ADDO NATIONAL ELEPHANT PARK

Situated in the beautiful Sundays River Valley, Addo National Elephant Park and the adjoining Zuurberg Nature Reserve- in the Zuurberg Mountain Ranges- lie in the region of the Eastern Cape. An area of dense bush, the park’s a mass of trees, shrubs and climbers, of which the most prominent is spekboom- commonly (and appropriately) known as `elephant’s food’- it makes up 80% of the diet of Addo’s elephants.

Addo National Elephant Park is one of South Africa’s biggest conservation success stories. At the time the park was established, in 1931, there were a mere eleven Eastern Cape elephants left in the region- but today, thanks to some very timely action, Addo is home to more than 200 elephants. Elephant conservation has also benefited other highly endangered animals, such as the rare Cape buffalo (a species of antelope) and the black rhino, a close-to-extinct Kenyan sub-species. Addo is also famous for its antelope, porcupine, bat-eared fox, genet and more than 185 species of birds. The flightless dung beetle, a fascinating insect that rolls breeding balls from elephant dung, is virtually exclusive to this Park.

But Addo’s stars are its elephants- and peculiar pachyderms these are, too. For these elephants have a strange penchant for oranges and it is advised you do not carry any in your car - they’re known to smash car windows to get to their favourite fruit! The story is that they went on the rampage many years ago and they were placated with truckloads of oranges from the extensive citrus orchards of the Sundays River Valley. Though this special treat was discontinued, they are still known to be very fond of them.

The Zuurberg Nature Reserve, a relatively new nature park, is 17km away from Addo and is home to interesting mountain zebras and certain Karoo plant species.

Entry Permits
All visitors to Addo must obtain entry permits at the gates of the park when entering. Permits cost about R15 per adult and R8 per child. Charges for vehicles are additional.

Please note that no citrus fruit is allowed into the park!

Access
The Addo National Park is 763 km east of Cape Town, 72km from Port Elizabeth and 1054 km south of Johannesburg. From either of these cities, a bus can be taken to Addo, although hiring a vehicle and doing it on your own contributes vastly to the adventure!

The gate to the park is open from 7am to 7pm throughout the year. Activities permitted are game viewing from your own vehicle; bird watching from designated areas in rest camps, guided night drives and illuminated waterholes to observe nocturnal animals. Within the park are two walking trails, down which walking safaris are conducted by experienced guides. In addition, there are horse trails, and there’s usually a waterhole close to whichever camp you’re staying at; invariably, you’ll be able to see some wildlife by just sitting on the verandah and keeping a sharp lookout.

The gate hours of Zuurberg Nature Reserve are 7:30am to 4:30pm throughout the year.

Best time to visit
Addo can be visited almost through the year. The climate in the Eastern Cape is fairly temperate, with precipitation being distributed pretty much equally throughout the year. Winters can be downright chilly, while summers are warm. Summer temperatures usually hover above the 30ºC mark, and the days are uniformly sunny.

Accommodation
Cottages, bungalows, forest huts, caravan and campsites are available for accommodation within the Park. A picnic area, restaurant, post office, shop, public telephone and medical aid are some of the amenities Addo has. Tariffs vary considerably depending upon the facilities offered, but usually range between R48 for a camp to R420 per night for a posh cottage.

For all reservation and bookings, contact the South African National Parks Board, P.O Box 787, Pretoria 0001, South Africa (Tel +27 12 3431991; Fax +27 123430905).

 For detailed country and visitor information, see South Africa.