Are 2 days enough for Kruger??
 

Got a ticket expiring in a few months and I just don't have the time to see SA like I had planned to. So either I let go of the ticket and loose out on all the cash or go and see the Kruger National park.

Problem is that I can only spare two nights in JNB in April next year. Say if I land 7:30am on a Monday morning and need to fly back on Wednesday at 1330 is it worth visiting?

So if I land at 730am can I get a connection that will get me into a Kruger resort by early morning so that I can do two safari's that day? Will have a full day Tuesday to do 2 more and then can I get a connection to get me back to JNB airport for the 1330 flight out?

Is this worth doing? Like I said I will loose out on the ticket completely if I don't fly as the ticket expires in April. I would love to take another day out but I just can't spare it and April is the only time I am in that part of the world. Never been to SA before.

If you think its worth going then can you recommend any good resorts and where to book the internal flights?

The scheduled charters flights back to JNB from the Sabi Sands/Skekuza will not likely arrive in time for the 1330 flight from JNB to wherever you are going - especially if it is international. Although I generally recommend against a two day safari, if you want, I would suggest MalaMala. It would be perfect for two days.

Is there any later flight you can go on? Where are you goingn at 1330 on Wednesday. There may be other options.

Craig Beal - owner - Travel Beyond

We are booked on TG to Bangkok.

Can I make it to MalaMala and back in time for my flights? Looks quite nice.

My exact departure ex JNB is 1340 and I will be flying biz so could I check in 1hr before the flight?

I see that the flight back from MalaMala gets me there for 1155. Does this give me enough time to transfer and check-in for the TG flight?

Are these local flights more or less on time?

Daily, O R Tambo (JNB) / MalaMala, 09h15 / 10h30
MalaMala / O R Tambo (JNB), 10h50 / 11h55

The problem is that the local charter flights do not land at the main airport. You still have to transfer from the charter terminal to the main international terminal which takes at least 20-30 minutes if all goes well.

Unless everything went perfectly, it would just be too short. Alternately, you could fly from Nelspruit/MQP to JNB. MQP is 2.5 hours by road from MalaMala so if you missed almost all your morning game drive on the last morning you could leave around 7am, drive to MQP and fly 45 minutes to JNB. The challenge is that you would need to pay a little extra to have your driver spend the previous night at the lodge since he will not be able to get there in time when the gate opens.

Is there no way you can spend three nights in South Africa so you can do a full two day safari?

Craig Beal - owner - Travel Beyond

What time are the flights ex MQP

Not really. I am just so stuck for time and with the travel time to/from BKK and onwards to my destination I can only afford two days. So if I do what you have advised then I should be able to get 3 game drives right? One on the first day evening and two the next day. Is that worth it?

How long is a typical game drive? Anyway that I can do one on the afternoon that I get there and one in the evening on the same day? So this way I get 4 game drives.

Thanks for the info Craig.

Most of the morning game drives I've been on in private lodges in the Kruger/Sabi Sand area have departed around 30-45 min. before sunrise (sometimes an hour) and have lasted around 2 1/2 - 3 hours, including a coffee/tea stop. Evening drives have been a little longer, maybe 3 1/2 hours, and end around an hour after dark, unless you encounter some pretty important things in the dark. By "dark" I mean dark, not twilight.

If this is your only chance for safari then I say go for it! I looked at the time tables and you could make the first charter flight back and still catch your flight from JNB. The only challenge is that ANY weather or mechanical delay on the charter will derail your plans and you will miss the flight.

Your assessment of game drives is correct. If you fly into MalaMala by charter, you will arrive in the early afternoon. The afternoon 3-4 hours drive starts around 330pm. You will have full morning and afternoon drives the next day and a very short (one hour) drive the next morning. You could ask that the lodge drive you to the Sabi Sands gate on the morning of departure as a special treat. That way, the transfer driver can meet you at the gate instead of coming into the reserve and spending the night. Also, you can see animals all the way to the gate.

If you book with an agent they will likely have a preferred charter company to get you to MQP on the morning of your flight. If I book a client directly with MalaMala I use Dive the Big Five as the transfer company. http://www.transfersandtours.co.za/ They are pretty reliable and work well with MalaMala managers.

Good Luck.

Craig Beal – owner – Travel Beyond

Thanks Craig! Very good information. Now I just have to see if its worth flying 16hrs there for 3 Safari's. To be honest with you I won't get another chance for a while now. Don't think I could pay for a flight again if I wasted this one.

What game resort would you recommend in the MalaMala? I was looking for a good 5* but not a great one if you know what I mean.

You need to make a distinction between MalaMala and Sabi-Sands. The latter is a game reserve formed by a group of landowners, some of which may operate commercial lodges, such as MalaMala.

If you fly FedAir to MalaMala's airstrip, your choice is restricted to their three lodges. The other lodges in Sabi-Sands use their own airstrips, SKZ airport just across the boundary in Kruger, and/or road access.

Also good to know:

"In the event there are less than 5 passengers in total for MalaMala Game Reserve (either arriving or departing) confirmed on the flights on a particular day, Federal Air reserves the right to disembark and collect passengers from Skukuza Airport. MalaMala will provide complimentary road transfer to and from Skukuza Airport – a drive of approximately 45 minutes through the reserve. "

Johan

Those contemplating a short visit to the KNP in summer, may wish to bear in mind that the Lowveld weather is not really as nice at that time of the year as people seem to imagine. It is not that sunny at all; and wind, clouds and rain can conspire to make conditions in an open game viewing vehicle rather miserable for days on end. Visiting for only a day or two means taking chances.

April is at the tail end of the rainy season, so the risk of prolonged nasty weather is not that great anymore. Not zero though, e.g. Skukuza still gets 40 mm on average.

Johan

Thanks Johan. BTW Long time no see on FT. Remember you from the good old Flying Dutchman days.

Good old days indeed! :)

Johan