Maroelani Private Nature Reserve — Attraction in Maruleng Local Municipality

We fell in love with the lodge and knew instantly that’s where we wanted to have our wedding. We paid our deposit to secure our wedding date & excitedly sent our wedding invitations to our guests. A few days later, we were shocked to receive a message from Francis advising she had double booked our wedding date and we had two options: Change the date OR Have the wedding on the same date though there will be other guests at the lodge which meant some of our guests can’t stay at the lodge & would need to stay elsewhere.

We had booked the fully inclusive package which meant we had the entire lodge exclusively. We understand mistakes are made though this is a massive error on their behalf. We were upset. We had arranged leave from work, our guests had booked local & international travel, our workplace closed off tonew bookings, we had to find a new photographer & we then had to send out new invitations explaining the date change. The impact of their mistake was huge.

It was highly offensive when we received a message from Francis stating the following “They paid before you guys and it’s not a flexible booking like South Africans”. Does this mean South Africans bookings take less priority compared to international bookings even though our deposit has been paid to secure the date? Their failure to realize they had received payment from international guests prior to our payment was not our fault.

None the less, we came to agreement to change the date. Our guests staying in the Bush villa had no hot water. We had the honeymoon suite which had no hot water on our last morning. At 6am, it was absolutely horrible having an outdoor shower in 9 degree weather. Yes we should have called Francis but it was 6am and we needed to get ready fast. There was a coffee maker however there were no coffee pods but only used ones from previous guests still in the machine. the price we paid to have our wedding at this lodge you would expect the little details like hot water and coffee could have been achieved.

The breakfast at R150 per person was not great. Scrambled eggs, bacon, store bought hash browns, cold toast & a few flapjacks didn’t cut it & our guests were not impressed as the amounts were very small.

The wedding ran smoothly though their speakers did not work. Now this would have been disastrous if it weren’t for my sister who happened to have her speaker in the back of her car. As the night progressed, their staff became relaxed & began drinking with our guests and family which is ok. What is not ok, is for their staff to hound our guests to buy them drinks.

We agreed with Francis to have a R1000 tab for soft drinks, beer & wine only. Spirits, non-house wines, cocktails etc. were not included in the tab as discussed with Francis. We increased the tab to R2000 & once this limit had been reached, guests would pay for their own drinks. We had also agreed to pay for 5 bottles of champagne for the guests & pay for the drinks consumed by my husband and I. (2 light beers and 1 x vodka soda)

We were shocked to see an additional R5522 for drinks on top of the R2000 tab on the final invoice. Francis explained that she had not advised her staff about the R2000 tab and to charge guests once the tab had finished. Because of her mistake, my husband and I were forced to pay for this & this was not in our budget. Again, a mistake made by Francis for not communicating with her own team meant we had to pay an additional R5522 for beverages. Did this R5522 also include the drinks their own staff drank? Also, not sure why we are had to pay for 9 instant coffees as this also appeared on our final invoice. Francis even suggested that my husband and I invoice our guests for the drinks. That was a ludicrous suggestion. This extra amount of R5522 impacted us financially. Whilst the lodge is beautiful, the organization needs work in terms of communication both internally & externally, maintenance, guest experience & customer resolution. We hope this doesn’t happen to...

The communication between myself and a lady named Francis was poor from the moment I began enquiring about this place before making any reservation. Initially, there is no landline, so we use cell phones to communicate. It's strange because sometimes when I tried to call, the cell phone was NEVER answered. At some point While discussing reservations and inquiries, she suddenly couldn't take my calls and informed me through WhatsApp that she had gone abroad. The communication between us was very poor, and I'm unsure if this was just how she communicated with me or if she treated all her guest in the same manner, but it was really terrible.

The mosquito net in our room was extremely filthy and requires soaking in hot water with jik, bicarbonate of soda, and vinegar. I believe it will return to its initial pristine white shade.

The water from the outdoor shower was cold.

The employees attending to us had dirty uniforms, which made me concerned about hygiene. The employees would first serve us food before cleaning our rooms, which I found somewhat worrisome.

The swimming pool was filthy.

The exterior hanging swing chairs were filthy.

The Outdoor Wicker Rattan Patio Sofa was covered in dirt. We did not get clean towels from the day we came till the day we left.

The breakfast did not provide good value for money, as the portions were small and dry, the bacon was not fresh, and we were served wild island juice instead of the expected 100% juice. When we requested 100% juice, we were told that the juice offered was 100%, which was not true as I would not have raised the issue if it truly was. I am familiar with the taste of pure juice.

The maroelani game drive was dreadful. We went on a game drive with one couple which were Indian. During the game drive, Gert Fourie, the tour guide, decided to initiate a game for everyone involved. He asked us to exit the car, but the Indian couple did not. My partner and I were the ones who got out to participate in the game. Gert Fourie picked up some animal dung and suggested we place it in our mouths on our tongue, then blow it out and see how far it will get. He demonstrated. I thought it was extremely unsanitary and repulsive. He laughed and didn't see any issue. I am not sure if this is his usual behavior towards all guests, or perhaps he did it because we are Black!

Finally, during a game drive, two black men were crossing the dry dam. Gert made a VERY racist joke or comment comparing them to lions, he was explaining something about lions and the said “just like those 2 lions passing there” the Indian couple found humour in it as well as him however myself and my partner did not. Kindly note that when he made that joke or comment he was referring to the two black men crossing the dry dam since there were no lions there infant this private nature reserve does NOT have lions. I find that as a racist and offensive joke or comment and we are black. I AM VERY ANGRY about this Gert Fourie guy,

To be completely honest, I was not impressed in any way and I would advise against visiting that place. Perhaps this private nature reserve was fantastic when it was still new however right...

We saved this place till last as all the reviews and photos made this place look truly amazing.

How wrong we were upon arrival, I can only explain this place as staying in faulty towers! The staff are very friendly but have no idea how to run a luxury hotel. Almost impossible to get any drink during the day as everyone hides away, unable to get any food apart from at meal times.

This hotel is not clean with dirty towels, sunbeds and bath robes.

Facility Issues No room key, had to get locks changed after complaining several times Safe doesn’t work and not bolted to wall, asked several times and this was never resolved Broken toilet door Broken toilet seat cover Broken hand rail on decking hammock outside the lodge, exposed screws sticking out of the wood. Broken outside path lights Hot water intermittent, unable to run a bath Dirty towels and bath robes No Wi-Fi in lodge Swimming pool green, full of water larvae, broken tiles, and pumps turned off until the last day. Tiles falling off in bathroom Dead files on the wall Human boogies on the toilet wall all of the stay Broken dining chair outside arm rest was snapped Coffee machine stopped working Bathroom window doesn’t close fully, lots of fly’s coming in. Also bad smell as there is no cap on the toilet down pipe Overflowing septic tank Broken table in bedroom Staff Issues No drinks before dinner was served had to ask for a drink when the starters came Unable to find anyone for a drink midday Knife and forks missing Miss match knife and fork Bringing out light during dinner and unable to see No window that can in the lodge for ventilation during the night/fly screen Late for safari drive 30 mins, Michael had to make hot water poor organisation No banana or caramel source for waffles

We complained about most of the issues above and we always got the same answer, sorry this happens because of the environment or we are just sorry its broken.

The hotel needs a lot of attention to bring it back up to its...