KwaZulu-Natal’s Coastline – from the South Coast to Maputaland

Cathy Hofmeyr finds out why Kwa Zulu Natal has it all.

South Coast

Crossing the Mtamvuna River from the Eastern Cape into KZN ushers in a world of lush landscapes, where rolling hills of sugar cane sweep down to lagoons and a warm sea washes beaches and rocky coves. It’s a place of hibiscus, bougainvillea and birdsong, but also, inevitably, rampant, high-rise residential development.

The verdant strip from Port Edward to Illovo could arguably be renamed the Golf Coast, with 11 topclass courses within 90 kilometres of one another. Then again, fishers will tell you it’s the angling coast. Each year between June and July, the beaches become a frenzy of activity when the annual sardine run arrives.

For lovers of water sports, there’s rideable surf at most beaches, with the top surf breaks being Green Point, Umzumbe, St Mike’s and Kidd’s Beach. Five kilometres off shore lies the world-renowned Aliwal Shoal dive site – a fossilised sand dune of hard and soft corals. Most dive operators are based in the laid-back hamlet of Umkomaas. Experienced divers looking for a buzz can consort with ragged tooth, tiger and hammerhead sharks at Protea Banks off Shelly Beach.

Holiday centre of the South Coast is Margate, with its vibrant lights, shopping and buzzing nightlife. If high-rise holiday flats and beachside Mardi Gras aren’t your scene, head instead for Vernon Crooke’s reserve with 56 species of mammals, Oribi Gorge, Skyline, Umtamvuna and Mpenjati nature reserves.

Blue flag beaches, whale watching, rock pool rummaging, mountain biking the South Coast is the place where caravan parks are a destination in their own right, where kids disappear from dawn to dusk brandishing fishing rods and mini-golf sticks, and where pensioners arrive from cold winter climes, set up camp for three months and put up ‘gone-fishing’ signs. You’ll be spoilt for choice.

Pick up a copy of the Southern Explorer, a map-based route guide booklet which details the major attractions from Port Edward to Illovo, or web http://www.southernexplorer.co.za.

Old Pont Holiday Resort
With a fantastic setting on the banks of the Mtamvuna River, this place is ideal for a variety of water sports – power boating, waterskiing, jetskiing and canoeing. It’s young, vibey and noisy over weekends and holidays. Bring a boat and lots of beer.

Rates are from R240 a site (maximum four people) out of season to R320 a site in peak season. Tel 039-311-2211, e-mail pont@intekom.co.za, web http://www.oldpont.caravanparks.com.

Leisure View Holiday Resort
True to its name, Leisure View is a leafy paradise set on a forested hill overlooking Leisure Bay. With excellent facilities – the huge pool has sea views – but no organised entertainment, it’s a quieter park favoured by mature holidaymakers and those with young children.

Rates are R80 a person (over age two) in low season; from R320 a site (for two) to R560 a site (for six) in peak season. Tel 039-319-2367, e-mail lview@vodamail.co.za, web http://www.leisureview.co.za.

TO Strand
Don’t let the name put you off – although it has its origins with the old Transvaal Onderwys Department, TO is a modern, privately run and very appealing holiday resort at Leisure Bay. It’s a vast park, including chalets and conference centre, as well as two camping sections, all set under a dense canopy of sub-tropical forest just back from the beach. Campers can choose between a quieter riverside setting on the Boboyi Lagoon and grassed terraces. The ablutions are modern and spotless.

Families return here year after year and the emphasis is on family fun. Teenagers may come up against Springbok rugby legend Victor Matfield on the beach volleyball court and Steve Hofmeyr could entertain you at night. During holidays, it’s a festive place catering to all ages; out of season it’s a lovely slice of nature where twitchers can try ticking off the park’s 168 species. There’s a playground for kids, mini golf, tennis court and direct gated access to the semi-private beach with excellent swimming (lifeguards on duty) and nearby rock fishing. There are nine golf courses in the vicinity.

Rates are from R115 a site (maximum six people) out of season (with longstay specials), up to R360 a site in peak season. Tel 039-319-2729, e-mail to strand@mweb.co.za, web http://www.tostrand.net.

Mittenwald Caravan Park
This family-oriented park with terraced sites and plenty of shade is in the village of Munster. It’s a short walk to Glenmore and Munster beaches and a 10-minute drive to the Wild Coast.

