10 Jun Welgevonden Lodge Accommodation
Luxury Lodge Accommodation in Welgevonden, by Fifty Seven Waterberg
Welgevonden Game Reserve is located in the Waterberg, a region of South Africa’s Limpopo Province that is roughly a three-hour easy drive from Gauteng’s major cities, Johannesburg and Pretoria. It is a private reserve and conservation area, somewhat less widely known than this country’s longest established, legendary formal game reserve, the Kruger National Park, which also partially occupies a small section of Limpopo, but is considerably further from the previously mentioned cities.
35 000 Hectares of Perfect Game Habitat
Nonetheless, it is by no means small. It spans some 35 000 hectares of pristine Waterberg bushveld, offering a varied terrain that consists of perfect habitats for a great variety of mammal, bird, and reptile species, as well as the incredibly interesting little creatures that also populate the area.
Within the great expanse and boundaries of the Kruger National Park, a number of smaller, private reserves with their own private lodge accommodation have been established during the relatively recent time period. These developments were put in place to cater for increasing numbers of tourists and visitors who require better than average or luxury accommodation.
Visionary Transformation
The territory that exists today was a collection of large, privately owned farms before the 1980s. One of the farmers in the area, a Mr Pienkes du Plessis, recognised the possibility of transforming this section of the Waterberg back to its former natural glory. Large parts of the terrain had been denuded of important, indigenous plant species, as well as much of its wildlife.
As was the custom of the time and place, each farmer’s land was fenced too, which prevented the natural movement of game animals, creating unnatural conditions that hampered, interrupted, and inhibited the existence, gene diversity, and natural balance of healthy populations of various species.
A plan was needed, and Pienkes had just such a plan and vision for the future of what was to become Welgevonden Game Reserve, named after his own Waterberg farm, Welgevonden, a Dutch word meaning “well found”.
In conjunction with fellow farmers, Pienkes du Plessis set about removing boundary fences, foreign plant species, and all signs of human habitation, converting the farms into one wildlife and conservation reserve and allowing all fauna and flora to return to indigenous conditions, before the ingress of man. Welgevonden Private Game Reserve was the result, a pristine place where existing game has never been hunted, and the perfect location for limited, exclusive game lodge lodging.
Exclusive Accommodation
Fifty Seven Waterberg is a fine, five-star example of Welgevonden’s select accommodation, being the 57th portion of the game reserve’s territory to be accorded this privilege. It offers discerning game lodge guests world-class lodging and amenities that typify African elegance in conjunction with five-star standards.
Five luxuriously appointed, exceptionally spacious guest suites – thatched chalets – overlook the untamed bushveld, home of free roaming African wildlife, including the renowned Big 5, as they pass Fifty Seven on their way to and from a waterhole, located within view of the lodge. Each suite accommodates two persons. A total of ten accommodated guests is the complete complement of visitors at Fifty Seven Waterberg
We offer a wildlife experience like no other. We offer exclusivity and personal service excellence for guests of the lodge, as well as five-star lodge accommodation.