The third post about accommodations in Kruger National Park is our Christmas night camp, Olifants Rest Camp. We travelled south through the park and Olifants was a convenient stop for night three. Here’s what we liked about staying in Olifants Rest Camp.
To learn more about booking accommodations in Kruger, check out my earlier post.
Night Three: Staying in Olifants Rest Camp
Olifants is one of the biggest campsites at Kruger Park, and was bigger by far than what we were used to when we arrived there on Christmas Day. It even had a restaurant and a pool for the kiddies. Nothing against a big camp; we really enjoyed the variety of sites in Kruger Park.
A lot of South Africans spend Christmas holidays in Kruger Park, not just tourists like us. The crowds thronged Olifants Camp on Christmas Day. The day visitors’ centre was full of locals cooking their Christmas brais. It calmed down at night, but is still a large and busy place with a lot of cottages, campsites and more.
About The Camp
Olifants camp is on a cliff overlooking the Olifants River. We learned that Olifants means elephant and is named as such because the elephants often drink from that river. Sadly, we didn’t see this supposedly common occurrence.
We had an air conditioned bungalow with a deck overlooking Olifants River. Not the wettest time of year!
Celebrating Christmas at the Park
Our Christmas dinner was spent with some South African Methode Cap Classique (bubbly) and a delicious brai on the deck on the Olifants. We had a nice view and a visit from a scrub hare. It felt very South African and we loved every aspect of it.
Positives of Our Stay
A great thing about staying at Olifants was the morning river walk we took. Led by two guides, we learned a lot about the wildlife and saw many birds.
In addition to the guided tours, Olifants has a restaurant with a viewpoint of the river, a large shop, a pool, day visitors area with brais, and more. It’s one of the bigger parks, not nearly as intimate as Shimuweni or some others, and it was nice to change it up at each accommodation.
Share this:
