Pafuri Camp
The Kruger National Park
Greater Kruger National Park
Features
- Luxury tented camp situated in the Makuleke Concession in the north of the Kruger National Park.
- The area, also known as Pafuri, is certainly the wildest and most remote part of the Park and offers varied vegetation, great game viewing, the best birding in all of the Kruger, and is filled with folklore of the early explorers and ancient civilisations.
- Pafuri Tented Camp is the only camp accessible to self-drivers in the extreme northern sector of the Kruger Park. Being so different from the rest of the Park, it complements the scenery and experience offered at the lodges in the southern Kruger and the Sabi Sand.
- Big FiveYes
- Off RoadNo
- Camp FencedNo
- Child PolicyChildren of all ages are welcome
- PoolYes - At The Main Area Only
- SPANo
- AirconFans Only
- Cellphone SignalNo
- Malaria AreaYes
- Back-up PowerOff The Grid
Location
Makuleke Concession, Northern Kruger National Park
Getting There
7.5 hours by road from Johannesburg.
Charter flights can be arranged to Tshikondeni landing strip, which is about 45 minutes from the camp or the Punda Maria airstrip, which is approximately 60 kms from the camp.
Accommodation
19 Luxury Safari Tents:
(12 double/twin bedded tents & 7 Family Tents)
Specials for South African Residents
Best Available Deal
BAOBAB HILL HOUSE:
SELF-CATERING ACCOMMODATION / MAXIMUM 8 GUESTS
SPECIAL OFFER RATES ARE AVAILABLE ON REQUEST.
Please note:
- All rates are subject to availability.
- Rates are applicable to SA Residents or SADC Residents only where specified.
- Proof of SADC residency (SADC ID, work permit or endorsed passport) may be required at the time of booking or upon check-in at the lodge.
- Minimum nights stays and surcharges may apply on rates over peak holiday periods and weekends.
- Rates exclude the Kruger National Park gate fees which must be settled directly at the gate on entry into the park.
- Impact Levies apply and will be added to the Invoice at the time of booking.
- Single accommodation rates are available on request. Please contact your BushBreaks & More consultant for a quote.
- Children of all ages are welcome at Pafuri Camp and will be charged the child rate when sharing in a family tent.
- Please contact your Bushbreaks Consultant for a quote.
- Pafuri Tented Camp is not fenced and children must be under adult supervision at all times.
- Family Special: 01 April 2026 to 31 March 2027:
- First child stays free of charge when sharing with two adults in a Family Tent.
- Second child sharing will be charged. Rates are available on request.
- Children under 5 years are not permitted on game drives.
- If travelling with children under the age of 5 years old, a private vehicle will need to be booked (at an additional charge).
- Children under the age of 16 years will not be permitted on bush walks from Pafuri Camp.
- Child minding facilities are available on request and are subject to an additional surcharge.
About Pafuri Camp
Pafuri Camp is situated between the Limpopo and the Luvuvhu Rivers in the northern sector of the Kruger National Park, in a 24 000-hectare area called the Pafuri or the Makuleke. This area is the ancestral home of the Makuleke people and is one of the most diverse and scenically attractive areas in the Kruger National Park.
This area is certainly the wildest and most remote part of the Park and offers varied vegetation, great game viewing, the best birding in all of the Kruger, and is filled with folklore of the early explorers and ancient civilisations. It is well known for its fever tree forests, beautiful gorges and Crook’s Corner, where the Limpopo and Luvuvhu rivers and three countries, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Mozambique, meet. The region is considered one of Kruger’s biodiversity hotspots, with some of the largest herds of elephant and buffalo, leopard and lion and incredibly prolific birdlife.
Pafuri Camp is the only camp accessible to self-drivers in the extreme northern sector of the Kruger Park. Being so different from the rest of the Park, it complements the scenery and experience offered at the lodges in the southern Kruger and the Sabi Sands.
Accommodation consists of 19 luxury tents (including seven family tents for up to four people), each with en-suite bathroom facilities. The tented rooms all look out over the Luvuvhu River; guests can sit on their decks and watch for elephant, nyala, waterbuck or bushbuck coming down to drink – to name but a few!
Activities in the Makuleke / Pafuri area are extremely varied and interesting. Game drives in open 4×4 vehicles & guided walks are all part of the range of activities that are on offer. One of the most important aspects of this area is its palaeo-anthropological history, with its plethora of evidence of early human ancestors stretching back some 2 million years ago, through the Stone Age and into the Iron Age about 400 years ago when the Thulamela dynasty ruled in this area.
This dynasty built incredible structures that are not dissimilar to that found in the Great Zimbabwe. Throughout the concession, there is evidence of its human inhabitants, in the form of rock paintings and artifacts – under many a baobab are Stone Age hand tools, such as hand axes, to be found.
ROOM FEATURES
- The tents all have sweeping views over the Luvuvhu river
- 12 Luxury en-suite safari tents with double or twin beds
- 7 Luxury en-suite family safari tents have a separate children’s bedroom with 2 single beds
- All the tents have an en-suite bathroom with shower and outside shower
- Fans
- Safes for valuables
- Mosquito nets
About The Kruger National Park
The Kruger National Park is the primary destination in South Africa for many international tourists. Each year more than half a million visitors are registered.
The National Park was opened in 1898 at the instigation of then-president Paul Kruger. After hunters had considerably decimated the originally rich game stock, all the land between the Sabie and the Crocodile Rivers was put under the protection of Nature Conservation to ensure the survival of the remaining animals. Only as recently as 1961 was the extended Kruger Park fenced in.
The park stretches from the Crocodile River in the south up to the Limpopo River, which is the international border in the north. Altogether it is 350 km long, 65 km wide and comprises an area of about 20,000 sq km.
A web of roads of 1863 kilometres leads through the National Park, 697 km of them being tarred. For the visitor there are numerous differently equipped rest camps, most of them scenically positioned. Within the park boundaries, travel is only allowed between sunrise and sunset. After dark one has to stay in one of the fenced restcamps.
The best time for observing the animals is the dry winter season. Then the grass is low and bushes and trees don’t have leaves, so that one can have an unobstructed view. Because it virtually doesn’t rain in winter, the animals come to the waterholes to drink in the mornings and evenings and can easily be watched from the car.
Lodge Features
Bush Walks
Lodge Pool
Wi-Fi
Additional Activities
- Open vehicle game drives
- Guided Walking Safaris
- Village Tours (on request at an extra charge)
Getting There
FROM JOHANNESBURG
Johannesburg is about 630km or a 6½ – 7 hour drive from Pafuri. The most direct route is to take the N1 towards Polokwane (Pietersburg).
Take the N1 north and continue past Polokwane, Louis Trichardt and the Soutpansberg towards Musina. (Please note that you have to turn hard left off the dual carriageway just after the Ultra City south of Polokwane to stay on the N1. It is clearly signposted but if you miss the turn-off you will continue into Polokwane itself.)
Roughly 30kms north of the Soutpansberg, turn right onto the R525 towards Tshipise (the last fuel stop before the park).
Continue past Tshipise on the R525 and on to Pafuri Gate.
At Pafuri Gate, register as guests of Pafuri Tented Camp
At the gate, you will have to pay the Kruger Park conservation fee.
Enter the Kruger Park and continue on the H1-9 about 22kms to the Pafuri Tented Camp sign on your left
Turn left and follow the road to Pafuri Tented Camp – please check in at Pafuri Tented Camp for Pafuri Walking Safaris and Baobab Hill House.