Kwandwe Ecca Lodge

Highlights

Morning Game Drives
Afternoon Tea
Evening Game Drives
Viewing the "Big Five"
Wildlife photography
Sundowners
Bush Walks

Information

Lodge type; Safari Lodge
Location; Kwandwe Reserve
Lodge size; 6 Suites
Recommended stay; 2-5 nights

Introduction

Set in thick vegetation overlooking a dense valley, Kwandwe Ecca Lodge offers a breathtaking view onto an escarpment of steep shale cliffs. Expansive wooden viewing decks provide the ideal setting to soak up the bushveld atmosphere with a leisurely lunch or a sundowner drink.

The Lodge's pagoda-style corrugated iron roofs and walls of wood panelling blend seamlessly into the magnificent landscape.

Reserve Information

Kwandwe Private Game Reserve is a renowned conservation and community success story.

Located in South Africa’s scenic Eastern Cape province, the 22,000 hectares/ 54 000 acres of pristine wilderness is home to the famous Big Five as well as a diverse number of smaller and more unusual species.

Game-rich country with Big Five (black & white rhino, elephant, lion, buffalo and leopard) as well as a remarkable variety of predators and general game, including cheetah, kudu, springbok, eland, red hartebeest, giraffe, black wildebeest and gemsbok A paradise for birdwatchers, the Fish Eagle and endangered Blue Crane are among a wide variety of birds found on the Reserve Excellent nocturnal viewing – aardwolf, aardvark and porcupine are regularly seen.

Rooms and Suites

Minimalist chic is the order of the day in modern, spacious bedrooms that share wraparound wooden decks with the suite's private sitting rooms. Retro light fittings and polished concrete floors combine with shades of olive and burnt orange for a warm yet modern look.

The ultra-modern bathroom, with its mosaic mirrors and glassed shower, refreshes and delights. An outdoor shower with a shiny tin tub tips a broad wink at safari tradition.

Cuisine and Wine

Delicious fresh farm cuisine is prepared in the modern, open-plan kitchen. An interactive kitchen tempts and tantalises with colours and aromas, while the deep chairs in the open dining areas invite you to linger over flavours and textures.

Facilities

Funky touches in décor and fittings surprise and delight at every step, while life-sized animal photographs re-tinted in psychedelic colours add a bit of fun and fantasy.

At Kwandwe Ecca Lodge Plunge pools with solar heating create a dash of colour on each suite's wooden decks.

Activities

Twice daily game drives, nature walks accompanied by an armed ranger, big game walking safaris (tracking white rhino, black rhino, elephant and buffalo on foot, accompanied by an armed specialist ranger and tracker team) are all included in your stay.

Twice daily game drives
Big Game Walking Safari
Interpretive Bush Walks
Fishing

Child Friendly

Kwandwe Ecca Lodge is suitable for families travelling with children with child-friendly activities and menus all on offer.

A play centre for children keeps little hands busy for hours and a shared lodge pool provides the perfect place for a communal splash.

Spa and Wellness

A variety of wellness treatments is available to be enjoyed in the privacy of your suite.

Addo Elephant Back Safari

I have been travelling in Africa for over three decades. In that time, I have been on countless safaris; by Land Rover, on foot, by canoe and horseback, up and down mountains and valleys.

The sense of wonder and appreciation of natural beauty has never left me.

There are, of course, individual animals which I prefer above all others. Some are large, very large and some small but all, for some reason or other, have endeared themselves towards me. I will start with the very large.
Addo Elephant Back Safari
Samara Game Reserve Review

About three hours' drive northwest of Addo National Park (see Tuesday's blog) lies a different country.

If Addo enjoys a lush and verdant environment, Samara Game Reserve (close to Camdeboo National Park) is the opposite. Its semi-desert environment is more akin to Namibia.

Yet here we are in the middle of the Great Karoo near the historic farming town of Graaff Reinet.
Samara Game Reserve Review
Kwandwe Game Reserve Review

My husband and I were fortunate enough to visit the Kwandwe Private Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. It had been many years since I had been on safari in the Eastern Cape and I was eager to see how the experience had changed.

We flew from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth where we picked up our rental car and drove the 2 hours to Kwandwe Private Game Reserve. From the moment we arrived at the reception, we experienced the service that this Relais and Chateaux property is famous for.

We were met with a welcome drink, a cold towel and fresh homemade cookies accompanied by our check-in.
Kwandwe Game Reserve Review
Death of a Cheetah

When you live in Africa, love the smell of nature and its strong call, and perhaps even more importantly, understand the natural cycles; you see the death of wildlife as part of the natural order.

The strong conquer the weak, and the old give space to the young.

When you look at a magnificent animal and predator die in an area which is desperately (and successfully) trying to rehabilitate natural corridors of flora and fauna over a previously devastated land, no one would think less of you for shedding a tear.
Death of a Cheetah