After our drive through Kruger National Park, we went to Nelspruit for a night’s stay. Nelspruit is Mpumalanga’s dilapidated but functional provincial capital, where bakkies (pick-up trucks) dodge potholes en route to shiny malls. It’s more a place to get things done than a worthwhile destination for tourists, but it’s not unpleasant and has the facilities to make it a practical stopover on the way elsewhere. Well connected to Jo’burg, it’s a good place to organise a trip to Kruger National Park, the Blyde River Canyon, Swaziland or Mozambique.

We stopped at Nelspruit for one night and stayed at Columbus Guest House. (R500 ~ S$46.57 per night) We enjoyed the views of the mountains from our guest house. In the morning, we were having breakfast on the open rooftop and taking in the views of the surrounding mountain range. The guest house is slightly far from the city centre, but it is accessible with a private car or taxi. We enjoyed being in a private estate, away from the busy city. For meal options, there is shopping mall area about 5 minutes drive from the place.

During the day before our arrival in Nelspruit, we drove along the Panorama Route, down the mountains and passing many interesting sites. Our first stop was Blyde River Canyon, which is an absolutely gorgeous place. This stunning 260-sq-km reserve centres on the 30km-long Blyde River Canyon, where epic rock formations tower above the forested slopes and eagle-eye views abound at the dramatic meeting of the Drakensberg Escarpment and the lowveld. It’s one of the world’s largest canyons and one of South Africa’s most outstanding natural sights.

Most visitors drive along the canyon’s edge, where Route 532 offers plenty of viewpoints for gazing in awe. If you have enough time, however, the canyon is even better explored on foot. The canyon’s scale and beauty make a trip here a memorable experience, especially if you’re lucky enough to visit on a fine day. Epic rock formations tower above the forested slopes and eagle-eye views abound at the dramatic setting. The Bourke’s Luck Potholes, is a unique and unworldly geological feature, formed from thousands of years of water erosion.

Apparently, the rock formations get their name from a prospector, John Bourke, who was one of the first to proclaim that the region had gold deposits and who staked a claim nearby. Despite the name of the potholes, he never found a single ounce of gold there — though luckier prospectors would later find rich amounts of gold in the area. Even if he walked away empty-handed, his name lives on in the stunning scenery.

The potholes are about 35km north of Graskop on the R532. Entrance fee is R25 per person plus R5 per car.

Next, we drove to God’s window, a viewpoint in the mountains with magnificent views, canyons, rock formations and waterfalls. Gods Window is so called for the panoramic view of the Lowveld more than 900 m down into lush indigenous forest clad ravine. The majestic cliffs plunge over 700 meters to the Lowveld and the private game reserves which have made the area one of South Africa’s main wildlife destinations. God’s Window is a small part of a 250km long earthwork of sheer cliffs and extravagant beauty. One can observe the hills and forests as far as the eye can see. In fact, it seems as if one can see forever! However, the day that we visited, the area was quite misty, but it created a beautiful effect too.

On the last stop of our exploring in the Blyde river canyon, we visited Lisbon falls. Lisbon Falls is one of the most dramatic and scenic waterfalls in the Mpumalanga region. Lisbon Falls is 94 metres, or 308 feet, high, which makes it one of the highest in the province. There were some locals fishing at the pools formed while others were busy taking photographs of the falls as the backdrop.

Exploring the region of Mpumalanga with its various attractions, following the Panorama Route, is possible to be done in a day. Due to its close proximity to Kruger National Park, you can choose to do it before or after your safari tour. For us, we did it after the visit to Kruger, to rest at Nelspruit for the night before continuing our journey across the border to Eswatini.