Free entry runs from 7 to 13 September
SA National Parks Week 2026 started on Monday 7 September and runs to Sunday 13 September. South African citizens get free day entry to 17 national parks, but three of them close the offer on Friday 11 September rather than running the full week.
This is the 21st year of the initiative, which SANParks has run since 2006. Free entry covers the daily conservation fee only. Accommodation, night game drives, guided walks and other paid activities are charged at the normal rate, and you still pay for those even during the week.
The three parks that stop on Friday are the ones most people want. Kruger National Park, West Coast National Park and Augrabies Falls National Park offer free access from Monday 7 to Friday 11 September only. The offer does not extend into the weekend at any of them. West Coast National Park is in the middle of flower season, which is why it is excluded over the busiest two days.
What you need at the gate
Bring your South African identity document. SANParks says children must also present valid identification at the gate. Some coverage of the campaign has said children under 18 do not need identification, so take documents for everyone in the car rather than risk being turned away.
- A green barcoded ID book, a Smart ID card or a valid Temporary Identity Certificate all work as proof.
- The offer is for day visits only. If you are staying overnight, your accommodation is charged as usual.
- Individual parks can set their own entry conditions and daily visitor limits, so arrive early at the popular gates.
- Free entry does not cover the Boulders Penguin Colony section of Table Mountain National Park or the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway.
If your ID is lost or expired, this week is not the time to fix it. Applications for a Smart ID card take time to process, and the gate staff need the document in hand.
Every participating park and its dates
| Park | Region | Free access dates |
|---|---|---|
| Kruger National Park | Northern | 7 to 11 September 2026 |
| West Coast National Park | Cape | 7 to 11 September 2026 |
| Augrabies Falls National Park | Arid | 7 to 11 September 2026 |
| Agulhas National Park | Cape | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Bontebok National Park | Cape | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Table Mountain National Park | Cape | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Tankwa Karoo National Park | Cape | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Addo Elephant National Park | Frontier | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Camdeboo National Park | Frontier | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Karoo National Park | Frontier | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Mountain Zebra National Park | Frontier | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Garden Route National Park | Garden Route | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Golden Gate Highlands National Park | Northern | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Mapungubwe National Park | Northern | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Marakele National Park | Northern | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Ai-Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier Park | Arid | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park | Arid | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
| Mokala National Park | Arid | 7 to 13 September 2026 |
Namaqua National Park does not appear on the SANParks list of participating parks for 2026.
Where Gauteng and Durban residents can realistically go
There is no national park inside Gauteng, and none in KwaZulu-Natal under SANParks management. That does not rule the week out, it just means a drive.
Golden Gate Highlands in the eastern Free State is roughly a three to four hour drive from Johannesburg and runs the full week, including the weekend. Marakele near Thabazimbi in Limpopo is closer, at around three hours, and also runs to Sunday. Mapungubwe is a long haul at the Limpopo River but is open the full week.
Kruger is the obvious draw from Gauteng, and it is the one with the shortest window. Free entry there ends on Friday 11 September. If you cannot take a weekday off, Kruger is out this year.
Work out the fuel before you commit. A return trip to Golden Gate from Johannesburg is close to 700 kilometres, so the September petrol price matters more to the day’s cost than the entry fee you are saving. Free entry removes the conservation fee, not the drive.
What the free week is actually worth
Daily conservation fees for South African adults run into the low hundreds of rand at the bigger parks, and a family of four at a park like Kruger or Addo would normally pay several hundred rand just to get through the gate. That is the saving. Everything else, from a picnic to a guided drive, still costs what it costs.
SANParks reported just over 105 000 visitors during the 2025 edition of the week, a figure worth keeping in mind if you are planning to arrive at a popular gate mid-morning. The week is a domestic tourism campaign as much as a giveaway, and it sits inside a broader push to lift local travel numbers alongside the record foreign arrivals recorded this year.
Where to check
SANParks publishes the official participating park list and dates at www.sanparks.org, on the SA National Parks Week 2026 event page. Park-specific conditions, gate times and any visitor caps are set by each park, so check that park’s page before you drive. The SANParks call centre is 012 428 9111.
