There are trips that go exactly to plan, and then there are trips like this one. When a family of four decided to spend the last days of 2024 at Berg en Dal rest camp in the southern Kruger, they were chasing the bush — the smells, the silence, the early morning drives, the feeling of being somewhere completely wild. What they didn't bargain for was eight days of weather extremes that would test every piece of kit they'd brought. What they didn't know yet was just how much they'd come to rely on one piece of equipment in particular.
Their Coody Familia inflatable tent.
Arrival: 44°C and a Six-Minute Setup
The drive into Berg en Dal in late December is already a full sensory experience — the heat hits you the moment you open the car door, the red dust rises, and the Lowveld stretches out in every direction in its summer green. Beautiful and relentless. The thermometer read 44 degrees Celsius when they pulled into their campsite.
Anyone who has tried pitching a traditional pole tent in that kind of heat — wrestling canvas, driving pegs into hard ground, slotting fibreglass poles with sweating hands — will immediately understand what happened next. The Coody Familia came out of its bag, the pump was switched on, and six minutes later they had a standing tent. A proper, full-size family tent. They were inside and in the shade before they'd even begun to sweat properly.
Making It Home
Once inflated, the Familia revealed exactly why families keep coming back to it: sheer, liveable volume. The floor area is generous enough that they could roll out the outdoor carpets wall-to-wall, set up a full camp kitchen on the side, and still have an open living corridor down the middle. The large panoramic windows — all mesh-screened — meant the tent stayed cool and full of light even in the heat of the afternoon.
With beds set up on both sides — four of them — and toys and gear tucked neatly under the camp tables, it didn't feel like roughing it. It felt like a proper base camp. One worth returning to each night after a day in the bush.
Note: at this stage the family was still using their regular camp mattresses. Since this trip, they've made the switch to Coody inflatable beds — no overnight deflation, no waking up on the ground. Lesson learned the comfortable way.
The Stoep That Saved Them
They didn't yet have the Coody inflatable canopy — that would come later. Instead, they extended the rain fly out using their own poles, creating a generous covered stoep in front of the tent. Chairs out, table set under shade, a proper outdoor living area. Exactly the kind of setup that makes camp feel like home.
As it turned out, that stoep would become the most important part of the setup. But more on that shortly.
Unexpected Visitors
Berg en Dal has a reputation — the camp is positioned along the Matobo Hills, thick with riverine bush, and the resident wildlife treats the campsite as simply an extension of their territory. Within the first day, the family had their first visitor.
A bushbuck — curious, unhurried — wandered up to the tent and stopped to inspect it. The two boys were lying on the beds at the time. They had front-row seats to a private game sighting without moving a muscle. Through the full-width mesh window panels of the Familia, the Kruger came to them.
The bushbuck came back. More than once. It seemed rather taken with the tent — or perhaps just curious about what was inside. Either way, the kids were delighted.
A Day Trip to Skukuza
Mid-trip, they headed north for a day drive and lunch at Skukuza — the famous camp deck overlooking the Sabie River. Good coffee, wide views, the kind of bush stillness that makes you wonder why you ever stay in a city. On the drive back to Berg en Dal that afternoon, the sky to the west had turned the colour of a bruise. Dark stacks of cloud, moving fast. Something was coming.
Night Two: The Rain Hits
It started hard and didn't apologise. One of those Lowveld thunderstorms that arrives with theatrical intent — lightning first, then the rain, then a kind of sustained, total downpour that turns the camp roads into rivers within minutes.
At the site next door, people were moving fast — grabbing chairs, getting things under cover in the dark. Under the extended rain fly of the Familia, this family of four sat in their chairs and watched it all. Cool drinks in hand. Dry. Not rushing anywhere. The canvas drum of rain above them, the lights still on, the braai grid still warm.
Five Days of Rain
Then it rained for most of the next five days. Heavy at times, with the odd dry window to get out for a game drive.
Some roads in the southern section closed — a few routes went under and SANParks issued alerts. Other campers were cutting trips short.
Inside the Familia, none of that was their problem. The tent was bone dry. Not slightly damp, not managing — dry. The double-wall inflatable construction keeps rain completely out while the large mesh windows meant the interior stayed well-ventilated even when everything was closed up. They set up card games on the camp table. They read books in the afternoon. They watched the rain arrive and leave through the panoramic windows, a private cinema with the best show in Africa playing outside. It was, unexpectedly, some of the best days of the trip.
Eight Days Done, Packing Up in the Rain
When the time came to leave, it was still raining. They packed in the rain — the bags, the bedding, the kitchen — and then the Familia itself. It deflates and returns to its bag as quickly as it inflates. No damage, no complaints. They drove south through a very wet park, the Lowveld landscape doing its summer thing — flooded, lush, impossibly green.
Back Home: Ready for Next Time
By the time they reached home in Johannesburg, the sky had cleared. They set the Familia up in the garden immediately — six minutes, as always — to air it out properly in the afternoon sun. Clean, dry it thoroughly, back in the bag. The whole process takes less time than unpacking the cooler box.
That trip didn't go to plan. 44°C on arrival. Five days of non-stop rain. Flooded roads and half the southern Kruger underwater. But the tent held firm through every single day of it — and the family would do it all again in a heartbeat.
More stories are already in the pipeline. More Kruger trips. New locations. The Familia has been busy. Watch this space.