Kruger National Park
Limpopo · Best Apr to Sep
14 places
Wildlife
African Elephant
Loxodonta africanaEndangered
The African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), also known as the African savanna elephant, is the larger of the two species of African elephants.
Species insights
When to visit
Recorded year-round
Recorded in every month, so no month is the wrong month to look. We would rather say that than invent a best time.
Best monthsAny month
Records10,842 records
Curve from 10,842 national iNaturalist observations, not from one property. Single-month spikes are discarded as upload artefacts, and below 50 records we show no curve at all.
Where you'll find it
Mpumalanga and beyond
Provinces where African Elephant is most recorded. Tap one to find places to stay.
10,842 records, iNaturalist
Parks where hosts record the African Elephant
Stays that give back
Across South Africa
Hutwini Walking Camp by RETURN Africa
Kruger National Park
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Spotted hyena
Gives back to BirdLife South Africa
From R 11,820 a night
Tandweni Villa
Mkuze
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · African elephant · Cape buffalo
Gives back to BirdLife South Africa
From R 14,000 a night
Rhino Sands Safari Camp
Hazyview
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Lion
Gives back to Zululand Conservation Trust and 1 other
From R 22,680 a night
Jaci's Private Lodge
Madikwe
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Lion
Gives back to Jaci's Lodge Trust
From R 31,500 a night
Makongo Hills Lodge
Magudu
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Lion
Gives back to Zululand Conservation Trust
From R 1,280 a night
Tanda Tula Safari Camp
Timbavati Private Nature Reserve
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Lion · Leopard
Price on request
Mdluli Safari Lodge
Kruger National Park
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Lion
From R 10,670 a night
The Orpen Kruger
Kruger National Park
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Lion
Gives back to Endangered Wildlife Trust
From R 9,024 a night
Rhino Ridge Safari Lodge
Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · African wild dog · Spotted hyena
Gives back to Isibindi Foundation
Price on request
Kruger Shalati: The Train on the Bridge
Kruger National Park
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Lion
Gives back to Endangered Wildlife Trust
From R 17,400 a night
Dulini Moya
Sabi Sand Game Reserve
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leadwood · Leopard
Gives back to DAKTARI Bush School
From R 28,990 a night
Ubuntu Lodge at Elephant Point
Kruger National Park
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Lion
Gives back to DAKTARI Bush School
Price on request
Ziziphus River Lodge
Mjejane Game Reserve, Hectorspruit
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Hippopotamus · African elephant
Gives back to Endangered Wildlife Trust
From R 14,000 a night
Quatermain's Camp
Paterson
African Elephant recorded here · Albany Thicket biome · Black wildebeest · Blesbok
Gives back to Endangered Wildlife Trust
From R 11,592 a night
Maninghi Lodge
Welgevonden Game Reserve
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Giraffe · African elephant
Gives back to DAKTARI Bush School and 1 other
Price on request
Kruger Untamed - Satara Plains Camp
Kruger National Park
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Impala · Spotted hyena
Gives back to Endangered Wildlife Trust
From R 11,980 a night
Kruger Untamed - Tshokwane River Camp
Kruger National Park
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Lion
Gives back to Endangered Wildlife Trust
From R 17,500 a night
Marataba Mountain Lodge
Marakele National Park
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Lion · Leopard
Price on request
Hlosi Game Lodge
Amakhala Game Reserve
African Elephant recorded here · Albany Thicket biome · Lion · Spekboom
Gives back to Endangered Wildlife Trust
From R 4,000 a night
Hitgeheim Country Lodge Addo
Sundays River Valley, Addo
African Elephant recorded here · Albany Thicket biome · Leopard · Lion
Gives back to Endangered Wildlife Trust
From R 2,000 a night
Lion Sands Ivory Lodge
Sabi Sand Game Reserve
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Lion
Price on request
Aquila Private Game Reserve & Spa
Touws River
African Elephant recorded here · Fynbos biome · Giraffe · Leopard
Gives back to Saving Private Rhino
From R 7,820 a night
Spekboom Tented Rest Camp
Addo Elephant National Park
African Elephant recorded here · Albany Thicket biome · Black backed jackal · Spotted hyena
From R 1,490 a night
Lion Sands Tinga Lodge
Kruger National Park
African Elephant recorded here · Savanna biome · Leopard · Lion
Price on request
The Drakensberg
Next stop
Sandstone amphitheatres and cool mountain air
See places that give backPlanning a trip
When and where to find the African Elephant
Elephants are the easiest of the Big Five to find and the most rewarding to sit with.
