The sheer size of Africa alone can make booking your first hunt in Africa incredibly overwhelming. With its 54 countries plotted amongst so many varying climates, seasons, terrains, laws and animals, it could be useful to contact an outfitter to help you plan and coordinate your hunting trip. Owing to the abundance of variation in species and landscapes, South Africa is the most popular and affordable hunting destination.

The first step in deciding where to go for a South African hunt is determining which species you’d like to hunt. You can either decide on the species first which will lead to the most ideal area, or you can start with the area and have to adapt the species you would like to hunt. In order to avoid moving around too much, it is important to ensure that all the animals you are interested in hunting share the same habitat.

South Africa is home to the most commonly hunted species, but many rare trophies can be found in Western and Central Africa.

South Africa

South Africa is made up of nine provinces, but most of the hunting takes place in the Eastern Cape and Limpopo. This is because it is home to some of the most sought after species, whereas other provinces, such as Gauteng and Free State, are limited in the number and variation of species making it a less desirable destination

Western Cape

The Western cape is cape has a mediterranean climate with dry summers and winter rain. The landscape consists of flat and dry Karoo plains to more mountainous regions. Common species are:
  • Blesbuck
  • Bontebok
  • Cape Eland
  • Cape Grysbok
  • Cape Kudu
  • Fallow Deer
  • Gemsbuck
  • Gray/Vaal Rhebuck
  • Springbuck

Eastern Cape

The Eastern Cape is one of the most diverse provinces in South Africa, with its variable rainfall, the landscapes range from lush green forests and dense bushveld in the east, to drier mountains, Karoo and coastal shrubbery in the West. As a result, the entire Big 5 can be spotted at numerous game farms around the Eastern Cape. Commonly hunted game species include:
  • Blesbuck
  • Bushbuck
  • Cape Buffalo
  • Cape Eland
  • Cape Kudu
  • Cape Grysbok
  • Cape Springbuck
  • Fallow Deer
  • Gray/Blue Duiker
  • Gemsbuck
  • Impala
  • Red Lechwe
  • Mountain Reedbuck
  • Nyala
  • Sable Antelope
  • Steenbuck
  • Red Hartebeest
  • Vaal Rhebuck
  • Black/Blue Wildebeest

KwaZulu-Natal

Nestled between the borders of Mozambique, the Eastern Cape and the warm Indian Ocean, its high summer rainfall makes KZN a lush and green hunting destination. The Natal landscape consists of long rolling hills and the exceptional Drakensberg mountains. Top trophy hunting game species available in Natal include:
  • Blue Wildebeest
  • BushbuckCape Buffalo
  • Cape Eland
  • Common Reedbuck
  • Gray Duiker
  • Impala
  • Nyala
  • Oribi
  • Red Duiker
  • Southern Greater Kudu
  • Steenbuck
  • Vaal/ Gray Rhebuck
  • Warthog
  • White Rhino

Freestate

The Freestate is a relatively small province, but boasts massive flat open plains, with summer rainfall, and mountains towards the east. Commonly hunted game species include:
  • Blesbuck
  • Cape Buffalo
  • Eland
  • Fallow Deer
  • Impala
  • Mountain/Common Reedbuck
  • Red Hartebeest
  • Red Lechwe
  • Springbuck
  • Steenbuck
  • Warthog
  • Blue/Black Wildebeest

North West

The North West province shares a border with the country of Botswana and is the second driest province in South Africa. While there is little summer rain, it still makes for an excellent destination to hunt trophies such as:
  • Cape Buffalo
  • Cape Eland
  • Bushbuck
  • Burchell's Zebra
  • Black Wildebeest
  • Blesbuck
  • Gemsbok
  • Gray Duiker
  • Impala
  • Red Hartebeest
  • Sable Antelope
  • Springbuck
  • Steenbuck
  • Southern Greater Kudu
  • Tsessebe
  • Blue Wildebeest
  • Waterbuck
  • Warthog

Gauteng

While the Gauteng province is popular by way of transit, it is small and densely populated, so it offers little to no hunting. You will most likely land here in order to travel to your hunting destination.

