Why choose Nkomazi Game Reserve

Nkomazi has been restored to a wildlife haven. Here, where great natural beauty and the 3.7 billion years of history meet, the Nkomazi conservation project has celebrated the return of wild animals to a region where they can once again roam in great abundance.

• The reserve represents a kaleidoscope of Africa's habitats in its ability to support both highveld and lowveld game on the high-lying grassland and the low-lying bushveld areas therefor supporting an ecological balance.
• The Barberton Mountainland has a plant biodiversity higher than that of the entire Kruger National Park and second only in South Africa to the Cape Fynbos and succulents. Biologically, they are home to an incredible variety of native plants and animals, and are one of the recognised ‘Centres of Biological Endemism’ in South Africa. It is also home to the well-known Protea, South Africa's national flower and where the Barberton Daisy was first discovered.
• Small, as mountain ranges go, the Makhonjwas are deeply folded and peaked, a dramatic landscape on a human scale. The drama is more than their visual impact. These timeless mountains that define the north-western Swazi frontier hold the best preserve records of the earth’s earliest life-forms. They are renowned for their ancient green rocks with their unique scientific record of the pre-history of the earth and for the human stories in pursuit of hidden gold. This small and beautiful mountain range has a global reputation. It is also referred to as the ‘Genesis of Life’ its geology includes the best preserved truly ancient rocks on earth. For years this region has attracted teams of international scientists who return annually to research and interpret the story of the earth’s beginnings and the evolution of life. This is because it is the only the beautifully preserved rocks of the Makhonjwas where they were unable to find the clues that science needs to learn about the earth’s earliest history and the way life began.
• Nkomazi also offers protection to the oldest fossils of life on Earth and preserves vast tracts of grasslands, the biome that is recognised today as the most threatened in the world.
• In keeping with their unique geology, their grassy ridges and forested valleys are full and rare and endangered species of plant and animals. Wildlife, vegetation and geology, are all inextricably interconnected.
• In the hills north east of Barberton there are three butterflies that only occur in this region and no where else in the world. They are the Swanepoel’s Blue, Jeffery’s Blue and Barbara’s Copper.
• With a wide range of vegetation and sharp changes in altitude not to mention the varied food sources from plants to insects, the bird life is rich and rewarding. The total bird count over the Barberton municipal is a staggering 250 different species.
• Nkomazi Game Reserve is situated close to the picturesque town of Barberton, the Kruger National Park, Pilgrims Rest, the Blyde River Canyon, Gods' Window and other wonders of the escarpment region.
• Its beauty and accessibility makes it a natural destination for tourism where visitors from southern Africa and abroad can enjoy an enjoyable inspirational experience.