Guide to Addo Elephant Nationwide Park

Common Info

Addo Elephant National Park is positioned in an place that is free of malaria and just a 1 hour drive from Port Elizabeth metropolis, which is found along the Backyard Route. The Park as a total is effectively known for its outstanding diversity – with a key variance of game viewing, adventures in the excellent outside, tourist accommodation and wonderful experiences of culture. A visit to the park provides the discerning visitor a unique perception into the wonderful flora and fauna of South Africa.

The Addo Park was initially set up in 1931 through the efforts of renowned naturalist Sydney Skaife, in response to the urgent require to provide sanctuary for the number of remaining elephants in the Eastern Cape location here. These days, there are more than 450 elephants in the park, plus a large assortment of wonderful native South African animals, from Cape Buffalo, Black Rhino, Antelopes these as the Springbok, and the distinctive flightless Dung Beetle that is to be discovered virtually exclusively in the Addo Countrywide Park.

In recent a long time the original Addo Park has been expanded to incorporate the Woody Cape Nature Reserve, which runs from the mouth of the Sundays River to Alexandria and a h2o reserve, which encompasses St Croix Island and Bird Island. The latter is an critical breeding property to gannets and penguins. The planned expansion is aspect of the preparing approach to enlarge the current 1,640 km2 Addo Countrywide Elephant Park into a 3,600 km2 Larger Addo Elephant Nationwide Park.

This expansion will mean that the park will have five of the seven primary vegetation zones of South Africa. Much more importantly, the park will most likely be the only park in the world to contain the “Large Seven” of animal species: Elephants, Rhinos, Lion, Buffalo, Leopard, Whale and Great White Shark in their natural habitats. The park also has a prosperous heritage of websites of that are critical in the archaeology planet.

Animals at Addo
In whole, the park is property to more than 450 Elephants, virtually 50 Black Rhinos, and some amazing species of Antelopes this kind of as Red Hartebeest, Eland, Buschbuck, Gemsbok, Springbok, Buffalo and Black Wildebeest. Game species contain Cape Mountain Sebras, Hyenas, Reedbucks, Baboons, Aardwolf and Red Rock Rabbits.

Extremely scorching days at waterholes are greatest for viewing the elephants. The early evening is the very best time to see Black Rhino. Lions and Hyena are best spotted early morning or early evening.

Pets are not permitted into the park, and you are not allowed to feed the animals.

Accommodation at Addo
It is possible to book accommodation at Park, equivalent to other Countrywide Parks all around South Africa. There are two restcamps that are located inside the park:

&middot Addo Main Camp – close to the entrance gate, and presenting more than 60 units of accommodation to reserve.
&middot Camp Matyholweni – positioned near the Eastern Cape town of Colchester, which is located along the N2, around underneath an hour’s drive from Primary Camp.

It is also possible to reserve private Sport Lodges at Addo Nationwide Park:
&middot The Gorah Elephant Camp found inside of the park and that contains luxurious tent camps.
&middot Darlington Lake Lodge – positioned in the Darlington Dam area of the park.
&middot River Bend Lodge – this is locatred in the Nyathi region of the park, with eight rooms.
&middot Nguni River Lodge – 8 luxurious suites with wonderful views of the Zuurberg Mountains

There are other accommodation choices obtainable in the Fantastic Addo Region, this sort of as Private Game Reserves, B&ampBs and Guesthouses.

Activities at the Park
It is feasible to organize hiking, horse trails, and arrange organized bird watching at the park. The principal game location of the park has nearly 200 bird species. You can also partake in Discovery Trails of the location. If you consider the path amongst Kabouga and Darlington, you will learn all about the main battles that transpired in the area in between the British and Boer forces in the course of the Anglo-Boer War in the early twentieth Century.

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Addo Elephant Park