Kruger Park
The Big Five from your own car, on partly tarred roads: Kruger is the world's most accessible independent safari.
Suggested stay — 3 to 4 nights
As big as a country (350 km north to south), Kruger works exactly like Etosha: you sleep in fenced camps (Sanparks), you drive out between gate hours, you go slowly and stop for a long time. The south's animal density (Skukuza, Lower Sabie, Satara sectors) makes it the queen zone of first visits: lions, leopards, elephants, buffalo and rhinos are seen routinely.
Three to four nights in the park make for a complete experience, changing camp most nights. The camps' guided night drives complement the daytime self-drive perfectly — the only legal way to see the park after gate closing.
Don't miss
- The Skukuza–Lower Sabie river road (H4-1), considered one of Africa's best leopard drives
- The lion plains of the Satara sector
- A waterhole sit at dawn, engine off (Sunset Dam, Transport Dam…)
- A guided night drive from your camp
Our tips on the ground
- Book the Sanparks camps very early (bookings open 11 months ahead) for school holidays and the dry season.
- Enter the park at gate opening: the first two hours of the day are worth all the rest.
- Malaria zone: prophylaxis to discuss with your doctor, especially November to April.
On our publishing schedule
Coming soon“South Africa on your own”, the complete edition, is in preparation
Same method as our Namibia guide: day-by-day itineraries, driving, a costed budget and checklists. Leave us your address and you'll hear about the launch — at the launch price.
In the meantime, our reference
The “Namibia on your own” guide — €29
- The same method, already applied to Africa's easiest self-drive country
- 3 day-by-day itineraries, 4x4 insurance decoded, costed budget
- Instant download, 14-day guarantee — currently in French, English edition coming
Before you go
Readers' questions about Kruger Park
Do you need a 4x4 for Kruger?
No: the main roads are tarred and the secondary tracks well graded — an ordinary sedan is perfectly adequate. A slightly taller vehicle (SUV) improves viewing comfort in the grass, without being essential.
Kruger or a private reserve?
Self-drive Kruger costs 3 to 10 times less and delivers the pride of your own sightings; the adjacent private reserves (Sabi Sands…) all but guarantee the leopard, off-road driving and guides included, at €400 to €1,500+ per night. Our advice: the public park first, one blow-out private night if the budget allows.