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Top 5 Eastern Cape Game Reserves

Top 5 Eastern Cape Game Reserves

The Eastern Cape offers an abundance of malaria-free “Big 5” game reserves right on Port Elizabeth’s doorstep, and as seasoned nature-lovers, we have enjoyed visiting many of them. Here is our choice of the top 5 in the Eastern Cape:

  1. Kuzuko
    Kuzuko is situated in the Karoo just North of Addo Elephant National Park. The Karoo landscape is starkly beautiful – bright orange aloe flowers set off against subtle greens and pinks of thousands of species of succulents. The skies are endless, and each night the stars form a glittering dome over the lodge. At Kuzuko, we have enjoyed close encounters with cheetah, mountain zebra and buffalo. We have watch hundreds of springbok pronk sky high into the air across the semi-desert. We have admired the vivid red sunsets while sipping sundowners, and made wishes on shooting stars as we gaze into the sky after dinner. It really is heaven on earth. Kuzuko Lodge is perched on the top of a hill, with 360 degree vistas of the surrounding nature reserve. The rooms are lovely, each with its own magnificent view from its deck. The main lodge is superbly designed and well finished and the food is amazing. We have visited Kuzuko many times – with the kids, as a couple and as a group. Each trip was an absolute treat. Kuzuko’s friendly and luxurious hospitality in a distinctively different Karoo setting places it at the top of our list.

    Up close and personal with cheetah at Kuzuko

    Up close and personal with cheetah at Kuzuko

  2. Shamwari
    Shamwari is the best known of the private reserves in the Eastern Cape, having starred on many Nat Geo Wild series. We were lucky to visit as a large family group for a special birthday celebration weekend and our quintessentially South African big game experience places Shamwari as number two on our list. Knowledgeable rangers pretty much guarantee amazing sightings and although the park may be busy, it feels like you are the only visitors on the drives – we witnessed lionesses with their cubs catching and eating their afternoon meal (a poor little warthog) right in front of us. We admired a Cape Mountain Leopard sunning herself at close quarters, posing in front of a view to die for. We saw the whole big 5 on the first day and repeatedly thereafter, and thanks to the ranger, enjoyed many smaller delights and learned new things about life in the wild. The accommodation was luxurious, the food and drinks delicious. Although an expensive option, more easily afforded by international visitors, Shamwari ticked all the right boxes!

    Cape Mountain Leopard striking a pose at Shamwari

    Cape Mountain Leopard striking a pose at Shamwari

  3. Addo Elephant National Park
    Addo is one of our favourite spots in the country. As you drive into the thatched entrance gate, it feels like you are stepping back in time. The bush is thick and teeming with kudu, warthogs, giant tortoises, zebra and of course, elephants. It is incredibly affordable, and the self-drives mean that you can enjoy game viewing from your own car. Within 40 minutes of leaving Port Elizabeth (PE), you can be quietly watching Africa’s largest land mammal surrounded by its family, in its natural environment. Addo offers a few different accommodation options, our favourite being the Spekboom Tented Camp smack bang in the middle of the reserve – just a few tents with no electricity and only a wire fence between you and the park’s wildlife. Being a National Park, Addo offers a full range of safari activities as well as a fabulous restaurant and gift shop. PE residents love to visit for the day, and braai lunch at one of the two day visitors’ picnic sites. Big game viewing at an affordable price earns Addo spot number 3.
    Click here to watch a short video on Addo Elephant Park

    Close encounter with a gentle giant at Addo Elephant Park

    Close encounter with a gentle giant at Addo Elephant Park

  4. Sibuya
    As you check in at Sibuya you know you are in for something different. The reception is in a little house surrounded by other houses in Kenton-on-Sea – a popular holiday village on the Kariega River. After parking your car, you walk to the back of the property and down to a jetty near the river mouth. There waits a game safari boat, ready to transport you kilometres up the river, away from suburbia into the wild. The river trip is lovely, and as you get deeper in the bush, you enjoy the silence and beautiful surroundings, complete with a myriad of birds, animals and amazing flora. Once you reach camp, which is situated in thick forest on the river bank, you are escorted along a wooden decking path to your room – a private, beautifully adorned en-suite tent, just oozing romance and promising a few days of peace, quiet and tranquility. The game drives were enjoyable enough, but the reason Sibuya is on our top list is the meandering river, stunning forest camp and dinner for two under the stars.

    The meandering Kariega River en route to Sibuya

    The meandering Kariega River en route to Sibuya

  5. Amakhala
    Another private Big 5 game reserve. What makes Amakhala special is the variety of accommodation options – as well as the expected 5 star luxury lodges, they also have 4 star and 3 star camps. This makes it a perfect game reserve experience for local travellers and for groups or company trips. You get all the bells and whistles that you expect, including game drives in open air safari vehicles, sundowners and delicious food, but the price tag is substantially lower than most of the other private reserves. We have stayed at Hlosi, a 4 star option offering beautiful thatched chalets and a swimming pool with a view. The game viewing is excellent – the plains surrounded by the winding Bushman’s River are a feast for your eyes, always buzzing with loads of antelope and other big game. Amakhala’s value for money, and wide range of accommodation options earn it a well-deserved spot in our Top 5 list.
    Click here to watch a short video on Amakhala

    Overlooking the Bushman's River at Amakhala

    Overlooking the Bushman’s River at Amakhala

This list is based purely on our opinion and we could only include places where we have been. We have visited many but not all the reserves in the Eastern Cape. We would love to hear your thoughts – please leave us a comment below with your favourite Eastern Cape game reserve.

Fact Sheet

Kuzuko – www.kuzuko.com
Shamwari – www.shamwari.com
Addo Elephant National Park – www.sanparks.org/parks/addo
Sibuya – www.sibuya.co.za
Amakhala – www.amakhala.co.za

3 Comments
  • Terry says:

    These are all well-known and great reserves. However there is one missing from this list. My favourite is Kariega game reserve. They offer quality safaris with knowledgeable guides and with the location between the Bushmans and Kariega rivers, they have the best birding the Eastern Cape has to offer!

    • Sarah - Chasing The Rainbow says:

      Thanks Terry. You are the second person to recommend Kariega. We have not visited yet, but will put it on our list of places to go. Watch the blog & vlog – hopefully we can do a write up on it sometime soon.
      Sarah – Chasing the Rainbow

  • Sarah says:

    Mike from Callaghan Tours recommends Kwandwe and Kariega reserves.

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