Phinda Mountain Lodge

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Highlights

• Phinda is the original and largest private game reserve in KwaZulu Natal
• Extremely child friendly with lots of activities and special touches for children
• Spectacular position perched on a ridge overlooking the reserve
• Brand new rooms and suites all with private plunge pools

Phinda Mountain Lodge is a sophisticated harmony of ethnic décor, superb cuisine, and personalised service. It lies in the southern part of Phinda Game Reserve, which means 'the return', is a 15,000ha private game reserve to the north of Hluhluwe and the St Lucia wetlands. Phinda offers a winning combination of soft adventure, thrilling game-viewing and inspired lodge design. Rich both in game and in stunning scenery, Phinda Game Reserve boasts the diversity of seven contrasting ecosystems, including sand forest, mountain bushveld and wetlands. This diversity of habitat naturally attracts a variety of game including lion, elephant, cheetah, leopard, rhino, hippo and an abundance of general game. Phinda is particularly known for good cheetah sightings, and its prolific bird life (with over 400 species recorded). Guests can enjoy game drives, nature walks, river cruises and canoeing on the Mzizene, and community visits. Given the reserve's proximity to the Indian Ocean, Phinda is able to offer optional extras such as coastal flights, beach excursions and snorkeling.

Phinda Mountain Lodge is a sophisticated harmony of ethnic décor, superb cuisine, and personalised service. As its name suggest, the lodge is perched on the Ubombo mountains with spectacular views over the coastal plains. This lodge has recently undergone an 'extreme makeover' - each of the 25 spacious split-level suites has a bedroom area on one level and a sitting area below as well as a brand new bathroom with an elegant contemporary freestanding bath. Outside there's a new deck complete with private plunge pool and outdoor shower. Two of these suites are idea for families being two suites joined together. Paved pathways lead down the mountainside from the main lodge to the chalets. The main lodge is set around a central courtyard. The intimate sitting areas are filled with sun and lead out to a shaded terrace and a spacious veranda area on three tiers which ensures privacy for guests as there are plenty of places to relax in solitude. All the terraces offer the spectacular views of the bushveld beyond. In the evenings, the sun sets on the horizon flooding the lodge with golden light. Other facilities include a great safari shop, an interpretative library, dramatic open air boma where delicious Pan-African cuisine is served around the open fire, a spacious swimming pool and a shaded observation area which is a great place to relax with a book and some binoculars during the heat of the day.

Children are very welcome at Phinda Mountain Lodge and children of 6 and over may join the game drives. On arrival at the camp all children are presented with a special eco-guide for planet-managers containing a quiz, a learning guide and tips for spoor and animal identification. Rangers will help the kids complete their eco-guides, help them collect pods, feathers, bugs and leaves and teach them to identify different animal species. When all the activities in the guide have been completed, the ranger will sign a certificate at the back stating that the child has graduated as a planet-manager.

Rangers take younger kids on special walks on which they are taught to identify droppings and spoor. There are also fishing and frogging safaris (safety and weather permitting) and bark-rubbing expeditions. Then there are visits to the garage to oversee land rover repairs and lessons in making waxed spoor prints. If they aren't exhausted after all this, the chef welcomes children's assistance in the kitchen while baking cookies for afternoon tea.

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