Durban to Johannesburg 2022

We meet in Durban in the morning. Formal Introduction of your Guides and the other traveling mates. Then we drive off to Hluhluwe national park. You have afternoon game drive in the park. Our first briefing of the tour at diner after your first afternoon game drive.

All day game drive in Hluhluwe Imfolozi national park. This is also a big five game measuring 9 600 sq km of wilderness awaiting you. The hilly landscape is amazing and good sightings for buffalo and rhino.

At Ezulwini game lodge you have a chance to go on a morning walking safari before we head off to St Lucia town. You have a short town tour in the afternoon before you go on a boat cruise.

Isimangaliso wetlands park was proclaimed a world heritage site for the rich biodiversity, unique ecosystems and natural beauty occurring in a relatively small area.The huge diversity in fauna and flora is due to the great variety of ecosystems on the park, ranging from the coral reefs and sandy beaches to the subtropical dune forests, savannas, and wetlands. In the park there are elephants,leopards, black and white rhinos, cape buffaloes, and in the sea whales, dolphins and marine turtles. You have your day out in iSimangiliso.

Accommodation : St Lucia Livingston lodge

Today you drive off to Swaziland in the morning arriving at Hlane national park later in the afternoon . On arrival you head for an afternoon game drive. At Hlane camp there is waterhole just in front of the restaurant and bar. Enjoy your drinks while viewing wildlife at night.

You have an option of a walking safari again in the morning. You have a full day game drive today in the park. Hlane is Swaziland’s biggest national park. Hlane national park is 300 km² and lies on a flat lowland area with grasslands and shallow pans. Roads and trails offer views of diverse wildlife such as lions, elephants, hippos, white rhinos, leopards and giraffes. White-backed vultures and other raptors nest in the ancient hardwood trees. Umbuluzana river flows through the park.

In the morning we head back to South Africa Mpumalanga province home to Kruger national park. We arrive in Kruger just after lunch and already have our game drive as we head to our accommodation.
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of 19,623 km² (7,576 sq mi) in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends 360 km (220 mi) from north to south and 65 km (40 mi) from east to west. There is quite a good number of mammals in Kruger notably the big cats lions, leopards and cheetahs. The big mammals include elephant, rhinoceros, wildebeest, giraffes and many others.

All the big five game animals are found at Kruger National Park, which has more species of large mammals than any other African game reserve (at 147 species). Out of the 517 species of birds found at Kruger, 253 are residents, 117 non-breeding migrants, and 147 nomads. Indeed Kruger is unique and that makes it one of the best in the region. Other conservation programs here include the endangered painted dogs. You have a full day game drive in Kruger. You will have music and dance by the Ndebele tribe of South Africa.

In the morning you can go on a walking tour in the park accompanied by a ranger and a guide. A good chance for birding and track some animal tracks. After breakfast we head to for the Panoramic view of Mpumalanga province through the ‘Potholes’ and 3 rondavels. We drive to Tshukudu game reserve where upon arrival you have a game drive. The following animals can be spotted on Tshukudu: Lion, leopard, cheetah, elephant, white rhino, buffalo, eland, waterbuck, kudu, bushbuck, wildebeest, zebra, giraffe, warthog, impala, steenbuck, duiker, porcupine, jackal, hyena, caracal, serval, civet, genet, African wild cat, hippo, crocodile and many other wildlife species.

Driving through Tshukudu game reserve as we make our way out back to Kruger national park. Our exit will be the northern gate Pafuri Gate. This is part of a trans-frontier that have wildlife roaming between Limpopo national park in Mozambique and Gonarezhou national park in Zimbabwe. Enjoy our last game drive in the park. Later in the day we drive to Mesina for our overnight.

Today we drive 480 km to Thabazimbi town in Northwest province. We have a stop for 2 hours to visit Mapungubwe world heritage site. Discover an ancient African Kingdom, Southern Africa’s first, established at Mapungubwe Hill between 1200 and 1290 AD. Home to a powerful tribe that flourished on trading with Eastern cultures such as China and India, Mapungubwe saw the rise and fall of this great civilization more than 700 years ago. This is the place where archaeologists excavated the famous golden rhino and other evidence of a wealthy African kingdom.

We go on a game drive in the morning in Marakele game reserve. Marakele is home to the big five as well as sixteen species of antelopes and over 250 species of birds, including the largest colony of Cape griffon vultures in the world (around 800 breeding pairs). The Matlabas River runs through the park.
After lunch we head to Pilanesberg national park where upon arrival we go on afternoon game drive.

Today you start off early taking another route to explore Pilanesberg. The mountainous terrain and the valleys makes it better to spot animals. The waterholes are quite distant apart and good sites and hideouts here walk and view. Birdlife is quite abundant too. The silence of this national park is all you need for better game drive experience.
With an area of 550 km², it is the fourth largest park in South Africa. The volcano crater in which the park is situated erupted 1300 million years ago. Pilanesberg was originally owned by 3 of the local tribes. Many of the Stone Age and Iron Age sites around the reserve show proof of the presence of man.

We wrap it up with a morning drive out of the park as we head to Johannesburg. We arrive in the afternoon in Johannesburg. Check in on our accommodation and relax before we have farewell diner. The Tour ends today.