Kruger Park & Swaziland Safaris: Day and Night Game Drives

Everybody is aware that Nevada's Grand Canyon is the largest in the world. Yet nobody has really heard of Blyde River Canyon, the third-largest. Immense red sandstone walls tower above the river, individual pinnacles rising to over 6,000 feet above sea level. A lush green carpet covers the canyon walls, extending onto the rocks and providing a unique subtropical landscape. You'll stop at all the famous lookout points, walking along the cliffs beside the Pinnacle, God's Window, Lisbon Falls, and the Three Rondavels. Sheer cliffs overlook the abyss, vistas stretch all the way across Kruger to Mozambique, and bizarre peaks rise like fairytale chimneys. Then wander down to the Bourke's Luck Potholes, a bizarre collection of eroded rock that glimmers below vivid sandstone.

Africa's unique wildlife lurks around the corner, the famed Big Five all living in the Balule Private Game Reserve. Elephants wander across raw dusty plains, lion prides rest beneath broad acacia branches, and rhinos join the hippos in the lake shallows. Balule and Kruger National Park share an unfenced border, the wildlife freely roaming between the two reserves. It's an idyllic first safari, a smorgasbord of Africa's great mammals to be admired, but no long distances to travel. Is that a kudu? Or a springbok? Perhaps an eland? Your guide reveals all as the diversity of untamed Africa begins to take center stage. Dinner is served under the stars, a watchful guard ensuring that the elephants don't get too close.

As the dawn light filters through the trees you're on a walking safari, searching in the wild with a certain degree of trepidation. Elephants and rhinos loiter nearby, and the big cats are active at this time of day. Even the graceful ungulates are given new respect, herds of zebra seeming much bigger when viewed from ground level. A local guide keeps you safe, following the clues and providing a thrilling local experience in a land of giants.

After breakfast you'll officially enter Kruger, an epic untamed landscape that's bigger than a few US states. Beside the trail is a white rhino. Drive a little further and there's another dozen of these endangered mammals. Their armored frames and sharp horns evoke power, yet their playful movements reveal an unexpected grace. These are unflustered peaceful animals, and over half of the world's population can be found in Kruger. They're not alone here. Lions dominate the savannah, sleeping in the grass or ferociously hunting the lame and sick. Cheetahs and leopards stand on rocky outcrops, and swamps are filled with the blubbery antics of hippo pods. This long game drive should turn out most of the sought after scenes and no shortage of surprises.

Kruger pulls you in, submerging you in a world of enigmatic sounds, antelopes hiding beside your chalet, and silhouettes crossing the horizon. Wake up in nature and head deeper into Kruger, the wilderness continuing to throw up its absorbing collection of Africa's Big Five. Yet while everyone is desperate to see rhinos and lions, make sure you appreciate the supporting cast. Like boisterous buffalos, savage wild dogs, elegant hartebeest, and the scurrying blur of a pair of warthogs. Then there are so many impala that you don't raise an eyebrow when they skip past. Now a giraffe is suddenly beside the vehicle. But quick, turn around, there's a hippo charging out of the water...

Leaving Kruger you ascend into the magnificent mountain scenery of northern Swaziland. Endless vistas will both sooth and welcome; the green and yellow valleys rolling on and layers of mountains seeping onto the horizon. It's easy to know you've crossed the border. The landscape changes, the people immediately look different, and mud and straw hut villages pass by the window. Check out the Ngwenya glass factory, admiring the ingenious handmade use of recycled glass, then pass through Mbabane, a capital city that feels like little more than a quaint village. The Kingdom of Swaziland is full of indelible scenes, and every mile brings something new; women in red tribal dresses carry fruit baskets on their head, roadside markets are covered in dust and color, and the glorious panoramas just keep on coming. You'll overnight in the mountains outside Mhlambanyatsi.

Swaziland is fiercely proud of its culture. The previous King ruled for 82 years, had 70 wives, and 210 children. Every year, bare-chested virgins dance for the King at week long tribal festivals. And while this can all make Swaziland seem like a place of lunacy, normality is deeply rooted in tradition, and it's always a fascinating travel experience. Your adventure takes you into the Ezulwini Valley, past remarkably meager Houses of Parliament, and into a local craft market that bursts with energy. Sugar plantations and isolated villages take you south, Swaziland then giving way to South Africa and the landscape immediately changing once again.

