The 15 Best Safaris and Game Drives in Kruger National Park

1.Private Full-Day Guided Kruger Safari

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 69 reviews · 9 hours Our pick

Set out from Hazyview in a private open safari vehicle with an English-speaking guide such as Andrew, Sylvester, or Harold. Spend two three-hour game drives seeking lions, elephants, leopards, buffalo, birds, and smaller creatures, while learning about Kruger’s trees and ecosystems. Breakfast and lunch stops break up the day, with hotel pickup and drop-off included.

“It was an amazing tour! Perfect that it’s private. You can stop wherever you want.”

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2.Full-Day Shared Kruger National Park Safari from Hoedspruit

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 46 reviews · from $129Top rated

Leave Hoedspruit at 5:00 am for a roughly 10-hour shared safari in Kruger National Park. A guide such as Eddie leads a group of up to nine in a custom open vehicle, with hotel pickup, bottled water, and time in the park. Breakfast, lunch, drinks, and the conservation fee cost extra.

“Best experience with Eddie, one of the happiest people alive. He had great knowledge and showed us all the good places.”

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3.Exclusive Sunset Game Drive Safari near Hoedspruit

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 41 reviews · from $112

Meet at All or Nothing Adventures near Hoedspruit at 4:00 pm for a private sunset drive through a 5,500-hectare game reserve. Your guide searches for elephants, rhinos, lions, leopards, wild dogs, and more, then pauses at a scenic viewpoint for snacks, bottled water, and your choice of beer, cider, wine, or soft drinks.

“Excellent safari; great guide; highly recommended! Vehicle was comfortable and felt safe throughout. Our guide went above and beyond; great range of snacks and alcoholic beverages too!”

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4.Exclusive Morning Game Drive Safari near Hoedspruit

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 35 reviews · from $112

Start at 5:30 am with All or Nothing Adventures and guide Jakes at the Leadwood gate in Rietspruit game reserve near Hoedspruit. Search for elephants, rhinos, lions, leopards, hippos, and smaller wildlife from an open-air vehicle, then stop for coffee, tea, rusks, biscuits, and water. Groups are limited to nine.

“Amazing experience, we had a drive scheduled for 6am they showed up about fifteen minutes early each day, eager to take us on our safari. Jakes, Jules and the whole teams are VERY knowledgeable about the animals, not just the large oneRead more”

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5.3-Day Safari Tour and Treehouse Stay

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 23 reviews · 3 days · from $890

You’ll spend three days with a small group of up to nine, combining a Balule sunset drive, a full Kruger safari in an open Gameviewer, a sunrise bush walk with an armed ranger, and a Panorama Route visit. Meals and transfers are included, but lunches and drinks cost extra. The treehouse-style lodging is rustic, and some units need repair.

“We thoroughly enjoyed the overall experience, particularly the exceptional food, the exciting safari, and the wonderful accommodation, which truly enhanced the trip. However, a small improvement could be made in terms of the lighting between the lodges. It was a bit unsettling and challenging to walk at night due to inadequate lighting, impacting the overall ease and comfort of the stay.”

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6.Malelane & Komatipoort: Kruger National Park Half-Day Safari

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 12 reviews · 7 hours · from $80

Set out before sunrise from Malelane, Komatipoort, or a nearby meeting point for a six-hour Kruger drive in a spacious open safari vehicle. English-speaking guides such as Tracy, Bradley, and Valencia focus on wildlife and plant life, with time for breakfast and picnic stops. Leopard, elephant, and other Big Five sightings are possible, but never guaranteed.

“Bradley was an amazing guide with great knowledge of the fauna and flora.”

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7.From Malelane: Half Day Kruger Park Wildlife Safari

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 10 reviews · 6 hours · from $102

Set out from Malelane before sunrise in an open safari vehicle with guide Sibusiso, known as Sibu, and search Kruger National Park for lions, leopards, elephants, rhinos, and buffalo. You’ll stop at a Kruger camp for your packed breakfast, then continue through the park with a small group of up to 10 people.

“Siboo, is a fantastic guide. He is knowledgeable about All the animals, he can predict an animals movements so you get optimal viewing. Very friendly and my favourite guide at Kruger.”

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8.From Marloth Park: Sunset River Cruise Safari

★★★★★★★★★★3.6 · 8 reviews · 3 hours · from $87

Join a three-hour sunset cruise from Marloth Park along the Komati and Crocodile Rivers. Your skipper and guide, often Anton, points out hippos, crocodiles, fish eagles, kingfishers, and herons while explaining the river ecosystem. The boat carries up to eight people. Bring your own snacks, drinks, sunscreen, and camera.

