The 15 Best Wildlife and Elephant Encounters in South Africa

1.Addo Elephant National Park All Inclusive Full-Day Safari

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 872 reviews · 9 hours · from $186Our pick

Review of Addo Elephant National Park’s 9-hour safari, with elephant sightings, expert guides, lunch, pickup, pricing, and practical tips.

“We can 100% recommend this tour to anyone! Our guide John was really knowledgeable and always knew the best spots to see a lot of the animals. The open safari car was spacious & comfortable and all of us were able to have a window seat. Whenever someone spotted an animal, John would immediately tell the driver to stop so we could take all the pictures we wanted. The little pre packed lunch was also delicious. All in all we felt in good hands at all times. Thanks again for the trip of a lifetime!”

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2.Addo Elephant National Park All Inclusive Full-Day Safari

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 256 reviews · from $147Top rated

Review of Addo’s full-day safari from Port Elizabeth, with expert guides, lunch, hotel pickup, wildlife tips, honest limits, and value advice.

“We had a wonderfull day with our guide. Stafford was friendly and looked after us. We saw a lot of Elephants and other animals. We learned a lot about the animals who live in the park”

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3.Addo Elephant National Park Full Day Safari

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 110 reviews · from $169

Review of Addo Elephant National Park’s full-day safari from Port Elizabeth, with wildlife viewing, a South African braai, transfers, and practical tips.

“Joel and Loreen were wonderful hosts and they are fantastic tour operators. They waited for us at the cruise terminal and did not leave until all registered guests arrived. Or tour guide, Stafford, was very friendly, knowledgeable, entertaining and really cared about making sure his guests were treated well and gained the best experience possible. The park itself was huge and Stafford and our driver did their best to spot as many animals as we could. This is a national park, not a private reserve, so the experience is more authentic although more difficult to see some of the big 5. No matter because even though we didn’t see lions…”

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4.Addo Elephant National Park from Port Elizabeth – FD01

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 78 reviews · from $155

Review of Addo Elephant National Park from Port Elizabeth, with safari details, value, guides, wildlife, timing, meals, and booking advice.

“We had a great day visit to Addo and really enjoyed seeing all the animals in such a marvellous setting. Our guide, Mervyn made this a wonderful experience and ensured we viewed the numerous elephants as well as the many other animals and birds in the park. A day to remember and a lovely lunch to....”

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5.Addo Elephant National Park Full Day Safari with Braai Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 77 reviews · 9 hours · from $208

Review of Addo Elephant National Park’s 9-hour safari from Port Elizabeth, with Big 5 viewing, braai lunch, drinks, and expert guiding.

“Pünktliche Abholung am vereinbarten Ort. Der Guide Joel ging auf alle Wünsche aller 8 Personen ein und wir sahen viele Giraffen, Elefanten, Löwen, Nashörner, Antilopen und Warzenschweine. Das Mittagessen im Park inkl. Getränke war sehr reichlich und gut. Er hat uns pünktlich um 18.00 Uhr mit vielen guten Eindrücken am Schiff abgesetzt. Diesen Ausflug können wir nur weiter empfehlen.”

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6.Addo Elephant National Park Tour – Full day of Wildlife Wonders

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 34 reviews · from $186

Review of Addo Elephant National Park from Port Elizabeth, with practical details on wildlife, guides, lunch, price, pickup, and value.

“Very good Car. Alan was an excellent guide. He gave as many good and profunded informations. His special choice of the roads beside "where they all drive" helped us to unforgetable contact with animals, even totally unexpected as a hyena.”

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7.Addo Elephant National Park: Guided Half-Day Safari

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 27 reviews · 4 hours · from $82

Review of Addo’s four-hour guided safari from Chrislin African Lodge, with elephant sightings, practical costs, timing, guides, and tips.

“Thank you for the 5-star review! We’re delighted to hear you had a top-notch safari experience.”

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8.Addo Elephant National Park Game Drive Day Tour With Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 19 reviews · 7 hours · from $236

Review of Addo Elephant National Park’s 7-hour safari with elephant sightings, small groups, braai lunch, park entry, and hotel pickup.

“We had an amazing trip with Donald as our safari guide. We have seen 2 of the big 5 and Donald put all his effort in finding a lion, but unfortunately we did not see one. The park is extremely large which makes it difficult to find the entire big 5. In the afternoon we had a delightful braai with a Savanna cider. It was really delicious. We would definitely book again, great safari!”

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9.: Addo Elephant National Park Safari Half Day

★★★★★★★★★★4.2 · 14 reviews · 4 hours · from $152

Review of Addo Elephant National Park’s 4-hour safari from Port Elizabeth, with guides, wildlife chances, snacks, drinks, price advice, and practical tips.

“Schlecht organisierte Transfers, wieder Erwarten kein Safari Jeep sondern einfacher PKW, sehr wenig Tiere im Vergleich zu anderen Reservaten. Preis Leistung völlig überteuert!”

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10.Addo Elephant National Park: Half Day Private Safari

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 11 reviews · 5 hours

Review of a private five-hour Addo safari with expert guides, family extras, park fees, snacks, and a strong chance of elephant sightings.

“Wat een geweldige gids (Leilani) en tour! Wij raden deze heel erg aan. Vanwege de vele regen heeft de gids ons, met een enorme omweg, bij het huisje opgehaald. We hebben veel gezien en de gids heeft uitgebreid de tijd voor ons genomen. Het had geen betere ervaring kunnen zijn. Echt een aanrader. Bedankt Leilani!!”

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11.Addo Elephant National Park: Full-Day Safari Tour with Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 10 reviews · 9 hours · from $147

Review of Addo’s 9-hour safari with Big Five viewing, elephants, private reserve drives, braai lunch, costs, and practical booking advice.

“Everything was perfect and we very much enjoyed our tour with Wesley. He has so much knowledge about the animals, which is amazing. He is extremely friendly, has a a great sense of humor and his heart on the right side! He never gave up showimg us all these incredible animals but he was always concerned that we do not disturb the animals in their environment. And he makes delicious meals! Thank you very much for an incredible day!!!!”

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12.Addo Elephant National Park: Full-Day Safari with Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★3.2 · 9 reviews · 6 hours · from $186

Review of Addo’s full-day safari, with elephants, Big 5 hopes, barbecue lunch, transport details, guide quality, and booking cautions.

“Enjoyed the day. Lunch was great, guide was very knowledgeable. On the negative side better communication from organization, no email received couldn’t find driver in morning. Called provider was told that I would get a phone call back with location never receive said phone call.”

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13.Addo Elephant National Park Private Full-Day Safari

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 7 reviews · 9 hours · from $280

Review of a private 9-hour Addo safari from Port Elizabeth, with Big Five viewing, lunch, park fees, transfers, and an expert guide.

“We enjoyed our day in the Addo Elephant park. The knowledge of the guide was very good; he told us a lot about the park, the animals and the history.”

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14.Addo: Game Drive in Addo Elephant National Park Private

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 6 reviews · 8 hours · from $270

Review of Addo’s private 8-hour game drive, with elephants, possible Big Five sightings, meals, hotel pickup, and practical booking advice.

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15.Bothongo Rhino and Lion Nature Reserve Self Drive

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 3 reviews · 1 day · from $14Best value

Review of Bothongo Rhino and Lion Reserve, a $14 self-drive day in Gauteng with predators, hippos, restaurants, and family facilities.

“We kwamen vroeg aan en de leeuwen, cheetahs en wilde honden werden net gevoerd. Veel gezien dus! Maar ook een park verdeeld in hokjes.. makkelijk spotten maar minder gevoel van een open park”

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