Month by month
iSimangaliso in April
April is a shoulder month at iSimangaliso: no turtles and no whales yet, but the rain is easing, the crowds have gone after Easter, and the gates switch to winter hours.
If you only want the answer
A calm, mild month for the estuary, the Eastern Shores and uMkhuze, with 68 mm of rain and days of 26.9°C. The bush is still thick, so game drives are slower than in winter.
April weather: drying out
The Open-Meteo normals give 68 mm of rain over about 6 days, a day high of 26.9°C and a night low of 20.8°C. It is a comfortable month for walking the False Bay trails and the uMthoma boardwalk on the Western Shores.
Winter gate hours from 1 April
On 1 April the Eastern Shores, Western Shores and uMkhuze gates move to winter hours of 06:00 to 18:00, an hour later in the morning and an hour earlier in the evening than in March. The times come from secondary sources, as the Authority's website does not publish them, and they are strictly enforced. Plan the drive back from Cape Vidal accordingly.
Between the seasons
April has neither turtles nor whales, which keeps it quiet. Sugarloaf campsite has a second 2027 high season from 23 April to 3 May, so the end of the month fills up again in St Lucia.