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We are two adults planning to visit Kruger for first time in October 2013 and have two weeks in total to spend in the park. We will be arriving from England on BA 055 (06.55) to JNB on the 05th and departing on BA 54 (20.45) on the 20th.
We would like to visit the park from South and go North as far as Punda Maria and stay in places where we can use restaurant facilities but also would like to experience the using braai if they are easily available and not too much of a hassle to use. We are not planning to bring a lot of luggage but don't want to bring our own cooking utensils etc.
Can you please give us some insight to what sort of itinerary we should arrange and basic stuff we should bring to help us using a Braai?
Currently we are considering booking places in the following order assuming that they will be available to book.
Entering the park from Malelane gate
(5th, 6th) Berg- En - Dal x 2nights
(7th, 8th) Lower Sabie or Crocodile bridge x 2nights
(9th) Satara x1
(10th, 11th, 12th) Letaba x3
(13th, 14th, 15th) Singwedzi x3
(16th) Olifants x1 (on return journey)
(17th, 18th) Skukuza x 2
(19th) Pretoriuskop x1
(20th) Exit through Numbi Gate and drive to Jo’burg.
Our main concern is how to get the bungalow reservations in continuous logical flow without back tracking.
Having read quite a bit on the forum I noticed that new comers to the SAN Park booking system are sometimes experiencing difficulties getting the required bungalows .
Any advice on this would be very helpful!
Your expert advice is much appreciated and we are happy to change the above plan to get the best out of the two weeks!
Many thanks in advance.

Frankly I don't think you need any advice, you are doing well.

Just check under reservations what accomodation have utensils. Very good iteniary.

Hi
well I think you are going to have a ball.
First things first, Shingwedzi is flooded and no reservations for that camp will be taken for this year so I would suggest Tamboti instead of Shingwedzi as for Lower Sabie/crocodile I would take lower Sabie and I would spend 3 days in Satara and 1 day in Letaba reason being for the choices is Satara has amazing game viewing, Letaba not so much and I'd choose lower sabie because you are in the middle which means you can drive to crocodile bridge, skukuza, tsokwane and you don't have to rush, as for the braai well you will need tongs to turn your meat, a bowl for the meat that can close to keep bugs out, spice, charcoal and blitz and you'r A for a way

If you want to make breakfast at any of the picnic sites then Id suggest and egg lifter and a can opener and a share If you have those 3 utensils and a handy cooler box you can't go wrong

I would agree spend more time at Satara and perhaps less time at Letaba - our experience is better game viewing in the Satara area and also lots of good road options.

My recommendation would be to take some basics with you so you can use the braai's which are available with each unit. We take light plastic plates/cups, cutlery, tongs, can opener etc, but these can easily be purchased when you are there either outside the park or at the main camp shops. The most essential item for me to take are cooler bags, usually take a couple and use frozen bottles of water when we are there as ice packs.

The restaurants can be OK but the menus are often the same from camp to camp, so could get repetitive. Nothing beats the relaxed braai experience after a hard day's game viewing! It's no hassle using them.
Sounds like you'll have an amazing trip!

There is already very little accommodation left in Lower Sabie on the 7th and 8th.
I would suggest:
5/6: Berg-en-Dal (then you can stock up on meat and a few cheap cooler bags, plastic cups/veggies/fruit in Malelane on the way in)
7/8/9: Skip Lower Sabie or Croc Bridge and move straight to Satara for 3 nights.
10/11: Letaba
12/13: Do the drive to Punda Maria and stay 2 nights in a Safari Tent.
14/15: 2 nights Olifants or 1 night Mopani and 1 night Olifants
16/17/18: 3 Nights Skukuza.
19: One night Croc Bridge
20: Drive back to JHB via N4 from Komatipoort

My 2 cents worth...

Hi Elephantears and a warm welcome to the forum!

We did a similar South to North and back again trip a few years back, altho we did have longer than two weeks but it should be still be very doable.
What we did was basically skipped every second camp to the top and then filled them in on the way back down again.
You might have to do it a little quicker than that if you want to stay a few nights at most camps which is recommended.
But to be honest for your first trip to the park I would recommend you do not try to do too much, rather take it slower, relax, do less camps and distance and keep the rest for future trips.