Rates are R160 a site plus R10 a person in low season; R180 a site plus R35 a person in peak season. Tel 039-319-1180, fax 039-319-2347.

Port o’ Call Caravan Park
Low key and pristine, Port o’ Call abuts the Trafalgar Marine Reserve with direct access to five kilometres of ‘wild’ beach and good snorkelling on a reef with 90-million-year-old fossil beds. Plenty of trees and dense foliage give terraced sites a sense of privacy – many are tucked into little forest glades and some have great sea views. If a secluded seaside holiday is your thing, then this is your place.

Rates are from R70 an adult/R30 a child out of season to R150/R75 in peak season. Tel 039-313-0511, e-mail portcall@telkomsa.net, web http://www.portocall.co.za.

Margate Caravan Park
Margate is the buzzing centre of the South Coast – but don’t expect sea views from your campsite. The park is in town between two busy roads, but offers a well-shaded and convenient base without breaking the bank. It’s a favourite of carefree students and budget-conscious families.

Rates are from R45 an adult/R20 a child in low season to R125/R70 in peak season. Tel 039-312-0852, e-mail mcp1@xsinet.co.za, web http://www.margatecaravanpark.co.za.

Oribi Gorge Campsite
This is not so much a campsite as a place where you bag a piece of lawn adjacent to the small rest camp in Oribi Gorge Nature Reserve. The camp has no view but a 200-metre stroll takes you to the edge of the impressive gorge cut out of indigenous coastal forest by the Mzimkulwana River. It’s an excellent place for sundowners on a Friday night after a hard week in the city. Camping is cheap and it’s a convenient base from which to explore the reserve’s fine walks and spectacular forest vegetation, criss-crossed by antelope paths.

Rates are from R46 an adult/R23 a child in low season to R66/R33 in standard season. For bookings, contact KZN Wildlife reservations on tel 033-845-1000, e-mail bookings@kznwildlife.com, web http://www.kznwildlife.com.

Lake Eland Game Reserve
There are also camping facilities at Lake Eland on the opposite side of the gorge, which has become an extreme sport hotspot. Tel 039-687-0395, e-mail lakeelandgamereserve@saol.com, web http://www.lakeeland.co.za.

Umtentweni Caravan Resort
Small and intimate, with large grassed stands, this is a good park for younger children. The rolling lawns reach right down to the Mtentweni Lagoon, so youngsters need to be watched – fortunately, you can enjoy a cold beer at the lagoon-side Shark’s Cove pub while they splash in the shallow water, canoe or windsurf. Well shielded against the wind, the park is set behind the main road 600 metres from a shark-net protected beach.

Rates are from R60 an adult/R40 a child in low season to R135/R80 in peak season. Pensioners monthly rate is R1 500 a person. Tel 039-695-0531, e-mail info@umtentweni.co.za, web http://www.umtentweni.co.za.

MacNicol’s Bazley Beach Resort
June and Angus MacNicol have been running caravan parks for the last 30-odd years and know what caravaners and campers want. Which is possibly why their resort was the countrywide winner in the camping and caravan resort category of the AA Hospitality Awards last year.

The first thing campers want, June decided way back, was a cup of tea – and some assistance with pitching camp. So that’s what you get on arrival on the sprawling park on the north bank of Ifafa Lagoon. We also had Egyptian geese sharing our site – and our breakfast – and the haunting cries of a fish eagle as a morning wake-up call. They’re among 140 bird species seen in the park.

The resort has the tranquil feel of a nature park, grassed and shaded by indigenous trees and shrubs, just a 100 metre walk from unspoilt coastline. It’s family friendly and family run, with June and Angus having been joined by the next generation. You’ll meet them over tea and scones served twice daily at the pool area or one of the regular pancake or braai evenings.

There’s a huge recreational hall for table tennis, volleyball and pool, with its own teenage chill room. Adults enjoy the peace of their own ‘dry’ pub and pool room. Canoeing, fishing, birdwatching, nature trails you hardly have to leave the resort premises, unless it’s to swim or surf at a ‘secret’ beach nearby.

Out of season rates are R80 an adult/ R40 a child, and R160/R75 in peak season, with mid-season rates applicable. Pensioner specials are R1 500 a month for two people. Tel 039-977-8863, e-mail macnicol@scottburgh.co.za, web http://www.macnicol.co.za.

