Merry Pebbles Resort — Hotel in Thaba Chweu Local Municipality

||This is a difficult review to write as we really enjoyed our stay here - the accommodation was clean and the restaurant was nice. ||However, there is a very high chance of a serious accident happening here.||If something were to happen, and we hadn't warned anyone, I’d never forgive myself. ||||The company advertises tubing on the river - its one of the reasons we went there with our children.||The children were jumping in with everyone else, going down the river and getting out when the river hit the concrete ford where the cars can drive accoss the river (this is where the tubes can’t go any further, so an obvious end point)||On the last go, my husband went with them. As he got to the ford, both the tube and my husband were sucked into a submerged tunnel that ran under the road.||The tube burst and my husband managed to catch the edge of the road before being pulled into the underwater tunnel by the current.||He managed to pull himself up once and get half a breath but it was not enough to shout for help before he was sucked under again. ||At this point he said there was no way he was able to pull himself up again as the current was too strong. He didn’t want to let go as he didn’t know how long the tunnel was and whether the tunnel exit would be blocked by a grate or branches.||Luckily one of our son's realised, jumped in and managed to pull his dad from under the water which allowed my husband to get a breath and then get out. ||As a pretty fit ex fireman, he's quite strong but If any of the children (or me to be honest) had been the ones sucked in, he said there is absolutely no way we would have had the strength to either hold on or to pull ourselves out. ||My husband had bleeding cuts over his back and arms when he managed to get out. ||||I went to the shop / reception to tell them what had happened. ||I was told we should have got out of the river opposite the shop - I asked how we would know this as it was not in the venue's literature, nor are there any signs. The man said he would have told us when we advised him that we were going tubing.||I asked how we would know to come and tell him we were going tubing and he replied that we would have been told at check in. I reminded him that he had checked us in and never said any of this!||He said it was not their responsibility as it was just outside their boundary and we should take it up with the local council / municipal department. At no point did he ask if we needed medical help or a first aid kit. ||||I feel this was not taken seriously at all. Surely there is a care of duty if your venue offers tubing and there are submerged tunnels with no barriers to stop anyone being sucked in. ||The water was not high and in areas, was only knee deep so didn’t look particularly dangerous - otherwise all the other young children on the river wouldn't have been allowed by their parents. ||We were not told to tell reception we were going tubing. There were no signs saying where to get in / get out. There was no literature stating the risks. We had no idea there were submerged tunnels without barriers. ||||The 'what-if's' don't bare thinking about and this was truly a terrifying experience.||I am just so thankful that nothing serious happened, that my husband was there and that it wasn’t one of the children. ||||I have made numerous attempts to contact the local council but so far,...

This is a difficult review to write as we really enjoyed our stay here - the accommodation was clean and the restaurant was nice. However, there is a very high chance of a serious accident happening here. If something were to happen, and we hadn't warned anyone, I’d never forgive myself.

The company advertises tubing on the river - its one of the reasons we went there with our children. The children were jumping in with everyone else, going down the river and getting out when the river hit the concrete ford where the cars can drive accoss the river (this is where the tubes can’t go any further, so an obvious end point) On the last go, my husband went with them. As he got to the ford, both the tube and my husband were sucked into a submerged tunnel that ran under the road. The tube burst and my husband managed to catch the edge of the road before being pulled into the underwater tunnel by the current. He managed to pull himself up once and get half a breath but it was not enough to shout for help before he was sucked under again. At this point he said there was no way he was able to pull himself up again as the current was too strong. He didn’t want to let go as he didn’t know how long the tunnel was and whether the tunnel exit would be blocked by a grate or branches. Luckily one of our son's realised, jumped in and managed to pull his dad from under the water which allowed my husband to get a breath and then get out. As a pretty fit ex fireman, he's quite strong but If any of the children (or me to be honest) had been the ones sucked in, he said there is absolutely no way we would have had the strength to either hold on or to pull ourselves out. My husband had bleeding cuts over his back and arms when he managed to get out.

I went to the shop / reception to tell them what had happened. I was told we should have got out of the river opposite the shop - I asked how we would know this as it was not in the venue's literature, nor are there any signs. The man said he would have told us when we advised him that we were going tubing. I asked how we would know to come and tell him we were going tubing and he replied that we would have been told at check in. I reminded him that he had checked us in and never said any of this! He said it was not their responsibility as it was just outside their boundary and we should take it up with the local council / municipal department. At no point did he ask if we needed medical help or a first aid kit.

I feel this was not taken seriously at all. Surely there is a care of duty if your venue offers tubing and there are submerged tunnels with no barriers to stop anyone being sucked in. The water was not high and in areas, was only knee deep so didn’t look particularly dangerous - otherwise all the other young children on the river wouldn't have been allowed by their parents. We were not told to tell reception we were going tubing. There were no signs saying where to get in / get out. There was no literature stating the risks. We had no idea there were submerged tunnels without barriers.

The 'what-if's' don't bare thinking about and this was truly a terrifying experience. I am just so thankful that nothing serious happened, that my husband was there and that it wasn’t one of the children.

I have made numerous attempts to contact the local council but so far,...

The resort is beautifull and the staff was friendly, the shop is adequately stocked, you will find mostly everything you need here, the only thing that was a bit expensive in the shop is the meat. The camping spots: The camping spots are great although there is not really a braaier so you need to bring your own, there is just a round cement pipe section and some of them is broken, i spoke to some of the campers to understand their concerns, and something that came up the most was the water points, it look like there is some places where 20 stands has to acess the same water point. The camping space and the camping grounds are well maintaned they look good and has green grass, the size of the stands is exceptional large on some numbers and this is great, there is some shade on some of the stands, the camping grounds toilets seems a bit out dated and like it was done in 1970, but not in a vintage way, although everything works and if you only need to use the bathroom and not worry about how it looks then its all good.

The cabana: We stayed in the cabana, it was beautifull and cosy, there is no aircon but a heater. I really hope that somewhere in the future they introduce aircons, the oil heater was a bit to small. The cleaning service was amazing, they were in there and out in 10min but even mopped the floor, cleaned the bed and had new towels in there everyday, really exceptional, the pots did not have matching lids and this was a bit frustrating at times. The fire pit was very low and felt like you were braaing on the ground, you will have to bring your own if you want to enjoy it, only untill they hopefully upgrade these.

All and all i really enjoyed the place i will definitely be visiting again and hope that some of the things mentioned will be looked at, as this is just advise and not criticism. There is so much potential😁. Thank you guys for a awesume stay and keep on improving👍🏻

FYI: they have the most beautiful mornings and the most mesmerizing...