"ROYAL NATAL NATIONAL PARK - THEATRE OF... " a Royal Natal National Park Travel Page by mtncorg

Perhaps the grandest section of the Drakensberg Range falls within this small park on the border of KwaZulu Natal and the Free State. Founded in 1916 as the Natal National Park - ‘Royal’ was added after a visit by the British royals in 1947 - the park is best known for the awe-inspiring rock walls of the Amphitheatre. One kilometer in height and five kilometers wide, bookended by two magnificent outlying buttresses - East Buttress and the Sentinel - the Amphitheatre is one of the most famous sights in South Africa. Entry into the Park is R25 - not covered by the South African Wild Card which allows entry into all South African National Parks because the National Park system is replaced in KwaZulu Natal by the provincial park system, though the Wild Card may be accepted in the near future here as well. There is one campground found in the Park and one self-catered hutted camp. There are several trails wandering about mostly in ravines and gullies north of the Amphitheatre. One trail does wind its way up to meet the road that most hikers/climbers use - the roads comes from the west in the Free State - to reach the top of the Escarpment crest. The main trail attracting attention of one and all is the one to Thukela Gorge which is at the base of the Amphitheatre.