Happy Wanderers
This resort is so on-the-beach at Kelso that a large part of it got removed in the battering from stormy seas last year. All has now been restored and campers enjoy grassed and shaded sites, all wind protected in a garden setting, some on the seafront under milkwood trees. Out of season, it’s a beachside haven for pensioners; in season, it’s a rave for families and great for toddlers to teenagers, with entertainment, fishing, a games room, swimming pool and rock pools to explore.

The Wrecked Heron bar and restaurant is named after a fishing boat which resides in the pub – the poor Heron got wrecked a second time when the storm destroyed the seaside building in 2007. It’s good to be sipping a cold beer here when the chaos of the sardine run erupts on the beach.

Low season rates are from R140 a site for two, up to R260 a site for six people. High season rates are R340 a site for two, up to R540 a site for six. Tel 039-975-1104/1155, e-mail happywanderers@telkomsa.net, web http://www.wheretostay.co.za/happywanderers.

Ellingham Park
For its location alone, Rocky Bay gets Getaway’s vote for top spot on the South Coast. The extensive park is elevated above a beautiful ‘wild’ beach, where the creeping fingers of civilisation have not yet reached. Never mind sea views – this is an in-your-face sea experience from almost every site.

Ablutions are state-of-the-art and there’s a large children’s play area with two pools and a recreation hall. Fossick with the kids in rock pools or throw out a line from the pier, surf, swim or snorkel. Four golf courses are within 10 minutes’ drive of the resort. There’s also a water sports centre and skiboat club adjacent to the resort which offers diving, as well as deep sea fishing charters and whale and dolphin-viewing trips – just be prepared for an ‘interesting’ surf launch from the beach.

Rates are from R76 an adult/R38 a child out of season to R115/R63 in season. Pensioners pay R1 250 a couple a month. Tel 039-976-0546, e-mail info@rockybay.co.za, web http://www.rockybay.co.za.

Caravan Cove, Park Rynie
A large, leafy garden setting on various levels offers sea glimpses from the uppermost stands. Lower sites rub shoulders with the railway line and several permanent park homes are dotted about. There’s holiday entertainment for kids and a pub with big-screen television for sport fanatics. Rates are from R70 an adult/R40 a child in low season to R140 an adult/R70 a child in peak season. Monthly pensioners’ discounts are available. Tel 039-976-1215, e-mail caravancove@scottburgh.co.za, web http://www.caravancove.co.za.

Scottburgh Caravan Park
Cheap, cheerful and on the beach – when a 268-site caravan park is chock-a-block out of season, they’ve got to be doing a lot right. This park’s popularity stems largely from its on-the-beach location which stretches for the park’s 1,5-kilometre length. The holiday village of Scottburgh with its restaurants, shops and lifeguardpatrolled beach is right on the doorstep. Throw in very reasonable tariffs and Scottburgh has become the park for all – pensioners fill it off-season and families flock there over holidays.

On the downside, sites are small, so there’s a sardine-tin feeling when the place is full, shade is fairly sparse and you’re in the wind. The ablution blocks are looking a bit old and tired – but hey – that’s camping!

Low season rates are from R116 a site for two, up to R211 a site for seven. High season rates are R413 a site for up to four people, rising to R470 a site for seven. Pensioners pay a monthly rate of R780 for two, out of season. Tel 039-976-0291, e-mail caravanpark@scottburgh.co.za, web http://www.scottburghcaravanpark.co.za.

Villa Spa, Illovo
This is a pristine and intimate park with shaded, grassed stands set in a small garden of tropical shrubbery and palm trees. For a little bit of luxury while camping, Villa Spa offers a heated pool in winter, sauna and spa bath. Cross the railway lines and you’re at Illovo Beach.

Rates are from R75 an adult/R45 a child in low season, increasing to R145/R105 in peak season. Tel 031-916-4939, e-mail info@villaspa.co.za, web http://www.villaspa.co.za.

Also worth checking out in the Illovo Beach area are the Protea Hotel Karridene Beach resort with its 64 electrified stands, tel 031-9167228, web http://www.karridene.caravanparks.com; and the small private Wavecrest Resort with just 18 stands, tel 031-916-1617, web http://www.wavecrest.caravanparks.com.

North Coast

The coast north of Durban starts out very much like the South Coast and ends up a lot like Mozambique. Facilities – and caravanners – dwindle and wild beauty increases with every few kilometres away from the urban hub. The fish get bigger, the scuba diving more spectacular and the mozzies more virulent (and malarial) as you leave civilisation behind and travel the Dolphin and Elephant Coasts.

