Centred on the beach bum surf city of Durban, the huge, and hugely diverse, province of KwaZulu-Natal on South Africa’s east coast doesn’t have the stellar international wildlife reputation of other parts of South Africa.

And yet, with its rich ocean currents, soaring mountain plateau, searing savannahs and swampy shorelines, sub-tropical KwaZulu-Natal is actually one of the more rewarding wildlife-watching areas of the country.

Drag yourself off the beach towel and you might find yourself having thrilling face-to-face encounters with lumbering hippo, ancient turtles, racing cheetah, breaching whales, growling lions and heavy-footed elephants.

Although there is great wildlife watching in many parts of the region, the largest concentration of protected areas is in the northeastern coastal areas a few hours’ drive north of Durban. Spinning away from the massive Lake St Lucia is a number of interconnecting public and private game reserves which together encompass everything from windblown beaches to Big Five-filled grasslands. It’s a wonderful region to explore and one that, for the moment at least, is mainly the preserve of in-the-know South African wildlife watchers.

The density of big ticket wildlife is a little lower than in the Kruger area, but thanks to the diversity of habitats the range of animal species is exceptional. All the normal big hitters are here including elephant, lion, buffalo, rhino (both black and white), leopard and wild dogs. Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park and surrounding conservation areas are the best bet for a classic Big Five safari and many an experienced safari goer actually rates Hluhluwe-iMfolozi over the more famous Kruger.