Skukuza

Skukuza is the administrative headquarters of Kruger and its biggest rest camp, with a few hundred beds, a campsite, shops, a bank, a doctor, a library and a small museum - it functions as a town. It sits on the south bank of the Sabie River, and the river frontage is why it is worth staying: hippo, crocodile and elephant come to the water below the fence, and the restaurant deck looks straight onto it. The name comes from the nickname given to James Stevenson-Hamilton, the first warden. Roads radiating out from here run through the busiest game country in the park, and this southern region has the highest densities of lion, leopard and rhino. There is a nine-hole golf course, unfenced, where the local hazards include hippo on the fairway. Being the biggest camp, it is also the busiest, and roads near it carry traffic queues at good sightings.

History

Before the park existed, the Ngomane clan and the Sambo people lived near the present camp. Its name was the nickname the local Tsonga staff gave the first warden, James Stevenson-Hamilton, and after Kruger National Park was declared in 1926 the Selati Railway was taken up, though its old bridge over the Sabie can still be seen from the camp (Wikipedia, Skukuza).

What you'll find

• The river frontage - hippo, crocodile and elephant at the water below the camp fence.
• The camp as a town - shops, bank, doctor and museum inside a national park.
• The southern roads - the highest densities of lion, leopard and rhino in Kruger.
• The unfenced golf course - nine holes where hippo and warthog cross the fairways.

When to go

May to September for game viewing. Two to three days. Book months ahead for school holidays.

Good to know

It is busy - traffic jams form at sightings and the camp feels like a village, not wilderness. Accommodation books out far in advance. Malaria risk exists, mainly in summer. Gate times are strict and fines apply for late returns.

Nearby

Lower Sabie is downstream; Sabi Sand adjoins the park's western boundary.

Key facts