South Africa National Parks (SANParks) today (06 Jun 2020) announced that self-drive excursions for day visitors will be permitted from 08 June 2020 in National Parks in South Africa that cater for self-drives. SANParks is limiting face-to-face contact between staff and guests by encouraging online and telephonic day visit bookings and full payment of conservation fees prior to arrival where possible. Bookings can be made at 012 428 9111 or sanparks.org from 08 June 2020. In the case of Wild Card members, guests have to ensure that their membership is valid prior to arrival.
Namaqua National Park as well as Boulders Beach and Cape Point in Table Mountain National Park remain closed for the meantime.
The majority of gates at Kruger National Park will be open with the exception of Pafuri Gate and Numbi Gate. Gate quotas for Kruger National Park have been revised to approximately one third of what they were prior to the coronavirus pandemic. Three time slots for arrival will be introduced with the understanding that booked day visitors must arrive at the gate within that time span. Slot 1 is from 06:00 to 08:00, Slot 2 from 08:00 to 10:00 and Slot 3 from 10:00 onwards.
Hides and picnic spots at all National Parks remain closed; braaing at picnic sites will also not be allowed during this period. Ablutions will be open in camps, at gates and at some picnic spots. A limited number of shops and petrol stations will open in some parks during the course of the week and will be operated in accordance with relevant alert level 3 lockdown regulations. South Africa’s lockdown regulations relating to movement between provinces must be observed within the National Parks. Inter-provincial travel within National Parks that stretch between two provinces is not permitted. Guests therefore must exit into the province from which they entered the park.
SANParks is requesting guests to adhere to all official alert level 3 regulations when inside the National Parks including wearing masks, keeping social distance, and following transport capacity directives. SANParks also implores guests not to deposit their litter inside the bins within the National Parks but to leave with as much of it as hygienically possible.