Have a look at Availability and see what is there for your dates.
If you book bungalows/guest houses with a kitchen/utensils then you should have most of the things you will need for self catering.
Every bungalow has its own braai.
Anything else we can still advise on once you have your booking.
Good luck and please do ask if there is anything else we can help with.

Sounds a bit like us 11 years ago.
All I can say is you will find you like most things due to the variety and surprises.
Personally I'd avoid 1 night stop-overs. And if you go as far as Shingwedzi, you might as well go to the real North (Punda); then at least you can pick and choose from your own experience for the next trip.
October will likely see the bush dry and barren, but of course the animals somewhat more visible.
There's a school of thought to say, stay in the same camp twice. once at start, once at end. A 15 night trip allows you to re-visit 10 nights later and see what's the same and what's changed.

The braai is an essential part of the experience so get some practice in before you travel.
Happily BA allow 23kgs so we do tend to bring some stuff with (flask hot & for cold; coffee press; torch). We also buy a coolbox and key utensils outside the Park, and leave them as a donation when we depart. All accommodation has braai utensils unless stated otherwise.

The other thing to really think through is the hire car. You need to be comfy and able to see the game! but we find a 4x4 too expensive and overkill.

If I was you I would buy the items that I require OUTSIDE of the park,they are going to be much,much cheaper, and when hiring a car I would hire a Daihatsu Terios,in my opinion one of the best vehicles to do a Kruger trip in.

A warm welcome to you, Elephantears

I agree with Tent Dweller about the car.

I also think that 1 night at Satara is not long enough. October is hot and animals tend to move south in the dry months. North of Olifants can be rather disappointing for a first timer. The Satara area is possibly the most productive game area during this time of the year. I would definitely suggest a few more nights there.

Agreed about the car
4X4 is not needed
I have rented big and small and they were all sufficient
Nissan Livina and Toyota Avanza are great
enough space and a bit higher then the normal sedans
But a Toyota Corolla or similair will do just fine
Its all about budget

And agreed about the accommodation choice
Rather have more nights at Satara then Letaba for eg.
The Satara area is very productive and reminds one of the African grass plains

And believe that Shingwedzi will be fully operational in october again

Agree, agree agree!
Some of the best game viewing, and plenty of routes to drive!

2 nights BnD
2 nights LS or CB
4 nights Satara
3 nights Shing
1 night Olifants
3 nights Skuks or Pkop

Should be cool

I would not recommend exit at Numbi. The road from Numbi down to Nelspruit is in bad condition. Potholes, children, and livestock can make for a stressful drive (especially when you are low on sleep it is not advisable). I would say that Malalane gate is a decent distance from Pkop or Skuks, and it would not add more hours of sitting to your trip home, but more time in Kruger

I agree one night stop overs should be avoided, but my suggestion above only has one of those
Moving camps is tiresome, as you have to check in, check out, pack out, pack up, during times where you could be resting or game viewing There will always be future trips to try out the other camps The trip from Shingwedzi to Skukuza can be done in a day, Here is another agenda I am proposing that involves settling down in the camps for more nights - a more chilled holiday with time to explore each region of the Park:

4 nights LS
4 nights Satara
4 nights Shingwedzi
3 nights Skukuza

each of these camps have quite a few routes to drive, and all have great reputations for game viewing

If you want to add in Olifants for the view, and its position as bridge between Central and North:
3 nights LS
3 nights Olifants
3 nights Shing
3 nights satara
3 nights skuks/Pkop

all fair distances from one another
Just having fun imagining this is actually my trip

Hi Elephantears and welcome to the forums!

I like Albert's suggestion...



As already mentioned - Shingwedzi is closed for bookings for the rest of the year. They might be opening sooner - but that will be a serious gamble to take and not have a reservation yet...

Make sure you always book accommodation with utensils. The utensils include all cutlery, crockery, pots and pans you will need to self-cater and braai. The other stuff you might need will be available in the shops. Doing your grocery shopping beforehand in a shop on the way to KNP will be wise for the budget. Woolworths has high quality fruit and veg that will last longer than most stores'.

It sounds like a great trip - and I'm sure you are going to love it. As we say in Sout Africa - it is going to be " lekker!"