Safari lodges and wildlife viewing

South Africa’s famous wildlife is the main draw for many first-time visitors, who appreciate both the abundance and the accessibility of the renowned Big Five (lion, leopard, elephant, rhino and African buffalo). Tarred roads lead into Kruger National Park, the epic chunk of bush along the Mozambique and Zimbabwe borders, which makes spotting warthogs and wildebeest as easy as picking up a hire car. That said, it’s well worth booking your first safari experience through one of the private reserves fringing Kruger and dotting the country, where you will be guided by a ranger who knows their leopard spoor from their hyena tracks. As well as allowing you to embark on dawn and dusk wildlife drives with a passionate expert, visiting a luxury lodge – such as MalaMala Game Reserve’s riverside camps – funds conservation projects, provides employment and supports the upliftment of impoverished rural communities. Follow MalaMala guide Mrisho Juma on Instagram (@ mrisholuge) for a taste of the big cat encounters you can expect at this 33,000-acre reserve bordering Kruger. Three hours’ drive north of Johannesburg, Limpopo province’s Waterberg range is a UNESCObiosphere reserve and the home of Lepogo Lodges’ stunningly situated Noka Camp. Perched on a 100ft cliff with views down the winding Palala River, it offers open-air Sky Beds, hikes to KhoiSan rock art and safaris by riverboat or foot. Combining wildlife with an experience of Zulu culture, Thanda Safari offers a lodge, tented camp and Afro-chic villa on a 35,000-acre reserve in KwaZulu-Natal province’s subtropical Elephant Coast.