Augrabies Falls National Park in South Africa

We were so excited! Even before the actual trip to the Northern Cape, we could hardly wait to finally explore this province. After exploring Cape Town, the West Coast National Park, the Namaqua National Park, and the Goegap Nature Reserve, the trip continued to the Augrabies Falls National Park. All we knew beforehand: that’s where the famous waterfalls are located.

Of course, you read something here and there on the internet, but we still didn’t have any concrete ideas. As always, we took things as they came and were really looking forward to our time in the park. In today’s article, we’ll take you through the park, through the wildlife and the breathtaking starry sky. Enjoy browsing!

What else you should know

What else you should know
Getting to the park
Costs & Opening Hours
Our Cool Cottage
Accommodation in the Area
The Augrabies Falls
Night Drive with a Ranger
Game Drive in Your Own Car
Other Activities in the Park
Conclusion on Augrabies Falls National Park
More Impressions

Getting to the Park

It’s best to start at the very beginning. From Namaqua National Park, we continued north. We continued straight ahead on the N14 before reaching Kakamas and the many fruit plantations. Here we turned off and followed the signs. From Kakamas, it is only about 30 kilometers to the park entrance.

In total, we drove just under 400 kilometers that day. The roads are in top condition, traffic is super relaxed, and most of the time we didn’t even pass a single car. From Upington, it’s about 125 kilometers (1.5 hours) to the park entrance.

northern-cape-suedafrika-strassen

During our trip through the Northern Cape, we had a large Isuzu SUV so we could also drive into remote areas. We had no problems with the vehicle the entire time, had enough space for our luggage (large cargo area), and were able to blast over uneven roads without any problems. Generally speaking, though, you don’t need one unless you want to drive leisurely through the parks. It’s much more pleasant not having to worry about every little pothole.

Costs & Opening Hours

We reached the park, parked the car, and walked to the reception. There we checked in, received our chalet keys, and immediately booked a night drive through the reserve for the evening. It was very quiet; only a handful of vacationers were in Augrabies Falls National Park. It was mid-November, and the thermometer climbed above 35°C. We cope well with these temperatures, but if you can’t, you shouldn’t travel to the region at this time of year.

Address: Augrabies, 8874, South Africa
Opening Hours: 7am – 6:30pm
Prices: Adults R266, Children R133 (free with Wild Card)
Accommodation: Augrabies Rest Camp (spacious chalets & campsites)
Facilities: Restaurant, shop, fuel pump, laundry service, terrace, pools

Our cool cottage

After we cleared all the formalities, we were finally able to move into our cottage. The park offers chalets with two single beds, with a double bed, and larger family chalets, as well as camping and pitches. We stayed in a chalet with two single beds, a sofa bed, air conditioning, a bathroom with a shower, and a kitchenette. There are even a few pools on site to cool off in when it gets too hot. And let me tell you: It was unbelievably hot! Luckily, we were able to turn on the air conditioning in the evenings, otherwise the nights would have been truly unbearable.

We parked the car right in front of our door. You have to be very careful here, because the baboons (monkeys) are lurking everywhere and like to check whether you’ve locked your car or not. So make sure you’ve really locked your car and the door to your chalet.

Several times, monkeys stood at our door and wanted to get in. That sounds quite funny, but they’re not to be trifled with. Of course, they’re more afraid of you and will run away immediately. However, they can cause quite a bit of chaos once they start rummaging through your room looking for food. A warning sign hangs at each chalet.

We stayed in Chalet 46 and had a pool right outside. The walkway to the waterfall was also not far from our cabin. We had done some shopping beforehand so we could cook something for dinner that evening. During the day, we ordered warm snacks at the restaurant. They also serve coffee, drinks, Wi-Fi access, and hot meals.

The price was also completely reasonable. Ask for the Visitors Map at reception, as it shows you all the accommodations, all the paths to the waterfall, and all the facilities in the park. Even better is the “Information Guide,” which you can buy at the shop. This is even more detailed and contains a wealth of information about the flora and fauna.

Accommodations in the area

We’ve done a little research for you and even found accommodations in the area. It is, of course, highly recommended to stay overnight in the park itself. However, if everything is already fully booked (check here), you could try here:

The Augrabies Falls

Now we come to the real highlight of this park: the waterfalls. The Orange River, which originates in the Kingdom of Lesotho and, at more than 2,150 kilometers, is the longest river in southern Africa, has carved a deep gorge into the rock here and plunges almost 60 meters into the depths.

The word “Augrabies,” by the way, comes from the Khoisan (Bushmen) and means “place of roaring noise.” This fits the setting quite well, as the masses of water are truly impossible to miss. We were lucky and were able to marvel at at least a little water despite the drought and heat.

In front of the reception, you’ll find information boards with pictures of what it looked like during the floods. Even the viewing platforms were underwater or partially washed away. The pictures and reports impressively showed us the extent of the damage.

At these information boards, you can also learn more about the animals in the park, which ones are dangerous and which ones aren’t. Stop for a moment and take a look. It’s truly very interesting.

The various viewpoints in the park are easily accessible via the wooden walkways. From the accommodations, you can reach 6 viewpoints on foot. Other points, such as Echo Corner, are only accessible by car. In the evening, the waterfall is even illuminated, and you can end the day on one of the benches with a glass of South African wine. By the way: In addition to the main waterfall, up to 20 more waterfalls plunge into the depths after the summer rains.

When you arrive at one of the viewpoints, you should look out for the small, colorful lizards. Many of the so-called “Flat Lizards” gather here. The females are brownish and light, and the males are brightly colored. We saw countless of these lizards there.

