THE UNMISSABLE KGALAGADI TRANSFRONTIER PARK

The first official transfrontier park in Africa, the Kgalagadi is a sought-after destination for many South Africans. The park is enormous and camps get fully booked a year in advance, but you’ll still find yourself driving alone for hours. The immense landscape stretches across South Africa and Botswana, covering over 3,5 million hectares – almost twice the size of Kruger. There are 19 predator species including leopard, cheetah and both types of hyena, but the most famous is the handsome black-maned Kalahari lion. However, this is also the place to appreciate smaller creatures: a puff adder slithering down a ground-squirrel hole, the entertaining antics of meerkats and keeping your eyes peeled on the burrows that line the gravel roads to catch sight of the Brants’ whistling rat poking its whiskers out. Equally impressive are the birds, the most noticeable of which are hundreds of sociable weavers who build huge thatched apartments in the trees. (They cleverly use only annual grasses, not the more nutritious and vital grazing grasses.) Yep, even a short stay is worth the long drive to get here, plus there’s plenty to do and see on the way. Daily conservation fee R76 pp. Day visits have recently been restricted to 20 vehicles a day. Book ahead on 054-561-2000. – MvZ STAY HERE We loved the unfenced, wild feel of the Kalahari Tented Camp (three kilometres from Mata-Mata) – the closest thing to the wilderness camps deeper in the park. It’s also off the grid and overlooks a waterhole. Reversing the car out in the morning with lions roaring around you is soul rattling! From R1 600 for two.