We’re lucky, we admit it. We’ve been privileged to travel extensively across Southern and East Africa and have all been on safari numerous times. We’ve had many unforgettable experiences across the continent but when it comes back to basics, it’s hard to beat the Kruger. Whether we’re taking wildlife encounters or exceptional experiences in some of the country’s best lodges, Kruger can tick all boxes and then some.

Liz recalls her first safari with her children at MalaMala. She couldn’t believe her luck as they saw a cheetah kill, an hour-old baby elephant, leopards mating, lion cubs, a pride of lions on a buffalo kill with 2 rhinos watching in the background, even an altercation between lions and hyena. She’s been wondering how to top that ever since.

Katherine, who has worked at and managed lodges in South Africa, Botswana, Kenya and Tanzania in her time, was also blown away by the sheer volume of game at MalaMala – so much so that she was heard to say that if she had to choose a spot for her last ever 48 hours on safari, she’d be back to Rattrays in a flash.

Given her passion for giraffes, Suzanne’s sundowner experience at Londolozi couldn’t have been more perfect. “We’d been watching giraffes as they made their way past our vehicle, towering above us and giving us the eye just as much as we were watching them. A short while later, we parked up and had our G&Ts as the sun went down. It was a very special moment when out of the semi-darkness the same giraffes silently appeared, stood and watched us for a while then silently moved on.”

The Kruger delivers special moments in bucket-loads – again at MalaMala, David was sitting on the terrace sipping a beer when he spied a tiny vervet monkey in a tree no more than 15 feet from him. They played a game of hide and seek which was “funny, child-like and beautiful.”