News

The annual South African National Parks Week, a programme to afford South African day visitors free access into the Kruger National Park (KNP) and all other National Parks in the country will take place on 16 – 20 November 2020. The purpose of this initiative is to familiarise and create awareness of the National Parks and an understanding of environmental conservation amongst South African citizens.

The celebration usually takes place during September (tourism month) but due to the global COVID-19 pandemic this year, South African National Parks (SANParks) moved the event to a later date with the hope that the country would have moved to a lower level of lockdown allowing freer movement of people who ordinarily could not afford to visit the KNP.

According to the Managing Executive of the KNP Gareth Coleman, “the country is on Alert Level 1 of the lockdown in November; we are happy to give access to our people for them to come and enjoy their natural heritage, even if under unusual circumstances. We are still under lockdown and the virus is still with us; therefore we would like to request the public to continue to observe all the COVID-19 protocols including sanitising, wearing of our face masks and observing social distancing” said Coleman.

In celebration of the SA National Parks Week, KNP has activities to highlight developments to stakeholders:

• 3 – 5 November: SANParks aims to promote access to all South Africans; whilst creating an inclusive environment; extending it to persons with disabilities such as mobility, visual and hearing challenges for touch, smell and feel wildlife experience. As a prelude, KNP will host media to share information on the new tourism products such as Skukuza Safari Lodge and Kruger Shalati – the train in the bridge as well as hosting in conjunction with Department of Social Development, Mpumalanga the persons with disabilities from the communities bordering the Park.
• 10 – 14 November: KNP will host media for an experience at one of the Wilderness Trails in the KNP; with an idea that they will go back, highlight the importance of visiting the national parks to the public, publicise the wilderness trails activity and also want to bring their loved ones to the Park in future.
• 16 – 18 November: KNP will host various stakeholders at a launch of a heritage site linked to a chief who stayed in the Park in the 1930s and whose many livestock was destroyed at the time he was forcefully removed from the Park. The site will form part of the cultural heritage sites which reveal the history of people who stayed and worked in the Park many years ago.

Conditions applicable to the free entry are that access will only be granted to day visitors upon presentation of an identity document; only children below the age of 16 years gain entry without proof of identity. Groups regarded as commercial ventures: private open safari vehicles operators, tourists who come to the Park on tour buses and overnight visitors are not included in this free access arrangement.

“SANParks and their employees proudly look after National Parks for the people of our country and the world. During SA National Parks Week we encourage all South Africans; in particular those from communities that border the Park and may never have an opportunity to visit to make a turn and come and see for themselves. This is why during the SA National Parks Week we offer free access to all the citizens of South Africa. We would like to make the public aware however that entries are limited. Because we are a conservation area we must observe the normal daily quota for visitors at the gates so people must arrive early. Quotas still apply during that week and entry will be given on a first come first served basis.” concluded Coleman.

Issued By

South African National Parks – Kruger National Park

Media Enquiries

Isaac Phaahla
GM Communications and Marketing, KNP
Telephone: 013 735 4363, cell 083 673 6974
Email: [email protected]