Expert Reviews of South Africa (21 Reviews)

With vast populations of all Africa’s iconic plains wildlife (albeit dwindling rhino numbers), South Africa deserves its ranking as one of the most popular safari destinations on the planet. Facilities are fantastic and there are reserves and accommodations that can satisfy the most stringent budgets … or the highest-flying safari aficionados.

Wildlife is often wonderfully habituated and there are few places in the world that offer such unforgettable interactions with the Big Five, along with some once-in-a-lifetime sightings. Addo Elephant National Park is justly famous, and if you want to see big cats and wild dogs then Kruger National Park is almost unbeatable. Southern Kruger sees a lot of traffic at times, but more exclusive experiences can be enjoyed in the national park’s wilder north, or in the private reserves of neighboring Greater Kruger (which includes Sabi Sands and MalaMala, as well as Timbavati Nature Reserve and its near-mythical white lions). Hluhluwe-iMfolozi

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Park was a cornerstone of rhino conservation and remains one of the country’s greatest drawcards.

If there’s a downside to a South African safari it will probably be in the polished level of infrastructure. If you’d prefer smooth tarmac over endless hours jolting around on Land Rover or Land Cruiser suspension – enjoying an ‘African massage’, guides will tell you – then South Africa could be for you. If you favor the sense of security that comes from fenced camps and lodges then this might be preferable to the free-range wildlife that troops through many East African camps. The more rough-and-ready wildlife experiences that other destinations offer can also come at a cost, however, as animals that have not been habituated to humans are invariably more skittish. Further, rain runoff from tarmac actually attracts grazing game … which in turn attracts predators. It’s no coincidence that Kruger is one of the best places to see hunting predators.

Be sure to look beyond the big-name parks though, because South Africa has 19 national parks and scores of smaller reserves. Once you’ve spent enough time sitting in a vehicle, consider Golden Gate Highlands National Park for breathtaking mountain hiking or Camdeboo National Park for the spectacular Valley of Desolation landscapes. Even before you consider the fascination of South Africa’s history and varied culture, this a country with enough world-class wilderness areas to keep you exploring for a lifetime.

South Africa boasts an array of attractions. Renowned state-run Big Five safari destinations include Kruger and Addo Elephant National Parks, Pilanesberg and Madikwe Game Reserves, and Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park. Elsewhere, exclusive private reserves such as Sabi Sands, Phinda and Shamwari all offer unparalleled tourism services, including fine dining, luxurious accommodations, and exceptional wildlife encounters guided by knowledgeable experts.

Yet, what truly sets South Africa apart – and why I chose to settle here in 2006 – is the abundance of lesser-known reserves and diverse scenic wonders. Places like iSimangaliso Wetland Park in KwaZulu-Natal, with its 200km of pristine coastline, where you can go whale watching in the morning and explore coastal forests with elephants and rhinos in the afternoon. The Tsitsikamma Mountains, where the Cape Floral Kingdom comes alive in spring with the giant blooms of showy proteas. The desert-like emptiness of the Tankwa Karoo and the

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Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park.

There are so many places to explore; it would take several lifetimes to try to see it all.

I’ve experienced unforgettable moments such as witnessing a great white shark breach when hunting seals in Mossel Bay. I have watched a sunrise in a kelp forest whilst scuba diving. I’ve had to shoo away penguins seeking shade under my car in Betty’s Bay. And I’ve had meerkats climb up onto my head in the Kuruman River Reserve.

Slackpacking is one of my favourite pastimes and involves being guided on multiday hikes through amazing locations without the burden of heavy backpacks or camping gear. There are dozens of operators offering this activity.

And it’s not just about nature either; Cape Town alone offers endless delights, from its magnificent beaches to its vibrant culinary scene and dramatic surrounding mountains. Whether it's paragliding, safaris, beach vacations, flower hunting, bird watching, wine tours, mountain climbing, boat tours, adventure activities, sports events, eating, nightlife or scuba diving (to name just a few of the things you can do), South Africa truly has it all.

South Africa is one of my favourite places to go on safari, with all the necessary ingredients for a wildlife experience that will begin your enduring love affair with the continent.

