We hope you are able to come and visit us over the summer! Add in giant, orange-ball sunsets and black-velvet night skies studded with twinkling stars, and you’ll feel like you’ve entered the Africa of storybooks.Hello and thank you for visiting our website. It’s one of the best places in the world to spot big cats, especially cheetahs. From prides of black-maned lions to packs of howling spotted hyenas, there are some 1,775 predators here. Yet despite the desolate landscape, the park teems with wildlife. The Kgalagadi is a wild land of harsh extremes and frequent droughts, where shifting red and white sands meet clusters of spiky thorn trees and bone-dry riverbeds. As soon as you enter this magical park, tucked away alongside Namibia in the Northern Cape and spilling into southwest Botswana, you’ll see why the journey was well worth the effort. Head to the top of Table Mountain on the cableway for South Africa's most famous views © Chiara Salvadori / Getty Images Kgalagadi Transfrontier ParkĪ long, scorched highway leads between crimson dunes from Upington to Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, one of the world’s last great, unspoiled ecosystems. The park is popular with hikers on long treks, but there are also shorter walking trails. There are plenty of animals in the park, however, including grey rheboks, blesboks, elands, oribi antelope, Burchell’s zebras, jackals, baboons and numerous bird species, including the rare bearded and Cape vultures and the critically endangered bald ibis. Golden Gate Highlands National Park might not boast any of the Big Five, but it does feature some fantastic sunsets. The lemon-yellow rays may silhouette a lone kudu standing still in a sea of mint-green grasses before the sky explodes in a fiery collision of purple and red. The jagged sandstone outcrops fronting the foothills of the wild, maroon-hued Maluti Mountains glow golden in the dying light. Just before the darkness erases the remaining flecks of color from the sky, something magical happens in Golden Gate Highlands National Park. The lush, green landscapes of Tugela Gorge draw hikers to the Drakensberg mountains © Michael Heffernan / Lonely Planet Golden Gate Highlands National Park The park is renowned for its excellent day walks and more ambitious multiday hiking opportunities. This last river eventually becomes the Senqu (Orange) River and flows all the way to the Atlantic. Looming behind is Mont-aux-Sources at 3282m (10,768ft), the source – hence the name – of the Tugela, Elands and Western Khubedu Rivers. Here, the Tugela Falls drop 945m (3100ft) in five stages the highest level often freezes in winter. With some of the Drakensberg’s most dramatic and accessible scenery, the park is crowned by the sublime Amphitheater, a 5km (3 mile) wall of cliffs and canyons that’s spectacular from below and even more dramatic when viewed from above. Leopard close encounters are just one of the thrills that may be waiting in Kruger National Park © bikeriderlondon / Shutterstock Royal Natal National Parkįanning out from some of the loftiest summits in the Drakensberg mountains, 30 sq mile Royal Natal National Park has a presence that far outstrips its modest size. You can explore with your own vehicle or join a huge range of guided wildlife safaris, and accommodation is plentiful and great value. On the flip side, Kruger's vast network of roads makes this one of Africa's most accessible parks, and it's well suited for families. And yes, you may have to wait in line to see those lions around a kill. Yes, we concede that Kruger can sometimes become crowded with safari groups. Beautiful granite kopjes (hills) pepper the south, while the Lebombo Mountains rise from the savanna in the east, and tropical forests cover northern parts of this 7520 sq mile park. Some of Africa's most iconic species – elephant, lion, leopard, cheetah, rhino, buffalo, giraffe, hippo and zebra – share the bushveld with a supporting cast of 136 other mammals and more than 500 bird species. Kruger National Park is one of the world's greatest wildlife-watching destinations. Here are the best national parks to add some natural wonder to your South Africa itinerary. In some reserves, the focus is on wildlife encounters, while others are primarily wilderness sanctuaries or hiking areas. If you include private reserves, South Africa has hundreds of national parks and game areas. Showcasing an astonishing array of landscapes, the country's national parks and game reserves are great places to experience true wilderness and get close to Africa's famous wildlife. From snow-capped mountains and the Bushveld to sub-tropical beaches and the Kalahari, South Africa is a mind-bogglingly diverse country.
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