Dolphin Holiday Resort, Ballito
After a long drive, there can be few sights more welcome than a pot of tea. The folks at Dolphin Holiday Resort in Ballito know this only too well and our welcome to the Dolphin Coast could not have been more delightful.

The resort is run by two generations of the Berkeley family. Whether on the terrace for tea and scones twice a day, or at social curry and rice evenings, you’ll experience the happy family vibe.

The park is in nearly six hectares of indigenous coastal forest just a hop and skip from Ballito’s Willard Beach. Cosseted in our campsite, with a twitter of birds in the overhanging canopy of leaves, it was hard to believe that we were in a village at all, but shops and restaurants are just over the road. In the grounds, kids can disappear to a swimming pool, games room, trampolines, jungle gym, giant chess set, volleyball and the Candy Cabin.

Also in the resort is the Waterberry Tea Garden – a strong contender for the best cheesecake in South Africa. Walk off the indulgence on a boardwalk through an untouched stand of forest where diminutive blue duikers peek out shyly from dense undergrowth. There are treats around every corner.

Out of season rates are from R150 a site for two to R335 a site for six. Peak season rates are from R365 a site for two to R680 a site for six. Tel 032-946-2187, e-mail info@dolphinholidayresort.co.za, web http://www.dolphinholidayresort.co.za.

Salt Rock Caravan Park
Sea spray dominates the view at your grassed or artificial-turf stand right on the beach, overlooking a tidal pool. Guests are offered temporary membership of the Salt Rock Country Club with swimming pool, squash and bowls, while lifeguard-patrolled beaches border the park. Palm trees provide the shade but front stands are in full sun and get any sea winds that are blowing.

Rates are from R140 a site (two people) in low season to R400 a site for two in peak season (additional guests pay R45 each). Pensioners pay R1200 a month per couple. Tel 032-525-5025, e-mail hotel@saltrockbeach.co.za, web http://www.saltrockbeach.co.za.

Tugela Mouth Resort
Four kilometres down a dirt road, you’re in for a surprise. This is no rough fishers’ camp, but a neat, family-oriented park with floral hedges separating grassed and shady sites. The new ablution block offers pine-panelled private bathrooms. The park is set just back from the sea with gated access to the beach and river mouth. Fishing is the big activity here, but the resort has plenty to keep youngsters happy.

Out of season rates are from R80 a site for two people up to R200 a site for six. Peak season rates are from R250 a stand for two up to R450 a site for six. Pensioners pay R700 a month per couple. Tel 032-458-4241, e-mail info@tugelamouth.co.za, web http://www.tugelamouth.co.za.

Inkwazi Camp
Pitch your tent, breathe a contented sigh and crack open a cold beer. You’ve arrived in palm-nut vulture country – and African finfoot, mangrove kingfisher and green twinspot habitat. There was hippo dung on our site, red duiker cropped grass between the tents, woolly-necked storks stood drying their wings and monkeys gubbagubbed in the forest. It feels good and wild.

The camp is 10-minutes’ walk along a forest trail to the beach. Two other trails lead through dune forest or a lagoon-side mangrove swamp ramble. The reserve offers two sea-launch sites on a wild beach and one on the lagoon. Bring fishing rods, canoes, mountain bikes and binoculars.

Indaba is a second camp in the reserve, tucked deep into forest. Rates at both are R56 an adult in low season and R76 in standard season. Children pay half price. Book though KZN Wildlife on tel 033-845-1000, e-mail bookings@kznwildlife.com, web http://www.kznwildlife.com.

Richard’s Bay Caravan Park
Families come back year after year to the park’s 14-hectares of sub-tropical foliage bordering the coast. You can lose yourself, birding or strolling about without leaving the resort grounds. There are seven camping sections: hide away in a forest glade, or consort with your neighbours on a sunny lawn; pitch near the beach or seek the stillness of deep forest.

In the holidays, there’s an entertainment programme with potjiekos competitions, boeresports, jumping castles, paintball, slippery slide and more. With gated access to the beach, it’s a good spot for fishing and kiteboarding, and a short walk to a swimming beach. Or sit and watch the shipping activity in the busy harbour.

