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My parents agree with you on this ….they have just completed a “dream trip” to Kruger where they stayed in the Stanley in Satara, Nshawu in Olifants and Rentmeester in Shingwedzi …according to them the Rentmeester guesthouse outdid the others by far….apart from the location and the great sighting from your doorstep, the interior of the house is great…even have king-size beds. The only thing that bugged them is that there is no fencing around the house (as with the other guest houses) and they had a couple of people who wandered in to walk and sit along the fence.

Based on their assessment I have now also altered a reservation we have for Jan 2010 (special/sad trip…I’m turning 40 and decided that a luxury tour in Kruger will be more relaxing, and cheaper, than the overseas trip that my SO planned )….I have cancelled the reservation we had for the Stanley and now booked the Rentmeester. I have also lessened the time we would have stayed at Nshawu because it appears this house is no longer maintained ….in February I lodged a official complained about this and the response was that they will give attention to all the issues, including the roof that is falling apart…with my parent’s visit now, they found everything to be the same and actually worse. It is really sad that this great asset of Kruger is going down the drain due to poor management.

Muhammad, thank you for the photos of Keartland …apart from your photos there is not much else about this house on the SANParks site…not even their official accommodation page have photos of this house. I have also booked a few nights here and hope we will not be disappointed…although, with that location, I think we will love it.

Wow, great pics in this "once was lost, now is found" thread! I was wondering recently if the guest houses were worth the extra costs, and it looks like they are if you plan on spending some time in the camps. Thanks all!

Well very disappointing was excited to get some info on Wells Guesthouse in Satara as we will be there December - only one very negative comment!!!! Does anyone have anymore info on Wells and is it on the perimeter??

I agree Jumbo the Nshawu House is sadly neglected and given that this was the State President's house it is a grave pity that more effort is not being made to stop is falling into a state of total disrepair! I too wrote letters after staying there but to no avail it would appear!

In my humble opinion the best guest houses in Kruger are the Stanley and the Rudy Frankel simply because they are situated directly behind a floodlit waterhole. Both are also fully fenced and provided you remember to close the gates to folk wandering in they ae very private. I have many pleasurable memories of the Satara waterhole where we have sat on the bench at the fence in our own private garden with lion, leopard, african wild cat, hyaena and civet at the waterhole not to mention the buffalo, elephant and all the other plains game. Ann Stanley called Kruger Park "Heaven on Earth" and at one time all her writings under this very apt name were available on the bureau in the lounge for visitors to read!

The guesthouses also have wonderful visitor's books and it is awesome to spend a quiet hour or two during the day with these reading of the wonderful sightings folk have had together with the little anecdotes, drawings and poems - one specific one comes to mind fromt the guestbook of the Rudy Frankel cottage at Satara -

Is life tranquil asks the civet?
All depends on how you live it.
And to this rhetoric question,
I must pose you a suggestion.
Though the question is absorbing,
So the answer is rewarding.
To be tranquil is not easy -
Life's not always bright and breezy!
Try to live it like the civet
Try to LOVE it and to LIVE it!!!!!

What a lovely little poem by Ann Stanley, Penny.
and I remember well the couple of nights we had at this incredible guest house.
Such pity about Nshawu tho.

…apart from your photos there is not much else about this house on the SANParks site…not even their official accommodation page have photos of this house.

Keartland has got a new look, face-lift and really awesome, they do have photos on the accomodation site.

Wells guest houst must be the worst one in kruger, old, small and no view.
Absa one in skukuza very nice, spacious and great view with their own to local bush babies staying above the lounge, tv area ! Frankle house has got a face lift and really one of the nicest in the kruger.

Hi,
I'm new to the forum. We'll be visiting Kruger for the first time next August for 9 nights (Skukuza-Waterkant 1 Guesthouse, Satara & Lower Sabie). We've made reservations for the Wells Guesthouse in Satara for 3 nights. After reading the negative comments I'm getting worried. Is the guesthouse really that bad? Should we consider changing our reservations to a BD2N bungalow? Thanks for your help!

Hi Helene

Welcome, not that I have been a member long !!
Waterkant is great and has been renovated in 2008, great view.
Wells is really not worth for what you are paying, if you think you pay the same for Frankle houses which got a drinking hole and the house is in way different class. The new bungalows at Satara are really nice, three or two bed, or even the 2 room guesthouses are a better bet than wells. depends how many you are ?
Second week of August ?

Thanks wbevents! We will be with 6 persons and we'll be in Kruger the last two weeks of August.

I have booked Nshawu for the 3 May 2010 for a very special trip, could anyone tell me if it is still shabby or are they updating? Anyone been there recently?

Struben ?

It indeed looks like a lovely place to stay ….good to see that they have now updated the website with photos, a place like that needs to be “flaunted “



Mods, I would also truly appreciate it if you can try and get some sort of update from the Olifants management on the condition of Nshawu. We are also staying there in January and would like to know what to expect.

Hello Jumbo

I too am visiting the Nshawu next month together with some overseas guests. Having read all the negative comments on this beautiful structure, I phoned the camp manager directly this past weekend. He could tell me the following :

The thatching remains in a state of disrepair as they are still waiting on Skukuza's maintenance team to repair same. The trees near the house have been cut back to avoid baboons and monkeys from climbing onto the thatch and destroying it even further. However, the roof does not leak (emphasised) and the rest of the house including fittings and furnishings are in tip-top condition - so I am assured.

I do remember a letter on this forum from Olifants camp (sometime in March) saying that the roof was being attended to post haste but I guess that just never happened. Am I surprised - No!

I will update on my return end October. However, I guess if something else becomes available by way of guest house over the same period (end October) I may just ditch Nshawu.

Sheebs

Hi Sheebs

I will truly appreciate some feedback…if the house is still in the poor condition we saw it in February, and as my parents saw it in May, I’m also going to change our reservation. For the price one pay per night to stay in that house, it is not unreasonable to expect it to be well maintained.

My parents saw that they have cut down the trees….sadly they just dumped the rubble down the embankment where it pilled up and is an unsightly sight…my dad was also concerned about the fire hazard it will create

As for the general housekeeping of the house…it appears that there are always issues. When we were there in February the weeds grew through the paving on the veranda and it honestly looked like a lawn…the outside furniture was in desperate need of some varnish/oil….the gas bottles of the braai was empty…light bulbs on the veranda were out. We have had the privilege to stay in Nshawu a couple times, and this was the worst condition we have ever seen the house in….it was evident that the current management does not same commitment to excellence than his/her predecessors.
In May, when my parents stayed there, the kitchen was completely infested with cockroaches. Now I have to say, my parents are not squeamish people and just a few cockroaches will not constitute an infestation to them….my mom sprayed that kitchen twice a day and the cockroaches just kept on coming. According to the housekeeping, she has brought this problem under the attention of the management on several occasions…but nothing gets done…and this seems to be the management’s attitude to all the issues related to this house.

I’m going to repost a official complaint on this forum….sadly seems my previous complaint, with the official response from the Olifants management, disappeared to the forum graveyard (understand that they cannot keep them all )…but it would have been good to refer the management back to the promises they made in that response.