Greater Kruger vs Eastern Cape Reserves: how do they differ as safari destinations?

However, South Africa is a big country and travelling distances are great. There may be times when you just won’t be able to fit in a visit to Greater Kruger. So what are your other options? One of our intrepid travel consultants, Madi Nothnagel, set out to discover for herself recently on a visit to the Eastern Cape game reserves. Some of the places she visited included:

Addo Elephant Park - a national park, famous for its huge herds of elephants

Gorah Elephant Camp - the only private concession inside Addo (and the first private concession in a national park) with a 5-star lodge (and perhaps a 4-star lodge soon)

Kuzuko Lodge – in northern Addo, 24 spacious chalets overlooking the malaria-free Karoo

Pumba Private Game Reserve - with two 5-star lodges: Pumba Water Lodge and Msenge Bush Lodge. A Big 5 reserve, famous for its white lions

Kwandwe Private Game Reserve - home to four luxury safari lodges, each with a unique style and character: tranquil Great Fish River Lodge (no children under 12), Ecca Lodge, modern & funky (child-friendly) and two private-use villas, Uplands Homestead and Melton Manor.

Shamwari Game Reserve – a favourite safari destination of the British Royal Family. It has seven lodges ranging from intimate tented camps to private-use camps to family-friendly lodges to a 10-suite, 5-luxury room safari lodge. Shamwari is the oldest and largest game reserve in the Eastern Cape, about 25 000 ha in extent and 22 years in existence.

So what are the main reasons Eastern Cape Reserves differ from Greater Kruger?

1. Reserves in the Eastern Cape work well with a travel itinerary that includes Cape Town and the Garden Route (no national flights necessary).

2. They’re malaria free – a big consideration if you have young children and any immuno-compromised people in your group. (Other good malaria-free, family-friendly options include Madikwe and Waterberg Game Reserves).

3. They’re easily accessible from a major centre – most are just 30 minutes to one hour’s drive from Port Elizabeth. Kruger is a good 4 – 5 hours’ drive from Johannesburg.

4. They’re generally smaller than their northern counterparts.

5. They’re fenced which makes a big difference. It’s a more controlled environment and there’s no natural migration of game. Most lodges can tell you exactly how many animals of each species they have at any given time. Some lodges also have enclosures where they keep some species for protection or conservation purposes.

6. You often don’t feel the vast remoteness that you do in Greater Kruger – for example, you may need to drive on national roads to get from one part of the reserve to another, passing urban settlements along the way.

7. The bush and biomes are very different – Kruger is drier, with typical mopane and thorn trees and grassy plains. The Eastern Cape is much greener with low karoo-type shrub-land and bushes.

8. Addo National Park particularly has tried to stay true to the game that is endemic to the area, so you won’t find any white rhino, springbok and mountain zebra, although you might in the private reserves. Also, the lions are the Kalahari variety, with black manes.