On my first trip as a guide with Sunway Safaris my colleague Clinton and I (Nicole) took a small group being a family of 4 on the "  Mozambique & Kruger Beach & Bush MOa14”. It was a first-time trip for all of us. For the family it was the first time in Southern Africa and for the two of us guides it was our first trip as a team.

We left Johannesburg early on a chilly winter morning and headed towards the rolling, green hills of Zululand in the eastern part of South Africa. The first three days we stayed at Zululand lodge, close to the well-known Hluhluhwe-iMfolozi Park, which is - with its tastefully decorated and comfortable safari tents - a beautiful, hidden gem and a perfect place to unwind in the bush.

On bushwalks along the river we introduced our guests to all the beauty and small wonders of the bush and it were absolutely heart warming moments to see the big and happy smiles on their faces when we had a very close encounter with a herd of zebras and right afterwards a hippo lurking out of the water, just a few metres from us. When we did a game drive in Mkuze Game reserve with its beautiful Nsumo Pan and water birds in the soft evening light we spotted an amazing pair of Crowned Eagles who did us the favour to land very close to our truck and do their business without feeling disturbed by us so we could watch them calmly.

The highlight of these days was probably our game drive in Hluhluhwe-iMfolozi game reserve, where we managed to spot and watch white rhinos, a huge herd of buffalo coming down the hill and crossing the road right in front of us. At this point our guests were already awestruck by the close encounters with these majestic creatures but nature surprised us with much more.

When driving around the corner there was an impressive herd of elephants at the waterhole, drinking splashing and interacting with each other and even with our truck. Now our group was totally blown away but we still had the luck on our side when we spotted two male lions, one on the way to our picnic spot and one on the way out of the reserve. After the game drive the group got the possibility to get great insights into the culture of the Zulu people by a very interesting walk around with Zimbenzeli, a very charming Zulu lady who made us experience the lifestyle of the Zulu people and their deep connection with their cultural heritage and believes. From Zululand we continued to Kosi Bay for an insight as to how the local population has used fish traps over the years to cacth fish with the tidal movements.

A day was spent snorkelling, spotting amazing underwater life such as morays, lion fish, tangs and stingrays. It was a bit of a chilly day when we were snorkelling and took us a bit of asking to get the guests into the water but once in they were blown away by all the beauty underneath the water surface! From Kosi Bay we travelled to Swaziland, a beautiful small country with an interesting culture and abundance of wildlife in the National Parks, which are well protected from poaching, a good example for sustainable wildlife management.

Then it was off to the warm and sunny coast of Mozambique, where our group enjoyed the crystal clear waters of the Indian Ocean and wonderful, chilled days of beach life at its best.

The days at the beach made our guests unwind and relax but it didn’t take long until the bush bug bit again and we made our way back to South Africa, to the magnificent Kruger National Park, where we could surprise our guests with stunning animal sightings again. And it was at the end of one of our morning game drives, we were right back on our way to Letaba camp, when Clinton shouted out: Black giraffe!

I couldn’t believe what I`ve heard, but indeed! 30 metres in front of us a regal black giraffe bull emerged from the bush and slowly crossed the road. To see such a rare animal, roaming free in the wild was one of the most mind-blowing things I’ve ever experienced. We managed to follow him for quite a while to have beautiful views at him and great photographic opportunities before he silently and almost ghost-like disappeared in the thick Mopane bush. Despite all the great sightings we’ve had on this tour, this one was my personal highlight and most likely a one-in-a-lifetime experience...
In my opinion the “Mozambique & Kruger Beach & Bush” is the perfect trip for Africa first-timers as the guests will get great insights in different areas from subtropical bush to the lowveld, combined with underwater activities, such as snorkelling and relaxed days to unwind at the breathtakingly beautiful beaches of Mozambique. This tour is just a great all-in-one trip!