Addo: Full Day Safari with Braai Lunch & Big 5 Sighting

4.89

(131 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

We were already bouncing along the red dirt road when our guide, Sipho, slowed down and whispered for us to look left. There they were—elephants, so close you could hear their trunks tearing at the grass. I didn’t expect to feel that mix of excitement and calm at the same time. The air smelled like dust and something sweet—maybe acacia? Sipho handed me binoculars but honestly, I just wanted to stare without anything between me and them.

Later on, we crept past a group of zebras flicking their tails, while someone in our group kept trying (and failing) to spot a lion in the tall grass. Sipho just grinned—he said patience is half the fun on an Addo Elephant Park safari. He knew every bird call and explained how even the dung beetles here are special. I still laugh thinking about his story of tourists mistaking buffalo for cows (they’re not friendly cows, trust me).

Lunch was under a thorn tree—a proper South African braai with smoky boerewors and salads. The fire crackled while we swapped stories over local beer. There was this quiet moment after eating when everything felt still except for distant elephant rumbles. I thought I’d be snapping photos all day but sometimes you just want to sit back and let it sink in. So yeah, if you want a real day trip from Port Elizabeth or anywhere near Addo, this is it.