Sodwana Bay camp (log cabins and campsites)
Log cabins and a very large campsite · Sodwana Bay section, behind Jesser Point · iSimangaliso Wetland Park Authority (Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife until 28 February 2026)
Budget
Inside the park
Park-run (iSimangaliso Authority)
The state camp at Sodwana Bay, where the dive boats launch from the beach at Jesser Point to the 2 Mile, 5 Mile and 7 Mile reefs. iSimangaliso counts 413 campsites, and there are 19 log cabins with a full kitchen, braai and DSTV. iSimangaliso's accommodation page warns that school holidays, Easter and December book out months ahead, particularly the cabins here and at Cape Vidal. The camp is state-owned; Ezemvelo ran it until 28 February 2026, the iSimangaliso Authority runs it now, and Sodwana is on the list of camps being put out to private tender. Choose it if you dive or fish on a budget; skip it in December if you dislike crowds.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Walking distance to the dive launch at Jesser Point
- Cabins have a full kitchen and braai
- The lowest gate fee band in the park
- Hundreds of pitches, powered and unpowered
Cons
- Prices date from 2023/24; a later listing shows about 7% more
- Fills up in school holidays, at Easter and in December
- Operator may change as the Authority tenders the camp
- Diving is booked separately with a dive centre
What's here
- Campsite
- Solar or 24h power
- Self-catering
Arranged from the lodge:
- Boat trips
- Fishing
We could not reach a website for Sodwana Bay camp (log cabins and campsites), 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 Sodwana Bay camp (log cabins and campsites)
From R260 per site for two (2023/24 tariff). Ezemvelo 2023/24 tariff: Gwalagwala campsite R260 for a minimum of two; 4-bed log cabin R1,320 for a minimum of three plus R440 per extra person (high season R2,010); 6-bed cabin R1,760 for a minimum of four (high R2,680). A later undated listing gives R1,410 and R1,880 for the cabins. The Sodwana gate fee is extra: R34 per South African adult and R71 per international adult on the 2024/25 table, plus a R7 conservation levy and R12 accommodation levy per person per night. VAT treatment is not stated.
Self-catering. You cook. Nothing else is included unless the entry says so.
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 Sodwana Bay camp (log cabins and campsites)
How much is a log cabin at Sodwana Bay?
On Ezemvelo's 2023/24 tariff a 4-bed cabin was R1,320 for three plus R440 for a fourth, and a 6-bed cabin R1,760 for four; an undated later listing shows R1,410 and R1,880. Gate fees and levies are extra.
Do I need a R2,000 permit to dive at Sodwana?
No. The R2,000 scuba diving permit on iSimangaliso's tariff is a daily permit paid by licensed operators. You pay the gate fee and your dive centre's price; ask the dive centre about the national marine protected area permit.
Who takes bookings for Sodwana Bay camp now?
Ezemvelo left the iSimangaliso camps on 1 March 2026. The Authority's handover address said bookings would continue as before until a service provider is announced, while its contact page says the Authority takes no bookings. Confirm the channel before you pay. We found no published child policy.