The Lowveld was previously known as the Eastern Transvaal Lowveld. Since the end of Apartheid in 1994 the province's name has been changed to Mpumalanga and the area in question is simply called The Lowveld. The name is derived from the Afrikaans word Laeveld (lae = low; veld = field).

South Africa's geography mainly consists of a large interior plato, a often mountainous escarpment and a low lying coastal plane that runs all the way up the eastern and western flanks of the country. Although the Mpumalanga border does not stretch to the ocean, the Lowveld section of the province is part of the coastal plane and is more or less 200m above sea-level. This is in contrast to nearby Belfast at 2200m, which is located on the Mpumalanga Highveld.

The Lowveld is home to very fertile fruit growing farms, the southern half of the Kruger National Park (and its private game reserve extensions) and large rural communal land areas such as Bushbuck Ridge. Tourism wise the Lowveld's biggest draw card is most definitely its wildlife. The Kruger Park's main rest camp and headquarters, Skukuza, lies within the Mpumalanga section of the Park.

The Sabi Sand Reserve consists a collection of independent private game reserves, which has an open border with Kruger (i.e. no fence line) thus forming part of one of the biggest wildlife areas in the world. The accommodation, food, and - most importantly - wildlife experience in these private reserves represents some of the best on offer in Africa and the world. Mala Mala, Sabi Sabi and Londolozi are some of the well known private game reserves within the Sabi Sand Reserve. While the experience in these private reserves mostly comes with a hefty price tag attached, visitors with a tight budget can sample the same wildlife, in a less luxurious and exclusive environment, in the Kruger Park.