Hazyview - town in Mpumalanga, South Africa

Hazyview is a town of 4,000 people (2011) in Mpumalanga province, a few kilometres outside the Kruger National Park. It is renowned for its large banana and macadamia nut industries. Most of the province of Mpumalanga's private game reserves are found just east of Hazyview. Hazyview is also a stop on the Panorama Route, a scenic road.

Understand

The town's name is derived from the shimmering haze that occurs during the heat of summer.

Get in

Follow the N4 from Johannesburg or Mozambique until Mbombela. From there drive 60 km north on the R40 towards Witrivier and Hazyview. If you don't want to drive, take the City Bug bus.

Get around

Most attractions are located on the main road (which connects Bosbokrand with Witrivier).

See

• Kruger National Park
• Blyde River Canyon
• Pilgrim's Rest
• Gods Window
• The Three Rondavels.

Do

• Perry's Bridge Reptile Park, Perry's Bridge Tourist Centre (Located in the Perry's Bridge Centre, on the Cnr of the R40 (Hazyview Main Rd) and R536 (Rd to Sabie)), +27 13 737-7680, iguana@lantic.net. Daily 10AM-5PM. Your chance to get up close and personal with some of South Africa and the world's most venomous snakes, as well as large constrictors, crocodilians, lizards, tortoises and frogs.
• Balloons Over Africa, +27 13 737-6950, info@balloonsoverafrica.co.za. Hot air balloon flights in the Sabie River Valley.
• Thompsons Safaris, +27 13 737-7115, info@indabasafaris.com. Half-day or full-day safaris to Kruger Park.

Buy

Eat

There are loads of restaurants and snack bars: In town

• Rissington Inn, Main Road R40 1km south of town, +27 13 737-7700, info@rissington.co.za. A la carte open all day.
• Perry's Bridge Trading Post, Perry's Bridge, +27 13 737-6664, perrysbridge@mweb.co.za. Coffee, pancakes and breakfasts.
• Digby's, Perry's Bridge, Mani & Sabie Roads, +27 13 737-6957.
• Papas Pizza at Perry's Bridge.

A little further out - all on the Sabie Road between 5 and 20 km from town:

• Ant and Elephant
• Gecko Lodge
• Windmill Wine shop - for lunch
• Hippo Hollow Restaurant (Hippo Hollow Country Estate Restaurant), R40, +27 13 737 7752. A la carte restaurant with a superb selection of South African wines.

Drink

• The Windmill Wineshop - wonderful selection of wine and good food.
• The Brewery (at Perrys Bridge) - a great pub, good food and they brew their own beer
• Stuck in the Mud - a very 'homely' local pub run by a couple from U.K. - No longer exists but is being replaced by Summerfields Kitchen
• Tanks - a nice little military styled pub on the road from Sabie to Hazyview, but closer to Hazyview.

Sleep

Hazyview is probably the hotel capital of the Lowveld. The Sabie Road has dozens of hotels, timeshares and B&Bs!

• Abangane Guest Lodge, S10 Sabie Rd, +27 13 737-6675, reservations@abangane.com. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 10AM. This prestigious Guest Lodge is situated 1 km outside Hazyview on the Sabie Road, in the heart of Mpumalanga, home of the Kruger National Park. South African and German ownership are a guarantee for international flair, hospitality and professionalism. From R595
• Cambalala guest house - Kruger Park Lodge, +27 82 330-2370, bookings@cambalala.com. Cambalala guest house is a spacious challet which sleeps up to 8 adults. It has 2 bedrooms downstairs and a spacious loft room upstairs. There are two bathrooms - one with a bath and the other with a shower - and a fully equipped kitchen leading to a comfortable open plan lounge and dining area. Within the resort the Impala (deer) roam free, monkeys play in the trees and the hippos wallow in the hippo dam. R1650 per unit per night
• Dreamfields Guesthouse, 137 Gompou Single, +27 13 737-7008, info@dreamfieldsguesthouse.com. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 10:30AM. Dreamfields Guesthouse is situated in a quiet residential area of Hazyview less than 2 km away from the centre of town. The large house with its thatched roof and African style furnishings fits in perfectly with the atmosphere of the region and offers a comfortable lounge, African theme bar, and sparkling pool. The sub-tropical garden with its indigenous trees is a bird watcher’s paradise. R500pp
• Hippo Hollow, +27 13 737-7752, reservations@hippohollow.co.za. From R670pp
• Idle & Wild, +27 13 737-8173. A working mango farm on the banks of the lush Sabie River. Here you can soak up the warmth of the African Sun as you relax around the pool or pamper yourself in the Sauna or Jacuzzi. The Lodge offers beautiful self-catering cottages and rondavels with breakfast served, set in a tropical garden with individual fireplaces for a typical braai. In addition to trips to the Kruger or along the Panorama Route, you can also go on horse rides, bycicle tours, golfing or ballooning. Bed and breakfast from R730 single or R530 sharing; self-catering cottages R1215-1620 for 2-4 people 2017-08-11
• Hazyview Cabanas, R536 Sabie Rd (12km from Hazyview on R536 to Sabie), +27 13 737 8055.
• Rissington Inn, +27 13 737-7700, info@rissington.co.za. An affordable, award-winning country lodge. Stylish but relaxed and informal. A la carte restaurant, open 7 days a week. Superb food. Fully licensed bar. 16 individual rooms. Colourful gardens. All rooms have their own bathrooms, ceiling fans, private entrances, verandahs and breathtaking views. Cheerful, attentive hospitality. Swimming pool and walks down the valley. Spectacular birds and game sightings. From R500pp
• Tatenda Guesthouse, 303 Tarentaal Ave, +27 13 737-7089, tatenda@lantic.net. Check-in: 4PM, check-out: 10AM. Christel is a pleasant host and happy to arrange take away breakfast to speed up an early departure to the park. From R360 pps

Go next

• The Kruger National Park is a few kilometres away.
• Drive to Graskop and take the Panorama Route.
• Drive to Sabie.
• Drive to Nkhuhlu a beautiful picnic spot in the Kruger National Park for a nice meal while hippos provide background music.