kuMkhumbi bush lodge
Seasonal bush lodge · uMkhuze section · iSimangaliso Wetland Park Authority (Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife until 28 February 2026)
A drawing, because nobody has sent us a photograph of kuMkhumbi bush lodge yet. Send five and this page changes the same week.
Budget
Inside the park
Park-run (iSimangaliso Authority)
A bush lodge in the uMkhuze section that an independent booking marketer, mkuzereservations.co.za, lists as open only from 1 November to 28 February. It was not on Ezemvelo's 2023/24 tariff, and no capacity or rate has been published. The summer months it is said to open are when the uMkhuze pans fill and the Kubube hide is at its best for waterbirds. It is state-owned under the iSimangaliso Authority. Ask before planning around it; Mantuma is the confirmed alternative in the section.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Summer season matches the best waterbird months
- Inside uMkhuze
- Away from the main camp
Cons
- Season, capacity and rate all unconfirmed
- Not on the last official tariff
- Booking channel unclear
What's here
Arranged from the lodge:
- Birding
We could not reach a website for kuMkhumbi bush lodge, so this list is incomplete by definition. Ask them directly.
What the park charges on top
The rate above buys you a bed. iSimangaliso Wetland Park charges its own entry fee for every day you are inside. Here is what that adds up to.
- Park entryGate fee and conservation levy plus the R12 accommodation levy, counted per day because no official document says whether multi-night guests pay the gate fee once.
- $9per person, per day
- VehicleR74 car fee, counted per day for the same reason.
- $5per vehicle, per day
Three nights means three days inside, so two adults sharing one vehicle pay $69 in park fees before anyone pays for a bed.
Sleeping inside the boundary is what keeps that low. Overnight guests add the R12 accommodation levy per night, against $8 a day for anyone driving in from outside.
These are the 2024/25 rates, which expired on 30 November 2025; no newer table has been published. Sodwana, the Coastal Forest and Kosi Bay charge about half (R71 per international adult). Lodges in St Lucia town are outside every gate.
The full fee schedule for iSimangaliso Wetland ParkRates at kuMkhumbi bush lodge
Rates on request. Not on Ezemvelo's 2023/24 tariff and no rate published since. The uMkhuze gate fee is R62 per South African adult and R130 per international adult on the 2024/25 table, plus levies. VAT treatment is not stated.
What the rate covers is not confirmed. We do not know yet whether meals, drinks and activities are included, so read this as the bed only.
Every figure on this page is in US dollars.
Rates checked against the research dossier of 24 September 2026. State-camp prices come from Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife's 2023/24 tariff (1 November 2023 to 31 October 2024), the last official camp tariff that could be read; treat them as a floor, because iSimangaliso has published none since it took the camps over on 1 March 2026. Thonga Beach Lodge, Kosi Forest Lodge, Coral Divers, Mabibi Beach Camp and Umlilo Lodge are priced from their own sites. Every figure marked 'reseller rate' comes from SA-Venues, LekkeSlaap, Siyabona or a booking agent, uses that site's 'from' price, and usually prices a room for two; we halve it to give a per-person figure. Dollar figures use R16.36 to the dollar (24 September 2026) and are rounded. Gate fees are extra everywhere except in St Lucia town: R62 per South African adult and R130 per international adult at the dearest gates on the 2024/25 table, which expired on 30 November 2025 with no successor published.
Questions about kuMkhumbi bush lodge
When is kuMkhumbi open?
An independent marketer lists it as seasonal, 1 November to 28 February. This is not confirmed officially.
What does kuMkhumbi cost?
No rate has been published.
Is kuMkhumbi good for families?
We found no published child policy and no capacity figure. Ask the booking office.