Johannesburg - I hear Doomsday prophets and the half-empty glass crowd announcing that “Kruger isn’t what it used to be”.
No, it isn’t. It’s even better.
The polished taps outside the rondavels gleam as brightly as ever, the restaurants have been taken over by a reputable chain and are serving great food, the natural world continues to thrive, smoke from braais continues to curl into the air as evening falls, and new camps have sprung up.
And it’s still proudly and uniquely South African.
Foreign visitors pay millions of rand to experience Kruger. Here are five top tips to make your visit even more enjoyable.
Bookings
The best accommodation – riverside bungalows, family houses, cottages, safari tents – is almost impossible to find during the school holidays unless you book well in advance.
Remember to book 11 months in advance to get your accommodation of choice: for example, September 1 for August next year. Be on the phone from 7.30am.
You can book online, but I’ve found phone bookings quicker and easier. Have a flask of coffee to hand because it can take up to 20 or 30 minutes to be put through.
It’s worth surfing www.sanparks.org (extremely user-friendly) for cancellations. If you’re not bound by children, finding accommodation is no problem. There are special rates for pensioners in off-peak times, so flaunt those wrinkles and make hay.
Where to Stay
l Main camps.
Best for children is one of the 12 main rest camps – for example, Berg-en-Dal, Skukuza, and Lower Sabie – because there’s lots of safe space where they can run around freely after being cooped up in a vehicle. The camps have excellent swimming pools, a shop – where kids love to go on their own to buy ice creams or souvenirs – and a big perimeter fence they can patrol on their own and spot elephants, hippos, giraffes, and whatever is mooching along.
l Bushveld camps.
No kids? Then opt for one of the little bushveld camps and you’re guaranteed privacy and exclusivity (more expensive than the main camps, but worth every penny). My favourite is Sirheni, in the far north. The cottages face perennial water – you’ll often see the resident leopard having its sundowner there – and the bird life is fantastic.
l Camping sites.
Do-it-yourselfer camping types (I was born too old to camp) rave about Kruger’s newest accommodation – the Tsendze Rustic Campsite just 7km from the Mopani Rest Camp. The campsite is set among lovely stands of ancient trees and its watercourses are magnets for elephant bulls and large buffalo herds.
When to go
The park is lovely all year round, but winter is best for game spotting because the grass is low and there’s a lack of surface water, so animals seek out the dams and waterholes. The bush looks a bit drab and dry, but has a stark beauty.
November is bonanza time because the migrant birds are back and there are baby animals everywhere.
If you can stand the heat (although most accommodation now has air con) go in February. There are fewer visitors about, and the park is at its most beautiful.
Guided drives
These are great value for money. Choose the sunset drive because you get to see the game as it comes down to drink in the early evening. Also experience the thrill of a spotlight drive, where your guide will point out predators, nocturnal animals like porcupines, genets, bush babies and civets. In winter, take a blanket and a hip flask.
Best places to spot game
My mantra is “You never know what’s around the next corner”. I’ve had spectacular leopard sightings at noon, been stuck for nearly an hour in the middle of a large breeding herd of elephants just as I was heading back to camp at closing time, saw two Pel’s fishing owls in as many minutes early one morning at Pafuri, and watched a crocodile take a baby zebra at a dam at mid-morning.
However, Satara and the middle of the park have the sweetest grasses that attract the grazers with their predator followers. You’d be unlucky not to spot lion, leopard, cheetah and maybe wild dog around Lower Sabie – we saw all of these when we left the camp early one morning last year. Rules are to drive slowly, get off the beaten track and try the bush roads, and be patient at waterholes.
Remember that Kruger’s almost two million hectares of wilderness – the size of Israel or Wales – is home to hundreds of thousands of animals, 500 bird species, 116 reptile species and 34 amphibians. That’s a lot of critters waiting to be spotted.
If you’re a Kruger fan, you’ll know what I mean. If you haven’t been there, get ready for one of the greatest experiences of your life.
Kate Turkington, Saturday Star