Best Safaris in South Africa

South Africa - the home of the ‘Big Five'. If there is one thing you do here, make it a safari. South Africa is an incredibly interesting country, with many bucket-list worthy activities and stunning landscapes to explore. But year after year, a safari in South Africa continues to be one of the biggest reasons people travel all the way here. And with great reason too. The entire country is an animal lovers paradise. But with so many game reserves dotted all over the country, it can be difficult to know which one to choose. Here’s our roundup of the best of the best.

1. Kruger National Park

Visiting Kruger National Park is always high on a ‘best things to do in South Africa’ list, and it happens to be one of the most famous national parks in the world. People take to Kruger National Park to scour the plains for the ‘Big Five’. However, this famous game reserve has one of the biggest ranges and densities of wildlife in all of Africa. The park is home to elephants, leopards, cheetahs, bufalo, hippos, zebras, giraffes, rhinos and lions. As well as the typical jeep safari, the park also organise night drives, horseback riding and walking safaris too. The sheer size of the park alone is overwhelming. Encompassing over 250 cultural heritage sites and 147 different animal species living side by side.

Best time to visit: May to September

Elephant leading a herd in Addo National Park

2. Addo Elephant National Park

In the Eastern Cape, about an hours’ drive from Port Elizabeth, lies one of South Africa’s largest National Parks. Addo National Park is highly regarded as one of the best places in the world to view elephants. In fact, it’s almost impossible to not see any. As well as the astonishing 600 of these gentle giants, 95 other species of animals including nearly 50 black rhino, 417 species of birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles all coexist in this wildlife playground. Everyone comes for the big five, but did you know that Addo National Park is home to the Big 7 - lion, leopard, rhino, elephant, buffalo, southern right whale and great white shark.

Best time to visit: June to September

Did you know?

The African elephant is the largest land mammal in the world. The African bush elephants can weigh up to 11 tons and live up to 70 years!

3. Isimangaliso Wetland Park

This 3320 sq km park is a World Heritage Site encompassing an astonishing eight ecosystems including lakes, coral reefs, estuaries, beaches and swamp forests. Visiting iSimangaliso Wetland Park is just as much about the scenery as it is the animals. The park follows the stunning coastline for 220km and has a 5km marine section, which makes snorkelling off the beaches incredible. You might even spot some dolphins or whales. Take a safari to spot elephants and zebras in the grasslands, tropical birds in the mountains, cheetahs in the bushveld, monkeys in the palm groves and rhinos in the grasslands. And if you yearn for a little more adrenaline, there’s a world of optional activities such as horse riding or kayaking.

Best time to visit: June - October

Hippo in the water in Isimangaliso Wetland Park

Tourists watch leopard in MalaMala Game Reserve

4. MalaMala Game Reserve

MalaMala Game Reserve is the one for you if you’re looking to inject a bit of luxury into your South African safari. It’s a private reserve, top-class, with excellent accommodation and very high hospitality standards. As for wildlife, you are almost guaranteed to spot the ‘Big 5’ on one of your drives. They offer the option of day drives, night drives and even walking safaris. The setting is stunningly perfect too. MalaMala is located inside one of South Africa’s largest National Parks (Sabi Sands) and bordering the famous Kruger National Park. This is the perfect location for spotting leopards with the added bonus of having much smaller crowds than at Kruger National Park.

Best time to visit: May - September

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Lion cub sleeping in Kgalagadi National Park

5. Kgalagadi National Park

Kgalagadi is the best national park in South Africa for self-driving visitors. It’s also a great one to visit if you want to get off the beaten track. The scenery here is wild, harsh and absolutely stunning. Picture red sand dunes, inhospitable deserts, open terrains and barren landscapes. You may not catch the ‘Big Five’ here but you will get a true taste of desert life. The park is more renowned for its predator sightings of black-maned lions, leopards, eagles and cheetahs, as well bat-eared foxes, cape foxes, springboks and elands. The park offers the perfect backdrop for wildlife watching and the magnificent colours during a sunrise or sunset game drive will never be forgotten.

Best time to visit: March to May

Rhino herd in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Park

6. Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Park

If you’re searching for Rhinos, Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game park is the one for you. The park was originally set up to save the Rhino from extinction, and they have done a fine job. This is the oldest game reserve in Africa and it now houses around 2000 white rhinos - the largest population in the world. It’s not all about rhinos here though, this is a great place to search for the ‘Big Five’. The park houses leopards, wild dogs, lions, giraffes, antelopes, buffaloes and elephants. Your chances of spotting a variety wildlife in Hluhluwe National Park is also in your favour due to the many hides overlooking watering holes - a prime spot for wildlife watching. The park offers morning and evening drives as well as self-driving options. They can also organise guided morning walks or multi-day trails through the wilderness.

Best time to visit: May - September

a river crossing in Mapungubwe National Park

7. Mapungubwe National Park

Mapungubwe National Park is often considered to be one of the most beautiful national parks in South Africa. 28,000 acres consisting of breathtaking landscapes set in the valley including sandstone outcrops, forests and woodlands with the Limpopo River snaking through the grounds. As for wildlife you can spot; lions, African bush elephants, white rhinos, leopards, crocodiles, meerkats, cape wild dogs, giraffes and baboons. What also gives this park an added flair is their treetop canopy walk which can give you an entirely new perspective on searching for wildlife. They also do a cracking bush braai - a South African bbq and a favourite past-time among the locals.

Best time to visit: June - August

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8. Sabi Sands

Sabi Sands borders with the famed Kruger National Park and divides into numerous, separate, private game reserves (such as MalaMala Game Reserve). Each of these parks offers a more luxurious, exclusive experience and the perfect opportunity to tick off the ‘Big Five’ without the hassle of crowds. These parks have excellent trackers and guides who can almost guarantee sightings with two drives a day. Being an extension of Kruger National Park, the landscape has the same dense vegetation and wooden savannah as its neighbours as well as two rivers running which provide great spots for wildlife watching. They also have a selection of incredible luxury lodges.

Best time to visit: May - September

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