variety is the spice of life then South Africa trips to the Kruger
National Park are a rich dish indeed.
Kruger National Park trip reports »
2. Sabi Sands Game Reserve South Africa Trips
Sharing a fenceless border on the western side of the Kruger National Park is
the Sabi Sands game reserve which has a number of world famous private
concessions like Mala Mala, Sabi Sabi and Londelozi.
The removal of the fence between the two parks allows the animals to move around
freely and the game viewing experience is just as in the Kruger National with
one important difference. Because this reserve is privately held, off road game
tracking is allowed which improves your chances of finding the elusive big cats,
elephant, rhino, buffalo and wild dog to a large degree. They also make use of
two way radios in each safari vehicle so that if one finds something noteworthy
the others can be alerted.
The Sand and Sabi rivers which bisect the reserve provide the focal point which
attracts the wildlife to the area especially in the dry season.
So viewing the big cats on South Africa trips here is virtually guaranteed
and the accommodation is some of the best in the world as illustrated by the Singita Lodge which was the first and only accommodation in the history of the
Conde Nast Gold List Reader Poll to get a perfect 100 score, an honour it has
held for three years. There are about thirty different top class lodges situated
in the reserve.
But this all comes at a price and unless you have reasonably deep pockets this
fantastic reserve will be out of reach which is why it doesn't get the no. 1
ranking for South Africa safari national parks and reserves.
Sabi Sands trip reports »
3. Hluhluwe Umfolozi Game Reserve
If you want to see the endangered black and white rhinos in the wild then this
is the reserve to head for because this is where the inexorable tide to extinction
for the white rhino in Southern Africa was stemmed.
It now boasts the largest population of white rhino in the world numbering over
1600 and also a slowly increasing population of black rhino at just over 400.
On South Africa trips here you will also be able to see lion, leopard,
buffalo, elephant and cheetah in this park and more than 400 bird species have
been recorded. Due to the large number of resident elephants you might have some
close encounters with them on the roads as they cross in front of you.
You can go for a daily walk in the park in the company of an armed ranger or you
can do a several day extended hike in the southern Umfolozi portion.
Hluhluwe-Umfolozi trip reports »
4. Madikwe Game Reserve
This is a latter day Noah's ark story because most of the wildlife contained in
this park was relocated here from other areas in 1991.
Twenty seven different species amounting to over 10 000 head of game were
re-introduced into this area where they once thrived but had disappeared because
of hunting and habitat destruction.
A huge advantage of taking South Africa trips in this park is that it is not
situated in a malaria area so you don't have to bother about taking malaria
tablets as you do in most other reserves.
All of the big five are on view here as well as cheetah and the rare wild dog
packs which are the stars of the show here being regularly sighted patrolling
their huge territories. Your chances of seeing them seem to be better here than
most other parks.
Rare antelope like the eland, gemsbok and sable put in an appearance here too
and you will be able to enjoy your wildlife viewing in relative peace and
isolation because not many tourists know about this excellent game reserve.
Madikwe trip reports »
5. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park
The locals know that this is an excellent game park and it falls into that "best
kept secret" category that each country seems to have where for some unknown
reason a reserve doesn't get the notice from tourists and safari companies that
it deserves.
Maybe it's because this reserve is set in the Kalahari desert and people don't
normally associate deserts with lots of wildlife but there are always exceptions
to the rule and this South Africa trips safari park qualifies.
You can see some pretty specialised and very interesting game here such as the
gemsbok antelope which can go for months without water, springbok, blue
wildebeest, eland and red hartebeest.
And wherever there is a good supply of antelope, the predators are never far
away such as the black maned lions which this area has a disproportionate supply
off, leopard and cheetah which can make full use of the wide open spaces to
chase their prey at top speed.
The meerkat (suricate) is also regularly seen here and bat eared foxes
contribute to the scavenging duties.
This South Africa park is famous for birds of prey such as the pygmy falcon and
the sociable weaver which builds nests which are the bird equivalent of
apartment blocks that are sometimes so big they break the branches they rest on.
Kgalagadi trip reports »
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