Out of season rates are from R120 a site for two people to R260 a site for six people. High season rates are from R160 a site for two to R390 a site for six (with beach view). Pensioners pay R900 a month per couple. Tel 035-753-1971, e-mail info@richardsbaycaravanpark.co.za, web http://www.richardsbaycaravanpark.co.za.

iSimangaliso Wetland Park
The iSimangaliso Wetland Park may be sporting a new name (previously the St Lucia Wetland Park), but it’s still a 220-kilometre strip of secluded beaches, coastal dunes, lakes, grasslands and swamp forests that beg exploring on foot, by canoe, on horseback, on game drives or under water (see Getaway August 2008). The park has some escapist campsites tucked away in the wilderness – just don’t expect tea and scones on arrival.

Although malaria has all but been eradicated, the northern limits carry a low risk and precautions should be taken. For more information about the park, contact the iSimangaliso Wetland Park Authority on tel 035- 590-1633, e-mail info@iSimangaliso.com or visit http://www.isimangaliso.com.

For camp bookings, unless otherwise stated, contact KZN Wildlife reservations on tel 033-845-1000, e-mail bookings@kznwildlife.com, or web http://www.kznwildlife.com.

Maphelane
The southernmost of iSimangaliso’s campsites is reached via a beautiful single-track drive through dune forest to the mouth of the Mfolozi River (4×4 or high-clearance recommended). Camping is on sand under a canopy of dune forest. Red duikers will keep you company and vervet monkeys will relieve you of anything edible.

Go to sleep with the honking of hippos; awake to the cry of fish eagles. Life at Maphelane is simple – fish, swim, braai, sleep. Or you could walk to the mouth of the river, go birding on the Umphafa Trail or up the Dune Trail for forever views from the highest dune in the park.

Camping costs R50 to R60 an adult, depending on season; children under 12 stay for half.

Sugarloaf and Eden Park
Both are essentially fishing camps with fairly basic amenities at St Lucia estuary, but are well grassed and shady.

Sugar Loaf is situated at the beach and estuary mouth, conveniently adjacent to the skiboat club (with pub and restaurant) and launch site. Eden Park is a smaller, overflow camp of 20 sites nearer the village. Both have power points.

Rates at both camps are R46 an adult in low season and R70 (minimum charge R140) in standard season. Children under 12 stay for half price.

Cape Vidal
The wizened face of a samango peeked through the foliage, eyeing my eggs and bacon. A slow move towards my camera and she was off. Cape Vidal is one of the gems of this coastline. The camp is in coastal forest otherside a dune from the beach that takes off forever in both directions.

Before sunrise, skiboats were braving the nerve-racking surf launch, fishing kayaks were disappearing into the rising sun and a youngster was already waxing his surfboard.

There’s also good surf, fishing, scuba diving, snorkelling and swimming in a reef-protected lagoon. You may even spot an elusive leopard on the way to camp – you will certainly see kudu on the Sibomvini loop road.

Camping costs R70 to R80 an adult, depending on season; children under 12 stay for half. Park entrance costs R25 a person and R35 a vehicle.

False Bay
The small False Bay campsite is on the western shores of Lake St Lucia with views from every site over the lake at its widest part. The vegetation here is open savannah and thornveld, with fever trees dotted about the lakeshore.

Sites are grassed, but they’re not very level and not all have power points. Activities revolve around boating and fishing, but as the lake level is pretty low, boating is limited, so the camp is especially quiet at present.

Camping costs R60 an adult and R30 for children under 12. Park entry is R25 a person. Book direct on tel 035-562-0425.

Sodwana Bay
When a campsite has over 400 sites, you know there’s got to be a major attraction nearby. The allure of Sodwana is, of course, the most southerly coral reefs and one of the top 10 dive sites in the world. The fishing’s not bad either, with several billfish and sailfish records being bagged.

More a settlement than a camp, Sodwana is divided into 10 different sections, all under coastal foliage. Gwala Gwala is a smaller camp with modern ablutions within the main camp. Otherwise take your pick from deep, wind-sheltered glades or open grass spots. The mozzies will find you wherever you pitch.

Coral Divers is a recommended dive operator based in the rest camp. At their gazebos at the beach, every day is a buzz of tank-swapping, BC inflating and regulator testing. Tractors pull boats up and down, 4x4s line the beach. Sodwana is no place for those who hate crowds, particularly over Easter and Christmas holidays, but my experiences on Two and Five-Mile reefs suggest it’s a place you have to brave to dive here at least once in a lifetime.