Nestled into a serene forested valley, the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi reserve provides a thrilling late afternoon and evening game drive. Rhinos are everywhere, giant elephant bulls gnaw at the tree bark, and the big cats emerge with the cooling temperatures of dusk. As darkness descends a new world appears, nocturnal animals scurrying through the grass and revealed through the safari truck's high powered spotlights. Turn off the lights and there's an eerie silence. Rustling sounds alert you to something. But what? The sounds get closer and then through the gloom you can spot the rhino. Nighttime safaris are always exciting, but there's also something wonderfully idyllic about slowly waiting in the dark and having the wildlife come to you.

An early morning game drive offers a lifetime of Big Five safari memories, Hluhluwe-iMfolozi revealing why it’s the oldest nature reserve in the whole of Africa. Be prepared for countless White rhino sightings, over 1,600 living in this compact reserve. Then the landscapes change dramatically, blue replacing green as you enter the mammoth waterways of iSimangaliso Wetland Park. Lagoons and estuaries cut great scars through the land, and this UNESCO World Heritage Site is flanked by white Indian Ocean beaches. From St Lucia village you join a boat cruise, exploring Lake St Lucia and finding the heads of hippos that bob up and down in the shallows. Crocodiles sunbathe on the sandy banks, fish eagles soar overhead, and flamingos like to add their own distinctive color to the water.

iSimangaliso is a surreal place; the vibrant shocks of color, the humorous antics of hippo pods, and a pristine tranquility accompanying your water-world exploration. From here the vibe changes as you head south to the city lights of Durban. Some cities claim to be on the beach. Durban seems to be built on the sand, the skyline rising above the surfers and warm ocean waters. You'll overnight in the northern suburbs, alongside a seemingly endless expanse of sand.

The Zulu Kingdom has had a checkered history, one that's marked by a stoic challenge against injustice. After leaving the coast you drive to Pietermartizburg, stopping at the railway station waiting room where Mahatma Gandhi formulated his philosophy of passive resistance (he had just been thrown off a train because of his skin color). The Church of the Vow takes you further back in history; this poignant thatched building remembers the lives lost when the Voortrekkers and Zulus clashed at the Battle of Blood River. After visiting some 100 meter high waterfalls your history lesson turns to Nelson Mandela, a monument placed at the spot where he was arrested in1962.

As you head into the Natal Midlands the landscapes take on an almost Southern European feel; green valleys are punctuated by vineyards, stone farmhouses, and plump cattle. Helping you remember that this is Africa are white rhino, zebra herds, and the odd giraffe wandering through the grass. It's all found in Weenen Game Reserve, where your mid-afternoon game drive is followed by a visit to the place where Winston Churchill was arrested during the Anglo-Boer War. As sunset lingers over the lush valleys you'll be enjoying sundowners and magnificent views from the hotel.

The Drakensberg peaks rise almost vertically, a ring of dramatic towers overlooking the Zulu Kingdom. Some summits stand alone, sheer cliffs rising out of the abyss. Others connect and form the opening vertebrae of the Great Rift Valley, a mountain chain that stretches 6,000 miles north to Syria. You'll spend the day in these spectacular mountains, arriving at over 10,000 feet above sea level for a picnic lunch beside Sentinel Peak. Along the way you travel through Qwaqwa, a quaint village that oozes rural Zulu tradition.

From Sentinel Peak the trails lead off along the cliffs. Some offer easy walks and a never-ending collage of luscious vistas. Others are more demanding, and the very energetic can climb the chain ladders to the Amphitheatre summits. Sit on the edge and dare to dangle your feet over, but don't look down, it's a sheer 5,000 foot drop. From here the Tugela River starts its mighty trail, gushing across the broad peak and then plummeting hundreds of meters below. This northern section of the uKhahlamba Drakensberg is wildly regarded as one of South Africa's most spectacular spots. Forested valleys are interspersed with deep blue reservoirs, flat grazing land provides uninterrupted views of the peaks, and lush meadows are dotted with tiny circular huts.

Evidence suggests that San Bushmen were active in the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Mountains for almost 100,000 years. They left artistic messages on the rocks, covering caves and overhangs with paintings, depicting stories that would be discovered by other clans. Some reveal domestic bliss, or an extended family of hunter-gatherers successfully bringing down an antelope. Others are full of worry and warning, scenes that evocatively portray the San being hunted by white settlers. 40,000 individual paintings have been discovered in the eroding sandstone, comfortably making this the world's largest collection of rock art in the world. A morning in the Giant's Castle area offers a fascinating discovery of the San's mystical world. In the afternoon you'll descend the country roads and return to the city lights and beaches of Durban.

After a last breakfast you'll be transferred to Durban's King Shaka International Airport for your departure flight.