Kruger Park and Mpumalanga

Mpumalanga – ‘the place where the sun rises’ – is one of the most geographically diverse South African provinces. It lies in the northeast corner of the country where the land rises out of the coastal plain in a grand escarpment of epic proportions. In places, cliffs soar hundreds of metres out of the steamy tropical flatlands of the Lowveld.

Visitors are drawn to Mpumalanga by its magnificent scenery, diverse fauna and flora and by the saga of the 1870s gold rush. The region offers excellent game viewing, bird watching, hiking, horse-riding and fishing. Streams once panned for gold have become the haunts of eager anglers and wily trout.

Mountains, panoramic passes, waterfalls, forests and pioneer towns characterise the escarpment. Down below, the Lowveld is classic big-game country, the setting for dozens of reserves teeming with wildlife. Visit the world’s most famous game park, climb the world’s third-highest canyon and spend a night in some of Africa’s finest game lodges. The Kruger is Mpumalanga’s centrepiece, a park the size of Israel, thronging with game. It has an extensive network of tar roads and comfortable camps, but if you prefer keeping it rough, there are also 4×4 tracks, mountain-bike and hiking trails.