Angela Zachariasen
Whether you want to languish in luxury at an upmarket lodge, experience the sights and sounds of the bush from a safari tent or choose from a host of other affordable accommodation facilities - the world-renowned Addo Elephant National Park has it all.
The park has proven itself to be one of South Africa's most popular tourism destinations, with occupancy rates at its various accommodation facilities running at about 92% throughout the year.
Added to this, several contractual partners and private concessions within the park have added an upmarket dimension to the park, attracting international tourists as well as having brought about numerous economic benefits to the park and surrounding community.
The park, which was home to just 11 elephant when first proclaimed in 1931, is now sanctuary to more than 450 of these majestic creatures. It is also refuge to the Big Seven - making it one of South Africa's key tourism destinations. Its 164 233 hectares are inhabited by abundant birdlife and a multitude of wildlife species including lion, black rhino, buffalo, leopard, spotted hyena, zebra, a variety of antelope species, as well as the unique flightless dung beetle. The Great White shark and seasonal Southern Right whale in the marine section complete the Big Seven.
Situated in the malaria-free Eastern Cape, only a short drive away from Port Elizabeth, the park stretches across five biomes from the vast Darlington Lake, Zuurberg Mountains and dense bushveld of the Sundays River Valley to the indigenous forests at Woody Cape.
These forests hug the largest coastal dune fields south of the Namib, overlooking the park's marine area at Bird Island and St Croix Island.
Privately owned concessions
The privately owned concessions - Gorah Elephant Camp and Nguni Lodge - and contractual partners - RiverBend Lodge, Darlington Lake Lodge and Intsomi Lodge - when combined with the park's own facilities, offer the visitor a multitude of choices, both in type of accommodation and price range says South African National Parks (SANParks) Frontier Region communications manager Megan Taplin.
A new - and the biggest - contractual addition to the park, the 14 900 hectare Kuzuko Contractual Area has been stocked with elephant, lion, cheetah, black rhino and buffalo.
Construction of a 48-bed luxury lodge was recently completed, while future concession and contractual opportunities are also possible within the park, with plans including the introduction of a canoe trail that will operate on the Sundays River - home to the park's hippos.
"A concession, usually signed for a period of 50 years or more, is where a private business is given the rights to operate a business, whether it's a lodge or an activity, within a national park. The park still owns the land and infrastructure and receives a percentage of the concessionaire's turnover. Concession opportunities are always put out on public tender to ensure that the process is transparent," Taplin said.
"The advantage to the park is that we can concentrate on our core business, which is biodiversity conservation, while still providing a range of offerings to visitors."
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