In the 1960s and 70s Rustenburg was probably one of the premium family holiday destinations for people living in Gauteng. Now, Kedar Country Hotel, Conference Centre and Spa offers a whole new generation of holiday makers the opportunity to experience "Rustenburg hospitality".
Set on the historic Paul Kruger farm Boekenhoutfontein, this property offers guests a choice of 62 rooms as well as eight fully-equipped conference rooms.Be that as it may, my wife and I were there to try the food and the spa treatments - not to host a conference or sleep in a different room every night.
Aside from the accommodation, the property is also home to a variety of bars and restaurants.
We had most of our meals in the Armoury Restaurant, which has a variety of portraits and weaponry from the Anglo-Boer War period. We found some of these articles great conversation pieces while we ate our dinner. Meals were served buffet style and the spread was more than enough to satisfy even the most discerning palate.
I tried the Metswedi bar for lunch, but I found that because of the loud music and sport on TV, it was easier to take lunch back to our suite.
We also discovered a new boma that has been built on the property, which we figured would be great for my next birthday bash.
Kedar offers a variety of different accommodation types and we were lucky as our suite backed onto the game reserve.
From the balcony over our gazebo we were able to enjoy viewing a wide variety of plains game, including eland, blesbok, impala, bushbuck, nyala, kudu, zebra, blue wildebeest and giraffe.
I was told extensive environmental work had been carried out to remove alien vegetation and restore the peat wetlands to encourage the prolific birdlife that used to flourish here and attract birders from far and wide.
Shortly after our visit two pygmy hippopotami, Stoffel and Matilda, were introduced into Kedar. Home for this pair consists of five hectares that includes a natural dam, indigenous aquatic grass and a large expanse of land made up of bush, reeds and savannah grassland, ideal for night-time grazing.
When my wife and I go away I normally look for photographic opportunities and she looks for the spa. On this trip we were both in luck as there were plenty of the former and we both enjoyed the latter.
The spa is almost surrounded by a wetland area that abounds in a variety of brightly coloured birdlife.
There is also a small "breakfast bar" that dispenses tea, coffee and a variety of muffins.
A pool sparkled invitingly outside the entrance, but it was too cold to take advantage of.
We were able to enjoy our treatments together and although they were adequate, some of the décor in the room tended to distract from the relaxing nature of our massages.
One aspect of the property that did get our attention was the multitude of steel sculptures created by Adam Madebe, the most striking being a horse and carriage outside the main reception.
Aside from eating, relaxing or enjoying a spa treatment, there are a variety of tourist destinations only a few minutes away.
Kedar is 90 minutes from Joburg and 15 minutes from Sun City and the Pilanesberg Game Reserve.
As we have yet to meet Stoffel and Matilda, we believe a return visit is on the cards.
- For more information, call 011 950 6000, email [email protected], website www.kedar.co.za.