Primary among these ingredients is the wildlife. Nowhere else in Africa is it easier to see (and draw near to) the continent’s charismatic mega-fauna – if you don’t see elephant, lion, leopard, cheetah, buffalo, giraffe, rhino and zebra on safari in South Africa, you’re either extremely unlucky or you picked the wrong corner of the country to visit. On a recent three-week visit, I saw more than 60 lions, 54 rhinos, nearly 10 leopards and the same number of wild dogs. And I wasn’t even on safari every day.

Another essential ingredient for a memorable safari is the beauty of the landscapes you’ll encounter. From the Wild Coast to the endless horizons of the Kalahari and the Karoo, with a detour to the high peaks of the Drakensberg en route, South Africa is staggeringly beautiful.

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There is classic African terrain of bushveld and thorny woodlands, the red-rock fortresses of the Waterberg, the beautiful drama of Table Mountain, the sand dunes of Kgalagadi, and the great rivers and converging international frontiers of Mapungubwe.

Perhaps just as importantly, South Africa makes the safari easy. The infrastructure here is first-rate, from world-class lodges, exclusive and extravagant, to park-run rest camps replete with campgrounds, bungalows and restaurants. Guided walks, wildlife drives, night drives, 4WD wilderness trails and all manner of other activities are all designed to get you out into the African wild, to get up close and personal with its wildlife, and to learn from expert guides along the way.

There may be moments when you long for a wilderness experience more easily found in Namibia, Tanzania or Botswana. But if this is your first time on safari, South Africa might just be the best of them all.

There are so many reasons to go on safari in South Africa: wildlife is abundant, diverse and easy to spot; infrastructure is well developed; accommodation is of a high standard and reasonably priced; landscapes are stunning and varied; and the network of protected wildlife areas spans the country, from Cape Town in the southwest to Durban in the east. Wherever you find yourself, wonderful wildlife experiences are, quite literally, on your doorstep.

The flip side to this is that many safaris lack the intense wilderness experience of parks in places such as Tanzania, Zambia and Botswana. However, this can be an advantage, especially for first-time visitors to the continent, for family safaris and for those with limited time. Park roads are generally either paved or in very good condition. Some parks – notably Kruger – offer presentations by rangers that are perfect for learning in more depth about the animals and habitats that you are seeing. Guided walking safaris are readily

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available. And thanks to the excellent infrastructure and SANParks’ generally efficient website, planning and carrying out a safari is easy. Nowhere else can you so quickly and comfortably find yourself amidst such a diversity of animals and with so many opportunities to observe them up close.

South Africa’s long coastline – whose beauty goes well beyond the five-star scenery ranking offered on this webpage – is alive with dolphins, seals, whales, penguins and more, and offers unique opportunities to mix marine-focused safaris with your land-based wildlife watching.

In addition to exploring the coastline, there is also much more to do before and after your safari – from visiting the Cape Winelands to hiking in the Drakensberg or visiting Johannesburg’s museums and cultural sites. As an all-around travel destination that also offers high-quality, excellent-value wildlife safaris, South Africa is hard to beat.

South Africa has a wonderful range of landscapes, a near-perfect climate, and a choice of destinations, activities and itineraries that’s virtually inexhaustible. Aside from its beautiful coastline and cosmopolitan cities – both of which I think should be a mandatory addition to any South African safari – the country is home to just about every African animal imaginable in a staggering variety of habitats. There are 19 national parks managed by South African National Parks (SANParks) and countless game and nature reserves run by regional conservation bodies. In addition, dozens of private reserves now feature in every province and have been instrumental in restocking game that once occurred naturally across South Africa. In almost all these private reserves, knowledgeable guides will take you on game drives and on walking or night safaris; some offer activities like cycling or canoeing, while others have opportunities for close encounters with animals such as elephant or cheetah.

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The benefit of living in South Africa as I do is that I can visit these places leisurely and thoroughly; maybe just a couple on one trip and with a few days in each to fully appreciate what they have to offer. The overseas visitor doesn’t always have that luxury of time, and the vast choice of where to go is bewildering. It’s no surprise that the Kruger National Park and neighbouring private reserves are so popular; it’s easy to get to them, and they offer virtually guaranteed wildlife sightings and a superb choice of accommodation. There are numerous other parks and reserves that also fit this bill, while others have particularly unique environments, rarer or more unusual species, are better known for birds or trees, or feature other things to do, or absolutely nothing to do depending on your preference, than the usual racing around in a vehicle looking for the Big Five. It’s not a case of South Africa meeting your expectations as a safari destination – it will do that – but I would advise careful planning for a safari that exactly suits.

