Kruger National Park Safaris
(Camping Safaris, Classic Safaris, Open Vehicle Safaris and Luxury Game Lodge Safaris)
Kruger National Park Safaris
Where nearly 2 million hectares of unrivalled diversity of
life forms fuse with historical and archaeological sights – this is real
Africa.
The world-renowned Kruger National Park offers a wildlife experience that ranks
with the best in Africa. Established in 1898 to protect the wildlife of the
South African Lowveld, this national park of nearly 2 million hectares, SANParks
- Kruger National Park is unrivalled in the diversity of its life forms and a
world leader in advanced environmental management techniques and policies.
Truly the flagship of the South African national parks, Kruger is home to an
impressive number of species: 336 trees, 49 fish, 34 amphibians, 114 reptiles,
507 birds and 147 mammals. Man's interaction with the Lowveld environment over
many centuries - from bushman rock paintings to majestic archaeological sites
like Masorini and Thulamela - is very evident in the Kruger National Park. These
treasures represent the cultures, persons and events that played a role in the
history of the Kruger National Park and are conserved along with the park's
natural assets.
Rainy Season:
The subtropical climate has hot rainy summers starting in October and ending around March. The summer rains transform the arid park into a lush flowering paradise, but the increased foliage does make animals harder to see.
Dry Season:
The winter months from April to September are extremely pleasant with warm dry days and cold nights. Traditionally, the best game viewing is in the winter as the vegetation becomes sparse and water is restricted to rivers and water holes.
Types of Safaris
There are numerous types of safaris that one can choose from to experience the Kruger National Park. These safaris range from camping safaris, the classic safari where one stays in the camps of the Kruger Park, the open vehicle safari and the luxury lodge safaris which are in the private concessions and offer the guest the top of the range Kruger Park Safari.
Historical Facts
The park was first proclaimed in 1898 as the Sabie Game Reserve by the then president of the Transvaal Republic, Paul Kruger. He first proposed the need to protect the animals of the Lowveld in 1884, but his revolutionary vision took another 12 years to be realised when the area between the Sabie and Crocodile Rivers was set aside for restricted hunting.
James Stevenson-Hamilton (born in 1867) was appointed the park’s first warden on 1 July 1902.
On 31 May 1926 the National Parks Act was proclaimed and with it the merging of the Sabie and Shingwedzi Game Reserves into the Kruger National Park.
The first motorists entered the park in 1927 for a fee of one pound.
Many accounts of the park’s early days can be found in the Stevenson-Hamilton Memorial Library.
There are almost 254 known cultural heritage sites in the Kruger National Park, including nearly 130 recorded rock art sites.
There is ample evidence that prehistoric man – Homo erectus roamed the area between 500 000 and 100 000 years ago.
Cultural artifacts of Stone Age man have been found for the period 100 000 to 30 000 years ago.
More than 300 archaeological sites of Stone Age man have been found.
Evidence of Bushman Folk (San) and Iron Age people from about 1500 years ago is also in great evidence.
There are also many historical tales of the presence of Nguni people and European explorers and settlers in the Kruger area.
There are significant archaeological ruins at Thulamela and Masorini.
There are numerous examples of San Art scattered throughout the park. |
