The Kruger National Park, which measures a whopping two million hectares, is approximately the size of the whole of Wales. Although there are still fences between parts of the Kruger National Park and Mozambique and Zimbabwe, so the planned Greater Limpopo Transfrontier Park is not quite yet a reality. When it is, it will be spectacular. Actually, Kruger already is. Most of the park is situated in the Lowveld. Restricted to broad valleys below 1 000m above sea level, the Lowveld is what many people consider to be the 'real' Africa. In this low-lying subtropical climate, broad-leaved trees and thorn trees co-exist happily in relatively open woodland, interspersed with long grass - and, of course, game. Wildlife abounds.

In the far north, it gets hotter and the vegetation changes to mopane woodland and, right in the northern part of the country, huge baobab trees dominate the landscape. The rivers here tend to be broad and slow-moving and may consist of no more than a few unconnected pools at the end of the dry season but that's when the game congregates around the few known water sources - so it all evens out. You may have heard the cynical remark that Kruger is 'too developed' with loads of town-like camps and other infrastructure. Well, yes. The park does have a number of good accommodation options - more than 20 SANParks camps and a few private luxury lodges as well. That may sound like a lot - but remember that Kruger is the size of Wales - and in all that space there is one town - the main camp, Skukuza, is virtually a small town - about a dozen tiny hamlets with less than a hundred families and a few out of they way camps that would probably relate to a small farmstead. That leaves an awful lot of real wilderness.

Strangely - and contrary to expectations - the northern part, which is truly wild, has less animals than the south so don't feel you're missing out if you've only got a few days in the more busy part of the park. As well as the Kruger National Park, the lowveld is well endowed with private nature reserves, most of which have luxury lodges, where guests are subjected to an outrageous level of pampering and taken on fantastic game drives and optional walks by very knowledgeable and attentive guides. Many lodges even have attached wellness centres where you can fill in the time between morning and evening game drives with a massage, facial or some other indulgent treatment.

Note: If you are planning to travel to the Kruger National Park or Lowveld please be aware that this is a malaria region. Consult your doctor or travel clinic for advice and refer to our article on malaria.

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Although Mpumalanga is not the only province in South Africa with excellent game viewing, national parks and luxury lodges, it's here that the safari experience has been perfected. About half the Kruger National Park is in this lovely province and there are so many private game reserves and lodges than you will have a hard time choosing. Like Limpopo Province to its immediate north, Mpumalanga straddles the escarpment between the Lowveld and the Drakensberg, so the different parts of the province have different characters. The Lowveld is hot and humid with broad-leaved forests and wide, slow rivers, while the Highlands are cool and green, with rolling grasslands, pine plantations, pockets of indigenous forest and cheerfully gurgling mountain streams and waterfalls. Most of the game is in the Lowveld, while the attractions of the Highlands include hiking, horse trails, river rafting and other adventure activities, such as gorge swings and abseiling.

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, near the town of Waterval Boven, is one of South Africa's most popular climbing destinations. The fly fishing in the Highlands area is awesome, particularly near the pretty town of Dullstroom, where there are loads of dams and streams well stocked with fat trout. There are awesome birds to be spotted, both in the game reserves and in the Highlands, where you're likely to see some montane grassland species, including the rare and endangered blue swallow. For a bird's eye view, rather than a view of birds, you can choose between microlight flights and gentle floats in a hot air balloon. Mpumalanga also has some fantastic paragliding and hang gliding launch sites - particularly along the escarpment. The mountain biking is great. Even with so much to do, many people visit Mpumalanga just to sight-see. The Panorama Route is a scenic meander taking in some fabulous sights, including the Blyde River Canyon, Bourke's Luck Potholes, the Three Rondawels, the Swadini Dam and many beautiful waterfalls and spectacular vistas including one called God's Window.

The Blyde River Canyon is the biggest vegetated canyon in the world. Second in size only to the Grand Canyon in the USA, and the Fish River Canyon in Namibia, it is lush and green with a plethora of plant and animal life and is a major centre of endemism. It's also where Antarctica and Madagascar split away from Africa a few million years ago during the break-up of the super-continent Gondwanaland. Also in the canyon, is Bourke's Luck Potholes - a fantastically contorted area of scenic potholes, and deeply scoured canyons. The Blyde is a great river to raft, with some pretty challenging rapids, but it also offers fun family paddling on a gentler section. The Three Rondawels are three conical hills and the Swadini Dam at the end of the canyon is a lovely stretch of water. Also on the Panorama Route is the rather cutesy museum town of Pilgrims Rest. 

The mines were active until the 1970s when they became terminally unprofitable, and the whole town was bought up by the provincial authorities to be converted to a tourist attraction. Museums, cute craft outlets, coffee shops, restaurants and the original hotel with its characterful bar bring the gold rush era vividly to life. Pilgrims Rest was the venue for the World Gold Panning Championships in 2005.

Mpumalanga's cultural attractions are particularly colourful. The iconic Ndebele artwork that is almost synonymous with South Africa is produced in the museum village of Botshabelo. Colourful beadwork and small painted articles can be admired and purchased while the magnificent painted buildings are - unfortunately - not for sale as souvenirs. They're well worth photographing, though. Kids will love the dinosaur park, just outside the deep and convoluted Sudwala Caves. Mpumalanga has a very interesting technical freshwater diving destination that will appeal to technical divers.

Note: If you are planning to travel to the north eastern parts of Mpumalanga or Swaziland please be aware that this region is malarial. Consult your doctor or travel clinic for advice and refer to our article on malaria.