They also like to “cling” to the warm rock walls. This species of lizard is endemic and occurs exclusively in South Africa. You can’t really miss these little inhabitants; they catch your eye anyway.

Night Drive with a Ranger

To be honest, we didn’t even know that you could go on proper game drives in the park. Near reception is the gate to the separate game area, which opens at 6:00 a.m. or 6:30 a.m. We went on a guided night drive with an experienced ranger, which cost around €15 per person.

We were able to book this conveniently at reception a few hours in advance. It was a fantastic feeling to sit in a jeep and look out for wild animals. While there aren’t as many animals living in the park as in, for example, Krüger Park or Addo Park, we were still able to spot some lovely residents.

We love guided drives because you always learn really interesting things from the ranger. At one point, our ranger simply stopped and told us all to get out. Somewhat unsure, we did as he asked and stood in front of the Jeep. He took his binoculars, looked up at the sky, and showed us constellations, the Orion Nebula, and even other planets.

The longer we gazed into the dark night sky, the more stars we saw. It felt like stars were raining down, as they spread almost to the horizon. We were speechless at what we saw and couldn’t get enough. We took turns looking through his binoculars…

“Do you see the Orion Nebula south of the three stars of Orion’s Belt? That’s where stars are born!”

Quote from our ranger

To be honest, we’ve never taken the time to closely observe the starry sky. But we were hooked and wanted to know more. After a while, we got back in the jeep and continued on. The night drive didn’t yield many animal encounters, but after this starry hour, no one cared anymore.

We were all so excited that we were already grateful and content. On the way back to camp, we spotted some kudus, oryx antelopes, wild hares, and other species of deer. We returned around 10 p.m., thanked our rangers, and fell into bed, exhausted but happy.

Game Drive with Your Own Car

The next morning, we got up at 5:30 a.m. to start our own drive promptly at 6 a.m. We drove through the gate and set off, armed with a map. We drove and drove and drove, initially encountering only a few ostriches, smaller buck species, and oryx antelopes.

According to the park’s information, the area is also home to the rare Hartmann’s zebra, snakes, turtles, scorpions, eagles, meerkats, genets, giraffes, wild cats, jackals, and even caracals, hyenas, and leopards. At first, we really didn’t see much; it was simply too hot, and many of the waterholes had long since dried up.

With tired eyes, we continued to look out, certain that we would spot some of these animals at some point. We drove to more waterholes, most of which also contained oryx. And even though we had already seen many of these antelopes, we still couldn’t take our eyes off them.

They are simply such beautiful animals! The scenery wasn’t much; it was dry and dusty. A bush here, a bush there. But hey, we love these landscapes! It’s truly fascinating to see how animals and plants have adapted to this extreme heat.

Again and again, we discovered quiver trees, camelthorn trees, shepherd’s trees, and small bushes. We also spotted many trees in which the Sociable Weaver birds had built their large nests (hard to miss). Up to 300 pairs often live in them. Amazing, right?

After spotting some animal carcasses, a few kudus, and oryx antelopes, we continued on to the viewpoint at the Gorge Cottage (a romantic cottage for two people) and took a few pictures of the deep gorge. A truly magnificent sight, even though there wasn’t much water to be seen. But that’s just how it is during the dry months.

After about 5 or 6 hours, we wanted to head back and end the day relaxing by the pool. We all desperately needed a nap after such a short night. Just before the gate and the final bend, five giraffes suddenly appeared in front of us, feeding contentedly in the trees and bushes.

We stopped the engine, rolled quietly a little closer, and watched these beautiful park inhabitants for at least half an hour, if not longer. We really hadn’t expected that much, jackpot!

By the way, we learned that the giraffes in Augrabies Falls National Park are somewhat lighter than other giraffes in South Africa. This probably helps them cope better with the hot temperatures. Yes, yes… we learned all that during our time in the Northern Cape (#smartass mode off).

After a while, they all slowly walked past us, so we could continue on by car. Back at camp, we first had a shower, a nap, and then some treats in the camp restaurant. We then ended the evening together in the cottage.

Other Activities in the Park

In addition to game drives, you can also do other cool things in the park, such as hiking. There are 4 different trails that lead you through the park. The longest is the Klipspringer Trail, which is a whopping 36 kilometers long.

You can also opt for the Dassie Trail (8.5 kilometers), which takes you to the waterfall and other great viewpoints. According to the park brochure, the Gorge Trail is about 2 kilometers long and takes you to Twin Falls and back. Or walk the 2.8-kilometer Ebony Trail and enjoy the hike beneath the giant trees.

You can also go mountain biking on some trails within the park itself. We would have liked to go on a river rafting tour on the Orange River, but unfortunately, the operator didn’t respond to our request. Too bad! If you’re looking for adventure, you can give it a try. We found several operators online, such as Kalahari Adventures and Orange River Rafting. We also saw signs for hot air balloon rides (Hot Air Ballooning SA – Augrabies) just before the park.

Conclusion on Augrabies Falls National Park

We think you can clearly tell from this post that we really enjoyed the park. The region is certainly even more charming when significantly more water flows through the gorge. It must look incredible when up to 20 more waterfalls plunge into the depths.

Outside of this time, the area still has its charm. As you’ve already noticed, we like dry, barren, and seemingly desolate landscapes. There’s usually so much more hidden within them; you just have to look closely.

More Impressions

We took countless pictures and would like to show you a few more snapshots. If you haven’t had enough of this region yet, be sure to check out our Instagram stories from this trip. We’ve saved everything in our highlights. There you can relive our entire Northern Cape trip.

Augrabies Falls National Park South Africa – Travel Tips & Information