Thonga Beach Lodge — Hotel in uMhlabuyalingana Local Municipality

Highlight of our S Africa Trip

We were recently back in S Africa for 6 weeks and had a wonderful time enjoying all that the country has to offer. Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula, the winelands, Hermanus and a game reserve in Zululand. All world class destinations with world class service. But the highlight was our visit to Thonga Beach Lodge. Quite a long drive but worth it for that level of seclusion and remoteness, the beauty of the location striking as one crests the last sand dune and descends to this stylish piece of paradise. The view of the private bay, breathtaking. The accommodation was designer clever, merging with the natural dune vegetation, tasteful and upscale without being over the top and incorporating views of the ocean from every angle, not to mention our own private plunge pool. My wife loved this area to do her regular yoga and meditation practice, immersed in nature with fantastic views. The food was superb and nothing was too much trouble for the chef and kitchen staff who were happy to cater for our dietary needs, in our case being vegan which can often be a nightmare for catering staff. My wife also enjoyed a wonderful and professional massage by local masseuse, Gugu. As a sailor I was keen to get out onto the water and was lucky enough to be treated to a boat ride, launching from the beach under the skillful command of skipper Mark, assisted by diving instructor, Danie. I had no expectations diving with the dolphins and snorkeling over one of the reefs, but what a treat. The first encounter was with 3 bottle nose dolphins who literally played with us, as interested in us as we were with them, coming right up close but just out of reach. The second was with a massive pod of spinner dolphins who were not as engaging but it was a privilege to see so many of them. And then to cap that I was blown away by the amount of fish life (including turtles) on the reefs. Much to my surprise, as plentiful as the Maldives. That 1 ½ hours on the boat was literally an experience of a lifetime. There are many other activities offered by the resort like kayaking in Lake Sibaya across the sand dune, bike rides on the beach on fat tired mountain bikes and surfing. Unfortunately the wind didn’t blow hard enough to kite surf but it is the perfect location for it. Next time! And then, before we knew it, we had to leave, thoroughly relaxed and uplifted for the experience. Our only regret was not being able to stay longer. Congrats to the owners for their masterful vision and to General Manager Matt for managing the ambience. I could not recommend the place...

First off, the location is absolutely beautiful and pristine. Even the drive to the lodge through the coastal forest was just wonderful. Clean, unspoiled beach and forest as far as the eye could see!

The rooms were so tastefully done- we had everything we needed, including privacy (rondawel 7), comfy beds and a beautiful forest view. And they blended in perfectly in the coastal forest. You can barely notice the chalets when looking at the whole lodge from the beach. You don't ever worry about the safety of your possessions thanks to the wonderful culture the local community has. There is a digital safe in the rooms in case but we didn't really use it after day 1.

The food here is to die for. You will not be disappointed, even if you're a fussy eater. Nothing was ever too much trouble when we needed an ingredient omitted or added. Just great service all round.

There was always something to do even on rainy days thanks to the multiple Scrabble sets in the communal lounge area, good enough internet for some casual browsing and a superb dive centre. There is an amazing shallow reef right on the beach (3 minutes walk)! All the reefs we went to were pristine with beautiful coral formations, and the staff were fun, yet professional and knowledgeable. The visibility is pretty much always great since there are no major rivers discharging dirty water into the sea nearby. Pity we didn't see many large marine game but still an experience to remember. Lake Sibaya during sunset was also breathtakingly beautiful and we even saw hippos in the distance. The guided turtle walks were pretty good even though we didn't see any turtles (this was end of December). We saw loggerhead turtles during the dive though.

Saying goodbye was the hardest part. But thank you for the farewell padkos packages for the journey back home- that was a thoughtful touch.

I'd say the only thing that was missing was beach umbrellas available to use/hire. And yes it's expensive (especially for us locals) but I'm coming again once I recover financially.

Lastly, a big shoutout to all the staff- you were...

We spent 8 nights here. Really great experience overall which exceeded our expectations in some ways. In terms of activities, there’s quite a bit to do if you’re into to the water activities. I went scuba diving and my boyfriend was able to fish from the shoreline (it’s a protected marine area so they don’t offer charters). Other than that they offer snorkeling in their rock pools with a guide, trips to Sibaya lake, turtle walks, and beach biking to name a few. On rainy days (there were 2 whilst we were there) you’re somewhat limited if you’re wanting to get out and do something, but they do have a library with games and books as well as spa which I used and was very happy with my treatment. They also give you a WiFi voucher which runs out after a couple gig’s. A lot of the time the WiFi is down and the signal doesn’t reach the rooms; not necessarily a problem for us as we didn’t want to be on our phones all the time but obviously a must for when you need to let family know that you’ve arrived in one piece. Regarding the diving, they have some beautiful reefs. My favorite was Gogo’s, where we saw loads of big, friendly potato bass and many smaller interesting creatures like nudibranchs. We also had the luck of visiting at the tail end of the turtle hatching season (mid-March) and so on both of the evening turtle walks we had the pleasure of seeing the tiny turtle hatchlings making their way into the ocean in the moonlight. We did experience some issues with 1 or 2 of the guides which the GM and ops manager handled very well (treating our feedback very seriously), which is all you can ask for. Otherwise the premises is absolutely stunning and the beach is one of the most pristine I’ve ever seen internationally - the community do a fantastic job of keeping it that way I believe. Staff were generally friendly, and food was great. Good to know that the transfer can take very long (more or less 1.5 hrs). We would return if we were...