“Unvergessliche Flusssafari mit Anton – absolut empfehlenswert! Unsere Flusssafari in Südafrika mit Anton war ein echtes Highlight unserer Reise! Von Anfang an hat er mit seiner freundlichen Art, seinem Humor und seinem enormen Wissen über die Tier- und Pflanzenwelt beeindruckt. Anton hat uns nicht nur die Tiere des Wassers gezeigt – darunter Nilpferde, Krokodile und eine unglaubliche Vielfalt an Vögeln – sondern auch viele spannende Infos über das Ökosystem des Flusses vermittelt. Man merkt sofort, dass er seine Arbeit liebt und viel Erfahrung hat. Die Fahrt war angenehm ruhig, wir hatten genug Zeit zum Beobachten, Fotografieren und Staunen. Anton hat immer dafür gesorgt, dass wir uns sicher...”

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9.3-Hour Walking Safari

★★★★★★★★★★3.0 · 8 reviews · 4 hours · from $138

You’ll ride from a Hazyview hotel to a Kruger gate, then travel by safari vehicle to a walking area deep inside the park. Over three relaxed hours, an English-speaking guide helps you read animal tracks, identify plants and birds, and understand how local people used the bush. Groups are limited to eight, with water provided.

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10.6-Day Luxury Kruger National Park Safari

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 5 reviews · 6 days · from $1,868

Travel from Johannesburg in a small group of up to nine for sunset drives, two full Kruger game days, a guided bush walk, a bush barbecue, Moholoholo Rehabilitation Centre, and Blyde River Canyon. Stay at Tremisana Game Lodge and Katekani Tented Lodge, with English-speaking guides and airport transfers included.

“Alles war super organisiert. Die Guides sind toll, tun alles für ein tolles Safari Erlebnis und besitzen enormes Wissen. Ich kann diese Safari wärmsten empfehlen.”

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11.Kruger Park Safari from Maputo

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 5 reviews · 13 hours · from $270

Leave Maputo early, cross into South Africa, and spend about eight hours in southern Kruger National Park aboard an open-backed safari vehicle. An English-speaking nature guide helps you search for elephants, lions, rhinos, leopards, buffalo, and other wildlife. The small group is limited to nine people, with park fees, water, lunch, and hotel pickup included.

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12.Marloth Park: Bush Braai Dinner & Game Drive in Kruger Park

★★★★★★★★★★3.9 · 4 reviews · 6 hours · from $186

Join an English or Afrikaans guide for a six-hour open-vehicle safari from Marloth Park or Crocodile Bridge. Watch the sunset, eat a South African bush braai inside Kruger, then search for nocturnal wildlife with a spotlight. Expect meat, pap and sheba, salads, desserts, drinks, and possible conservation fees.

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13.Kruger National Park 5-Day Luxury Safari

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 3 reviews · from $1,498

Spend five days traveling from Johannesburg to Kruger National Park and the Balule Big Five Reserve. You’ll join sunset and night drives, two full-day Kruger drives, armed bush walks, a bush barbecue, and a visit to Moholoholo Rehabilitation Centre, with lodge stays at Tremisana and Katekani.

“Part of this safari was definitely NOT a luxurious variant. The first lodge was pure disaster (Tremisana Game Lodge). Safari at that lodge was substandard as we were squeezed into the cars so it was almost impossible to photograph (4 people in each seat). The next lodge (Katekani Tented Lodge) was very good with good food and good transport. The worst was the transport from and to Johannesburg. You say it is travel in style but it was carried out in cramped cars and I ended up in the back seat without the possibility to recline the seat. When the person in front of me reclined his seat it was…”

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14.Wildlife-Watching Safari

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3 reviews · from $63Best value

Join Inn Africa Camp & Tours for a half-day Kruger game drive, usually from 5:00 to noon or 14:00 to 18:00. Guide Jerry can arrange pickup near Crocodile Gate, explain animal and plant life, and use radio contacts with other drivers to help locate wildlife. Expect an open vehicle, flexible breaks, and a strong chance of Big Five sightings.

“Our lodge is very close to Crocodile Gate, so pickup and drop-off were possible (by prior arrangement). Our guide Jerry was great. He was very well connected with other drivers and tried to get the best possible sightings for us. (Cheetah and lions) He also responded to our special request to look for a leopard, but we just missed it each time. There was also a lot of theory and expert knowledge about the animals. A very successful morning. Highly recommended! :)”

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15.Kruger National Park Safari (Full Day)

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3 reviews · 10 hours · from $126

You’ll leave your Hazyview-area hotel in an open safari vehicle and spend 10 hours exploring Kruger National Park with an English-speaking guide. Guides such as Dennis help you search for the Big Five while explaining animal behavior, birds, and the park itself. Water and conservation fees are included, but breakfast, lunch, and gratuity are not.

“De gids was erg aardig en leuk, nam overal rustig de tijd voor en gaf ons alle gelegenheid tot het maken van foto’s en genieten 👍🏻. Ook had hij veel kennis van het park.”

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