Of all the African countries people visit on safari trips, South Africa is probably the easiest to travel around. Infrastructure is excellent, accommodation for every budget is abundant and wildlife-viewing opportunities stretch far beyond the Big Five. Elephant, lion, leopard, rhino and buffalo are present, of course, and can be viewed in numerous parks including Addo, Pilanesberg, Hluhluwe-iMfolozi and Kruger. As with every aspect of visiting South Africa though, the best thing for animal lovers is the sheer diversity. Whether you’re seeking ultra-luxurious lodges, a rough-and-ready camping experience or anything in between, you’ll find it available somewhere. Self-drive safaris abound, but everywhere that you find the option to seek out animals on your own, you’ll also find guided drives on offer. And for those looking for something different to the usual safari photos, there are whales, sharks, seals and turtles off-shore, raptors to be found in the skies, and even a couple of

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penguin colonies to admire in the Western Cape. It was in South Africa that I saw my first rhino, that I witnessed the adorable sight of an infant elephant trying to trumpet us away, that I watched meerkats playing in the dust and that I saw a zebra chase a hyena through the undergrowth. For these – and so many other reasons – I chose to make South Africa my home.

South Africa’s astounding array of landscapes – from semi-desert to savannah and snow-capped mountain to coral reef – means it offers a greater variety of wildlife experience than any other African country. There are surely few other places where, for example, you can see hippo, leopard and humpback whale within a single day – as I have done at Cape Vidal, on the Zululand coast.

At the same time, however, South Africa bears a greater human imprint than any other safari destination, with many of its wilderness areas having been severely reduced or heavily modified by development, and those that remain now under careful management. This can make a safari feel tamer than in less developed countries to the north. The Kruger, South Africa’s flagship national park, is a case in point: its undeniably superb wildlife experience is, for many, spoiled by its tarred roads, boundary fences and souvenir shops.

The well-developed infrastructure is great news for the

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independent traveller, though, who can use the excellent tourist facilities and transport network to chart an inexpensive self-drive course around the country. And there are many remote corners of the country, including |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld and Kgalagadi Transfrontier Parks, where you can find yourself almost completely alone. Those in search of top-end safari pampering, meanwhile, will find exclusive retreats that compete with any in Africa for style, comfort and guiding.

Furthermore, while the likes of the Kruger offer classic big-game country, South Africa is about much more than just the Big Five. Among my most memorable African wildlife experiences have been watching lammergeyers on the thermals of the Drakensberg and loggerhead turtles on the beaches of Kosi Bay. Some of the country’s smallest parks are among its most rewarding.

A final plus, especially for families: South Africa is the only safari destination that offers a largely malaria-free Big Five experience – although not in the Kruger.

Glorious images of elephants, rhinos, lions, leopards and buffalo parading through pristine bush are central to South Africa’s popular image. So it comes as a surprise to some first-time visitors that, in reality, the proportion of this complex nation given over to national parks and reserves is rather small compared to other parts of southern and East Africa’s safari belt.

Of the pockets of protected bushland dotted along South Africa’s Indian Ocean coastline and in the region between Johannesburg and Gaborone, many are small, with carefully stocked and managed wildlife populations. While these offer rewarding wildlife-watching, they lack some of the atmosphere and cachet of a true wilderness. I have to admit that some South African game drives can feel a bit like bus trips and the hotel-style accommodation found in some parks and reserves just feels commercial and tame. Kruger National Park, South Africa’s flagship conservation area, is gigantic, and I love it for

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its wild, sprawling landscapes roamed by masses of animals and birds. But parts of Kruger are so popular that some write it off as a traffic-jam zone.

I’m happy to put these reservations aside, because where South Africa really wins is in the quality of its infrastructure. Most of its parks and reserves are easily and efficiently accessible by air, road or both. Some are geared up for self-drive visitors, others require you to book into a lodge and use its facilities, but they’re all good at what they do. If you’re looking for a luxury wilderness camping safari, you may prefer Botswana, Zambia or Tanzania. But if you’re in the market for a luxury lodge-based safari, with expert, conservation-savvy guides, superb cuisine and chic surroundings, South Africa can certainly deliver. It’s home to some of the most comfortable and attractive lodges I’ve ever seen.