The oldest and largest park in South Africa
Kruger National Park is the oldest in the country and, at 22,000 km², also the largest. It’s one of the best places for anyone who wants to experience a safari in South Africa.
The landscape ranges from granite hills covered in bushveld in the south to mopane forests in the north, with many different ecosystems that are home to over 500 bird species, 118 reptile species and 147 mammal species: Kruger Park is recognised by UNESCO as an International Man and Biosphere Reserve. It’s considered one of the best places to see the Big Five, but you’ll also encounter zebras, giraffes, hippos, crocodiles, cheetahs and many varieties of antelope.
The park has an interesting history. The fortified citadel of Thulamela proves human presence since antiquity. In 1725 the first European arrived, leading an expedition for the Dutch East India Company. It was François de Cuiper, but he was driven out by local tribes. The area began to be threatened by European presence with the arrival of gold prospectors and then hunters, and in 1896 a virus decimated the animals in the area. The Parliament of the then Transvaal created a small government reserve and the first warden, James Stevenson-Hamilton, took drastic measures. He relocated all inhabitants elsewhere and reduced the number of predator animals so the herbivore population could recover. The arrival of the railway in 1912 marked the beginning of tourism in the area.
In 1926, at the initiative of the British administration, the reserve became a national park and was named — as a gesture of reconciliation — after Paul Kruger, former President of the Republic of Transvaal.