When to go, park by park
Here all yearEasiest viewing
| Park | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kruger | Here | Here | Here | Easiest viewing | Easiest viewing | Easiest viewing | Easiest viewing | Easiest viewing | Easiest viewing | Here | Here | Here |
| Sabi Sand | Here | Here | Here | Here | Easiest viewing |
Darker months are each park's own best season, when thinner bush or scarce water makes viewing easier. A sighting is never guaranteed.
Best hours of the day
- Early morning and late afternoon. The African Elephant is out through the day, and easiest to watch before the heat.
- Midday heat. Often resting in shade or near water.
Where to base yourself
Limpopo
Kruger · Marakele · Timbavati
LimpopoBig FiveSelf-driveGuided drivesStays in Limpopo
Mpumalanga
Sabi Sand
MpumalangaBig FiveGuided drivesStays in Mpumalanga
KwaZulu-Natal
Phinda · Hluhluwe-Imfolozi
KwaZulu-NatalBig FiveGuided drivesStays in KwaZulu-Natal
Eastern Cape
Kwandwe · Addo Elephant · Amakhala
Eastern CapeBig FiveSelf-driveGuided drivesMalaria-freeStays in Eastern Cape
Ways to look
IUCN Red List
Endangered
Species
Loxodonta africana
Records
10,842
iNaturalist observations
Every booking on Spekboom supports conservation.
Questions travellers ask
A record means a host has seen the African Elephant on the property or nearby. It is never a guarantee of a sighting.
More about the African Elephant
Elephants are the easiest of the Big Five to find and the most rewarding to sit with. They need a great deal of water and even more food, so in the dry season they are tied to rivers and waterholes and they move in daylight, which is the opposite of most big game. Addo Elephant National Park in the Eastern Cape is the surest place in the country: it was fenced in 1931 around the last eleven elephants of the Sundays River valley and now holds more than six hundred in thicket that has never stopped feeding them. Kruger, the Lowveld private reserves, Tembe in northern KwaZulu-Natal and the Tuli and Chobe systems on the northern borders are the others.
May to September concentrates them at water. In the green summer they disperse into the bush and are harder to find but far more pleasant to watch, with new calves in the herds. Addo is the exception to the season rule: its waterhole in front of the main camp works all year, and it is malaria-free, which makes it the usual choice for families.
Pair elephants with the thicket restoration story of the Eastern Cape, a Lowveld Big Five reserve, or the desert-adapted elephants of the Namibian river valleys for the same animal living a completely different life.
Where is the best place to see elephants in South Africa?
Addo Elephant National Park is the most reliable, malaria-free and an hour from Gqeberha, with a waterhole at the main camp that works all year. Kruger and the private reserves beside it hold the largest population, and Tembe Elephant Park in northern KwaZulu-Natal is known for big bulls.
When is the best time to see elephants?
The dry months from May to September, when herds come to rivers and waterholes through the day and the bush is thin enough to see them. Summer disperses them but brings newborn calves and green country. Elephants are active in daylight, so timing within the day matters less than it does for the cats.
Is it safe to watch elephants from a car?
Yes, with respect. Keep the engine running, leave an escape route, never drive between a cow and her calf, and back off at the first sign of a head shake or ear spread. Elephants read space as pressure. In the parks, stay in the vehicle except at designated sites, and follow a guide without argument.
What is the conservation status of the African Elephant?
The African Elephant (Loxodonta africana) is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List.
What is the African Elephant?
The African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), also known as the African savanna elephant, is the larger of the two species of African elephants. These elephants were previously regarded as the same species, but the African forest elephant has been reclassified as L. cyclotis.