A summer worth writing home about
Updated: 9 hours ago
First-time campers write home on their first morning at Sugar Bay. By the time you read that letter, your child could be steering a kayak across the lagoon with someone they met at supper the night before. Or they could be at the craft table together, choosing colours for matching tie-dye shirts.
December 2026 & January 2027
Here in Zinkwazi Beach on the KZN North Coast, kids aged 7–17 get five or seven nights by the sea, away from their phones. With over 100 activities to choose from, they can go looking for adventure or spend a long, happy afternoon doing something they already love.
Time to catch their first wave
Our surf lessons start in the lagoon. Beginners practise paddling and getting to their feet before an instructor helps them catch a wave in the sea. If surfing clicks, they can come back for another lesson and work towards riding a wave on their own.
There’s a similar choice on land. One child might be learning to balance on a BMX while another is ready to try a bunny hop. At dance, a beginner can learn a routine with the group, while a more experienced dancer can choreograph one. Campers choose their sessions. If your child wants another go at yesterday’s bunny hop, they can head back to BMX. Explore the activities and skill levels.
A place at the supper table
Children who come on their own have someone to sit with at their first supper. A counselor helps them unpack, introduces them to their cabin mates and eats with them. By the next meal, they might have stood in the waterslide queue together or compared whose Beach Bread cooked best over the coals.
After supper, camp takes on a life of its own. On Neon Week, the cabin that’s been collecting glow sticks all week gets to wear them on stage. At New Year, the seniors have karaoke while the juniors play Grinch games. Then everyone comes together for the Whoville carnival and the countdown. Before home time, there’s a final campfire with the people who shared the week.
“Do you not ask me to go to Sugar Bay every single holiday?”
That’s Lunathi Mampofu teasing her daughter, Skye, when they filmed a visit to camp together. Lunathi remembers how hard the first two days apart felt. At pick-up, Skye was upset because she was going to miss her friends and her counselor, Jumba.
On this visit, Skye takes her mom straight to her shelf in Froggy Pond cabin to show her the clothes she’s folded herself. Lunathi says Skye now keeps better track of her things when they travel.
What your camp fee pays for
The surfboard and the person teaching your child to use it are both included. So are their en-suite wooden cabin, bedding, three meals a day and snacks, regular camp activities and equipment. You don’t have to buy a bike or book a separate lesson for your child to try BMX.
We’ve looked after children at Sugar Bay for over 25 years. Counselors are screened, trained in First Aid and CPR, and stay overnight in the cabins. Camp Mom helps children who feel homesick. Lifeguards supervise beach sessions, and a nurse runs our Health Centre with a doctor on call.
You can get daily camp updates on WhatsApp and email your child a letter to be delivered at mealtime. Read the first-time parent guide.
Transport, tuckshop spending and optional excursions cost extra. The Sandton coach is R2 500 return, with a meal each way, subject to bookings. King Shaka airport transfers are R350 each way. Full fees and travel options.
Choose their summer week
Each theme runs alongside the regular camp programme. Show your child the four weeks below and see which one they’d pick. Prices are per child. A R1 000 deposit secures an available place.
F1 Week
4–9 December 2026 · 5 nights
R7 999 early bird
Build a race car from a frame and a box. Every cabin designs its own entry for the Main Hall circuit, with jobs for the artists as well as the racing fans.
Neon Week
16–23 December 2026 · 7 nights
R12 999 · Limited space
Earn glow sticks for the cabin’s costumes, make UV art and put on a blacklight show. There’s room for the child who wants the mic and the one who’d rather design the outfits.
Grinch Week
27 Dec 2026 – 3 Jan 2027 · 7 nights
R12 999 · Very limited space
See in 2027 with cabin mates at the Whoville carnival. There’s green mint ice cream, a fire show and a countdown to midnight.
Afro Beats Week
3–10 January 2027 · 7 nights
R11 999 early bird
Try talking drums, gumboot dancing or beadwork. At Saturday’s showcase, campers can perform with friends, exhibit something they’ve made or cheer from the audience.
Roblox Week, 9–16 December, is fully booked. If your child had their heart set on Roblox, ask us about another week.
Coming back for another summer?
Past holiday campers qualify for R1 000 off one seven-night week or R3 000 off two consecutive seven-night weeks. The five-night F1 camp is excluded. Grinch and Afro Beats also run as a 14-night stay from 27 December to 10 January at R21 998 early bird, subject to Grinch availability. Ask which rate applies to your child.
Optional outings are R650 for the Neon pantomime or Grinch Bounce trip, and R150 for the Afro Beats Camp Out. Campers who stay at Sugar Bay carry on with the programme.
Still choosing? WhatsApp our bookings team or call 032 485 3778. Bookings close one week before camp, or earlier if a week fills.