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There we go! R2000 down the drain for a Kruger visit on petrol That is the killer! Add to that the cost of flights and we see why Kruger trips are expensive

Its a pity they dont give singles like a lot of places not the 1-2 options but a single rate that is slightly higher than if you divided the normal rate by two ( R250 pp sharing or R290 single) It would help those single folk an awful lot.

Now there we have you, petrol in SA is half the price we are paying here at the moment.

Sorry saraf, but I must beg to differ!!!
Petrol costs have increased big time in SA over the past year!!!
It is still cheaper than in UK, but sadly NOT half the price.

I know of few europeans going camping in Kruger
Packing a small tent and sleeping bag and buying the rest of the gear
But eating at the restaurants/deli

Buying a simple tent with sleeping gear and basic furniture will cost you about R2000,00
And the cheapest , basic, accommodation is R380 (tents and huts )

As a recent immigrant to SA I was introduced to the KNP in the winter of 1975. I remember we stayed somewhere called Hazyview Bungalows because the combined cost of accomodation in the KNP and petrol was more than we could stretch our budget.
A little while ago I booked a five night stay beginning March 14 and reflected that due to the vagaries of the forex market it will cost me roughly half what I would have paid four or five years ago!!!
Over the years we have averaged almost one visit a year even if it got harder when we moved from South Africa. I have to say, my idea of camping is a riverside luxury tent which I've not managed yet, but the hut's will do very well. It's an amazing, unique place and IMHO when compared to other tourist destinations in the country - great value for money.
And I'm reminded of a saying... " at times like these it's important to remember there have always been times like these"..

We camp for 14 days once a year, and we are still spending a whack of money every year BUT it is definately the cheapest form of accommodation that is available. Petrol and toll gate fees are the biggest expense and then of course food, but I start buying extra food every time I go on my weekly shops so by the time we go on our annual Kruger "pilgrimage" we have most of the basics so the day before we go I just have to buy fesh veggies and fruit and of course we buy ice everyday in the park and if LO wants a ice cream

Yeh, from our UK-based perspective. Kruger has moved from a 'sensibly priced' experience to something we really have to think about; even with a better exchange rate currently.
Recently we went to Yellowstone, USA. The price-points are not that different. So SA / KNP will inevitably see less trips from us if prices continue to race ahead as per the last three years.
Of course we so love KNP we will continue to visit, and try hard to squeeze out more value from where we can (lower priced units at Biyamiti / other camps, cleverer use of Safari Tent stops, being very strict on Car Hire budget). But sadly the previous luxury of several Morning Walks and Night Drives has already been cut

On the other hand, really want KNP to have a balanced budget and be able to push as much investment into conservation as possible. So appreciate that constant pressure is a tad more important than individual tourist market segments.

We recently stayed in a "refurbished" unit at Talamati. The beds in the lounge are categorically not suitable for an adult and were extremely uncomfortable and not worth the extra nearly R300 per person for the night. On a return trip for a wedding in Satara the following month we found the accommodation extremely tired and not cheap. The verandah kitchen was badly kitted out and most of the utensils one would expect to find like a can opener were either missing or rusted so badly they could not be used. I believe that if Sanparks wants to keep customers loyal then a little more effort will have to go into refurbishing units without re-using the existing equipment and simply retiling and putting a coat of paint on the walls. The aircon units in Satara in our unit were so useless that we virtually had a fan blowing on us. I think Sanparks still could provide a reasonably priced alternative to private lodges but must be seen to at least do a little bit of homework on their expenditure given the age of some of the units and the contents therein. Thank goodness for Wildcards and the freedom they give us to stay where we choose to and visit on a daily basis.

For a couple of international Kruger 'tragics ' for whom our desire to visit annually far outweighs our financial circumstances, I have had to transition from medium size hire car to little car and staying in Bushveld camps and fully equipped bungalows, to this year utilising mostly unequipped (no kitchen, no bathroom) huts, bungalows and safari tents. From next year we will continue the 'transition' to cheaper trips by utilising our own tent and booking campsites. However, this reflects our own circumstances rather than what I consider to be accommodation costs which are too high. I have travelled in most of the countries in the Southern African region and I don't know where I can go for the same costs where I can experience comparable wildlife and facilities.

3D, that was my original point. If you look at what you get as a package when in Kruger, and compare that to any kind of self catering place anywhere else in the country (say a place in Knysna, or even Bloem), Kruger prices are well below what you could expect to pay elsewhere. Sure, you could find specials, and the quality is no doubt better in a private establishment, but the actual accommodation price isn't all that bad once you factor in that you are, after all, in Kruger.

I do however, find it interesting that as a holiday it costs pretty much the same to go to Yellowstone. I'm not sure how that can be, given that the R/$ exchange rate is about 8:1 (roughly), so their costs must be pretty dirt cheap (well below $100 a night).

I was actually remarking to the wife yesterday that if I stayed in JHB and not CPT, I would spend almost every long weekend I could using Marloth Park as a base and then camping in the park (with our 2 kids). I can't even find a caravan park down here that costs less than R250 per night...so camping in Kruger is at worst on a par with that.

Planning!!!

I agree with Picnic that planning makes it so much easier, but also feel that some of the accommodation and activities are priced so that the average South African cannot afford it. The sunset, night and morning drives are cheap if it is for one person only but runs into quite a lot for a family.

I really think that the wild card could be used to accumulate loyalty points to make some of these activities and or certain accommodation more affordable for the average Kruger or SANparks junkies like us.

The luxury camps ( concessions) are really mostly for foreigners who can afford it with favourable exchange rates. I had the privilege to stay at the Pafuri Camp and The Outpost a few years ago, and guess what, my fellow travelers were all foreigners. The point here is that the more expensive camps are perceived to be available for foreigners only , (and also some places that does not belong to SANParks), and that average South Africans are excluded from experiencing some of the most beautiful parts of our country because they simply cannot afford it.

As a local, I still think you cannot beat the safari tents for value. Not the luxury ones, the standard ones. You need to bring your own utensils etc, and use communal ablutions, that I have never found real reasons to complain about. There are those whose mindset wont permit them to have this type of experience, so they pay for the privacy.

As a Capetonian, the major cost for me is not BEING in Kruger, but getting there.

Kruger is still affordable and offers value for money to me but when I was looking at the tariffs for 2013 I was surprised at the raise in tariffs . Under Reservations and then Tariffs you will find the tariffs before and after 31 October 2012 next to each other. If you look at the difference of the costs of accommodation to 31 October and then from 1 November you will see the rate goes up at 8% in most cases. For example a bungalow (BD4) in Mopani goes from R770 to R835 and a tent LST2 in Skukuza from R625 to R675. But sometimes even more. For example in Lower Sabie the cost of a hut (EH1) goes up from R215 to R250. In Letaba the Bungalow (BG3U) will go up from R780 to R950. In both cases much more than 8%. I always wonder why the tariff goes up like that. It is because of the raise of overhead costs or because they know people will still come back. And back.

I fly from Europe to Johannesburg and then from Johannesburg to Phalaborwa. In most camps, except Mopani, Lower Sabie and the camp the night before I fly back home, I stay at the campground. I take a light weight tent (1.4 kg) with me from home. It is a very small tent and I can only sleep in it because it gets to hot for resting during the day. Fortunately, taking my tent with me helps a lot with keeping the costs down and allows me to stay 3-4 weeks.