Gwala Gwala camping (electrified) costs R60 an adult in low season and R90 in standard season. In main camp, electrified sites (64) cost from R50 to R70 an adult. Non-power sites cost from R40 to R60 an adult. Children under 12 stay for half price everywhere.

Mabibi
‘You have to go to Mabibi,’ said a man who knows camping. We followed a roller-coaster sand track for an hour through a tunnel of enveloping dune forest until we saw the turquoise expanse of Lake Sibayi. Mabibi is a rustic camp comprising several, entirely private forest glades set on dunes above the beach. It’s community run, in conjunction with nearby Thonga Beach Lodge. There are clean ablutions and hot showers, but no electricity.

The real allure of Mabibi lies 137 steps down the steep dune. As the tide receded, we were treated to the best snorkelling I’ve experienced on the Southern African coast. In a coral pool of nooks and crannies, we saw moray eels, octopus, parrotfish and every colour and size of tropical fish to rival Sodwana’s famous reefs. My five-year-old son, Tom, was introduced to snorkelling here, even diving below the surface to ogle baby eels in a cave.

Scuba diving (through Tonga Beach Lodge), fishing and nesting turtles from November to December – Mabibi is such an idyllic spot I was tempted not to share it at all. But the altruist in me says, you’ve got to go to Mabibi.

Camping costs R68 an adult and R34 for children under 12; maximum six people a site. Contact Isibindi Africa on tel 035-474-1473, e-mail mj@isibindi.co.za.

Lake Nhlange Camp
The Kosi Bay system consists of four interleading lakes which flow into the sea. Lake Nhlange Camp occupies a beautiful setting on the western shore of the biggest lake. Several front sites are grassed and just metres from the lapping water; other sites are tucked into the dune forest.

It’s a magical camp where the lake turns into a shimmering silver shield in the late afternoon, the water makes swish-swish sounds as you snuggle in the tent at night and hippos grunt and honk in the distance.

Fishing is good and boats can be launched from the camp, while the Samango Trail leads off through pristine forest dotted with sycamore figs. The Kosi Bay area is a 4x4er’s paradise of sand tracks through grassy hills and stands of coastal forest, cycads and raffia palms. Take a gillie/guide when exploring or you’ll get lost on the spider web of tracks.

A trip to the estuary is a must to see the traditional fish traps which the Tsonga people have been using for more than 700 years. The estuary is also a top fly-fishing spot and offers good snorkelling, although the stormy seas last year have destroyed much of the estuarine reef system.

Camping at Lake Nhlange costs R60 an adult in low season and R90 in standard season; children under 12 stay for half price.

Bhanga Nek Beach Front
Part of the attraction of this remote camp is the single-track 4×4 journey to get there through hills and grasslands dotted with cycads. Just when you’ve had enough of rocking and rolling, you reach the camp, under dense forest on a dune overlooking the wild beach at Bhanga Nek.

Some sites are grassed and have sea views; otherwise it’s sand under the trees. New reed-walled ablutions under construction looked promising. As an adventurous option, this was my pick of the Kosi camps – it’s a wild, get-awayfrom- everything sort of place.

Camping costs R85 a person; children under 12 stay for half. Tel 035-592-9662 or 084-791-4906.

Lala Lapa
Overnight at this gesellige spot en route to or from Mozambique, just 15 kilometres from the border. There’s a pub, restaurant and good facilities in a garden setting, right on the R22. Alternatively, if you want a convenient holiday base in the Kosi Bay area – and setting isn’t a priority – pitch your tent at the Lapa.

Camping costs R85 a person, with a minimum charge of R225 a site in season. Tel 035-592-9055, e-mail lala-lapalodges@vodamail.co.za.

Emshopi Campsite
Right at the entrance gate to the Mkhuze Game Reserve, the campsite isn’t much to rave about in itself, but that’s not why you park here. You come for the 420 bird species, the leopards, rhinos, wild dogs, cheetahs and elephants, as well as the guided Sycamore Fig Forest walk. Camping serves as a popular budget base to this wonderful park. Sites on the fence do have a feel of being in the wilds and, as the chops sizzle on the braai coals, you will certainly hear the whoop of hyena.

Camping costs from R50 to R70 an adult, depending on season; children under 12 stay for half. Park entrance is R25 a person and R35 a vehicle.

For camp bookings, unless otherwise stated, contact KZN Wildlife reservations on tel 033-845-1000, e-mail bookings@kznwildlife.com, or web http://www.kznwildlife.com.