Kruger-area contacts, camps and kitchens shift, while rising costs and visa friction squeeze South African sales

Kapama Private Game Reserve will contract and sell directly to the trade from the end of February 2027. That ends a 23-year representation arrangement with An African Anthology.

Kapama says commissions, contracting and booking terms stay the same. Advisors with Kruger-area clients should still confirm 2027 rates and the right contacts before they quote or hold space, particularly for stays that straddle the changeover.

Concessions are changing hands at four popular Kruger rest camps.

• Lower Sabie: Mugg & Bean becomes Sabie River Café.
• Pretoriuskop: Wimpy becomes Le Lapeng Burgers and Grill.
• Berg-en-Dal: Tindlovu becomes Eziko Eatery.
• Skukuza: the Cattle Baron is being refurbished.

Refurbishment periods will mean limited temporary dining. Self-drive and rest-camp clients over the coming months should be told to expect reduced options and to plan meals accordingly.

Colombian applicants must apply through the South African mission in Venezuela and allow about 45 days. Agents in Colombia and Guatemala report cancelled trips, and some now refuse to sell South Africa.

Advisors with Latin American clients should flag the lead times at the first enquiry. The trade wants the ETA extended to these markets, and an extension would reopen the business.

Inland 95-octane petrol is above R30 per litre, and diesel has roughly doubled since January. Early November forecasts point to petrol rising by more than R4 per litre and diesel by R2.56–R2.91.

Expect higher costs for transfers, self-drive and vehicle-based safari products. Watch for supplier surcharges, and check whether quotes for travel in the coming months are fixed or fuel-adjustable. Calls for Treasury to scrap fuel levies are growing, but nothing has changed yet.

Scammers posing as officials or parking attendants are using fake card machines at tourist spots. Two tourists lost their bank cards at the Lion's Head parking area on 6 October, and Simon's Town has also been affected. Brief Cape Town-bound clients to pay only at official points.

Separately, the Nelson Mandela Marathon closes roads from midday Saturday 17 October. Race-day closures cover Bo-Kaap, the City Bowl, Green Point, Sea Point and the Foreshore, which will affect airport and hotel transfers and city tours that weekend. Plan transfers around the closures.

South Africa declared Grasslands National Park on 9 October. It covers about 10,226 ha between Nqanqarhu and Rhodes. It is SANParks' first national park created mainly through biodiversity stewardship on working farmland.

For advisors it is a new conservation story for Eastern Cape itineraries. Rhodes is close to the Drakensberg and Lesotho routes, which makes it a possible add-on there.

Cape Town cruise passengers rose from about 78,000 in 2022/23 to 127,000 in 2024/25. Kenya Wildlife Service has introduced a 30% group incentive for cruise passengers visiting parks such as Tsavo and Amboseli.

Together these point to growing demand for safari add-ons around cruise calls. Advisors working with cruise lines or groups could build pre- or post-cruise park packages.