I recently spent a night at Kwa Maritane in the Pilanesberg
National Park of the North West Province, South Africa.
The rooms are spacious and all have magnificent views. Pilanesberg is one of the largest volcanic complexes of its
kind in the world. It’s unusual rock
structures, and types make it a unique geological feature. The crater of a long
extinct volcano stands in the centre of the Pilanesberg National Park created
by volcanic eruptions over 1400 million years ago.
The lodge’s main
restaurant overlooks the waterhole - "The Rock" with its magnificent
granite formations.
View from the restaurant On arrival we were served refreshments on the deck and noticed
a small herd of elephants grazing on the adjacent hill. A zeal of Zebras
trotted up to the waterhole which is located 100 meters from the restaurant
deck. At breakfast the following morning we were joined by a heard of around 30
Wildebeest.
The buffet lunch and carvery dinner offer a wide variety of dishes
based on delicious, traditional South African cuisine.
We were treated to an unforgettable al fresco dinner
experience in the lodge's outdoor bush boma. Weather permitting, this is open
on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
The bush boma offers guests al fresco dining on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The area is Malaria free and home to the 'Big Five' (lion,
leopard, rhino, buffalo, elephant), making it a popular destination for both
local and international tourists.
Game drives
Our 3 hr game-drive included watching a pride of lions’
amble through the bush, plenty of elephants, giraffe, a huge array of bird life
(there are over 360 species of birds in the park) and hippo, to name a few.
Childrens activities at the Kwa Maritane Bush Lodge:
The lodge offers fun filled activities including game
drives, bush walks, bird watching and a Junior Ranger’s programme. This
uniquely designed children's program allows parents to enrol their kids in an
educational bush learning experience.
There is also a Children’s playground, rock climbing, outdoor chess, bush putt putt, table tennis,
a pool table, tennis and swimming pools.
One of the 2 pools at the lodge. Kwa Maritane Bush Lodge can be reached from Johannesburg
within a two hours drive (173 km). The
Pilanesberg Airport is 2 km away from the modern Kwa Maritane Bush Lodge, and
Sun City Resort is an 11 minutes’ drive from the lodge.