MPUMALANGA
Area: South Africa


Location:
In the NE of South Africa, formerly part of the province of Transvaal. The southern half of the Kruger National Park lies within the province and borders Mozambique. The main airports serving the Kruger area are Eastgate and Kruger Mpumalanga International near Nelspruit.

Telephone code from UK:
27

Website:
http://www.mpumalanga.com

Position:
About 200 miles E of Johannesburg the highveld plateau (over 5,000 feet) suddenly plunges down the Drakensberg escarpment and becomes the subtropical lowveld. This then continues E in rolling hills and valleys gradually flattening out at an altitude of about 1,000 feet finishing at the Mozambique border.

Description:
The W section comprises miles and miles of the most stunningly beautiful rolling countryside with hills, valleys, lakes (here called dams) and endless scenic panoramas. Areas of natural indigenous forest mix with huge plantations of tobacco, coffee, tea, bananas, avocados, vegetables etc. The E of the area is occupied by the Kruger National Park, an area the size of Wales which has been preserved as a natural habitat for the area's wildlife. The so-called "bush" scenery is dramatically different _ basically flat grassland only supporting small scrubby trees typified by the acacia. Especially in the winter (our summer) very dry and arid though greening considerably during the summer wet season. You can drive yourself and view game only from the road in your own closed vehicle. You can lodge here or go in as a day visitor. A number of private game reserves are maintained on the W border of Kruger. Some years ago the fence between the two was taken down allowing the game free range over the whole area. There are two major reserve areas _ Timbavati in the N and Sabi Sand in the S _ each subdivided into smaller privately operated reserves such as Mala Mala, Sabi Sabi and Londolozi. Ngala is unique as a private reserve actually inside Kruger Park rather than next to it and is leased to the current operator. All of these offer small numbers of clients (at high cost) luxurious accommodation, personal service, splendid food and two 4-hour game drives per day in open Landrovers accompanied by a qualified ranger and tracker. These go off road and get within feet of the game. It is quite possible to see the "big five" (elephant, buffalo, rhino, lion and leopard) in one day plus a host of buck, giraffe, wildebeest and hippo etc, etc. Little surprise therefore that this is the country's greatest tourist attraction.

Suitability:
Just as the area falls into two distinct types of countryside so the market could be split. However, many visitors appreciate the beautiful hilly scenery of the Blyde River area and the agricultural region around Hazyview as well as wanting some sort of safari experience. The latter especially and the quality hotels in the former are not cheap so the whole area tends to appeal to an upmarket clientele.

Accommodation:
Many of the hotels used by British tour operators in the Hazyview to White River area tend to be small, high-quality converted farmhouses and hunting lodges. Very pleasant to stay in but usually expensive. There are more economical options. The same applies in the game reserves. Accommodation in Kruger National Park is found in all parts in "rest camps" of all types and qualities. On the private game reserves the camps are catering for much smaller numbers, giving a personal service and much more guarantee of seeing game close up. Accommodation there is also much more luxurious so this all comes at considerable cost. All the private game reserves serve dinner in a "boma" in the grounds. This is a tradition of the original indigenous African tribes of the area and consists of an open-topped circular enclosure, normally of reeds but sometimes of wooden poles about 10_12 feet high. The floor is earth and a camp fire is lit in the middle. The walls keep out flying insects (theoretically). Dinner is eaten off tables round the fire.

Shopping:
In the bush and the agricultural countryside there are not many shops so opportunities to spend are usually restricted to hotel or camp curio shops.

Entertainments:
The countryside or safaris are usually entertainment enough though some game reserve camps do occasionally lay on a bit of local folk culture, dancing etc.

Eating:
Staying only one or two nights usually in quite isolated places means eating in. The good news is that most hotels also operate as public restaurants and tend towards the cordon bleu end of the gastronomic range. Trying to eat out in the game reserves might present the lions with an unexpected European dish!

Public-transport:
For Kruger National Park and the Hazyview area one's own transport is essential unless on an escorted tour by coach or, more likely, minibus. Some private game reserves have their own airfields (travel light and carry only essentials).

Local-excursions:
Many to choose from. Among the most popular are: Pilgrim's Rest _ replica gold rush mining town; God's Window _ high viewpoint with spectacular panoramic vistas over the lowveld; Bourke's Luck Potholes _ deep holes caused by river erosion; Blyde River Canyon _ huge 16-mile long gorge; several waterfalls including Berlin, Lisbon, Lone Creek and Mac Mac.