Limpopo

Considered to be the gateway to the rest of Africa, Limpopo borders on both Botswana and Zimbabwe, with the large Limpopo river forming a natural barrier. A large portion of the Kruger National Park is spread across the Limpopo province and, as a result, it can be considered as the most game rich area in South Africa. Game species found in the Limpopo province include all of the Big Five species, and most other huntable game species available in South Africa are offered to hunt in Limpopo. Exceptional trophies include:
  • Blue Wildebeest
  • Blesbuck
  • Bushpig
  • Burchell's Zebra
  • Cape Eland
  • Gray Duiker
  • Impala
  • Klipspringer
  • Leopard
  • Lion
  • Livingstones Eland
  • Limpopo Bushbuck
  • Mountain/Common Reedbuck
  • Nyala
  • Roan Antelope
  • Red Hartebeest
  • Sable Antelope
  • Steenbuck
  • Sharpe's Grysbok
  • Suni
  • Spotted Hyena
  • Southern Greater Kudu
  • Waterbuck
  • Warthog
  • White Rhino

Mpumalanga

On the other side of the Drakensberg mountains lies Mpumalanga, divided by the highveld and the lowveld. The highveld is a grassy plateau on top of the escarpment and drops off into the lowveld, bushveld and scrub with dense riverine forests. Mpumalanga is largely made up of the Kruger National Park and is where The Dangerous Five can be best found. Notable trophy species include:
  • Blesbuck
  • Buffalo
  • Burchell's Zebra
  • Bushbuck
  • Bushpig
  • Cape Eland
  • Elephant
  • Gray Duiker
  • Impala
  • Lion
  • Leopard
  • Nyala
  • Southern Greater Kudu
  • Steenbuck
  • Waterbuck, Blue Wildebeest
  • Black Wildebeest
  • Sable Antelope
  • Common/mountain Reedbuck
  • Red Hartebeest
  • Mountain Reedbuck
  • Vaal/Gray Rhebuck
  • Warthog
  • White Rhino

Northern Cape

The Northern Cape is incredibly large and incredibly dry, categorized by its arid and semiarid terrain. Here, the rainfall is sparse, falling most in summer. Common game species include:
  • Blesbuck
  • Blue Wildebeest
  • Cape Buffalo
  • Cape Eland
  • Cape Kudu
  • Cape Springbuck
  • Gemsbuck
  • Impala
  • Red Hartebeest
  • Sable Antelope
  • Steenbuck
  • Warthog

Another important factor to consider when planning your hunt in Africa is budget. Countries like Zambia and Mozambique can provide incredibly adventurous hunts for a small fortune while you can get all the thrill for a lower price in countries like South Africa and Namibia. While these places may vary depending on the number of hunting days and the animals you choose to hunt, the map below provides a general sense of price to country.

South Africa tends to have the most established hunting in Africa, and therefore, it is where you will find the best value hunts. As you move further north and more remote, there is less competition, more expensive operating conditions, and therefore pricier hunts.

You can find quality accommodation at affordable prices on smaller fenced game farms in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia. As you move into free range territories of Namibia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Zambia, Mozambique, Uganda and Tanzania, vehicles become a prerequisite and the hunts become more challenging and more expensive. Furthermore, for specialized trophy collectors, where countries like Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Ethiopia and Cameroon become more interesting, the hunts are the most challenging, niche and, therefore, expensive.

The last decision you need to make when deciding where to hunt in South Africa is choosing which Outfitter meets your needs and requirements. While there are many outfitters to choose from, you’re welcome to start out by taking a look at our packages to understand animal combinations and prices. You can also contact us for more information, we would be happy to help you answer a few more of the unknowns. At Gamka Safaris we also tailor unique packages for the individual, if there is nothing that jumps out at you on our packages page.

We look forward to welcoming you to our beautiful continent and giving you an experience unlike any other.