How does one accurately define the accommodation at nThambo Tree Camp?
If I was to use the Superman analogy; “Is it a bird? is it a plane? No, it’s Superman” then I would wonder out loud that this is not quite a tree house, nor is it the usual terrestrial type accommodation.
However, what is not in dispute is the fact that the accommodation is unique… Especially given the fact that the sister camp, Africa on Foot, https://travelandthings.co.za/2022/06/africa-on-foot-keeping-it-simple/, is less than 2km away and is a totally different experience.
Believe it or not, this is the interior of the accommodation. A stunning layout with everything that the discerning safari-goer needs or wants in a camp of this quality. And it is partly because of this attention to detail that the camp gets a lot of return international guests.
A comfortable bed with exquisite linen and the ubiquitous mosquito net was the centrepiece of the room.
Plenty of shelves and hanging space for those who, like my wife, want to unpack. There was also a comfortable chair and table for me to work at that faced out over the open plain in front of the deck.
Attention to detail is important and it was touches like this that certainly made my wife and I say well done for adding a touch of greenery.
Given the fact that the accommodation is on stilts, it would be difficult to offer an outdoor shower. That being said, this had good water pressure and sufficient hot water to freshen up at the end of the day or when returning from a game drive and before heading off to breakfast.
This was the view from our deck. For most of the day, except when I took this picture, there were various game species wandering to and from the waterhole. Warthog, impala, a jackal or two and in the evening, elephants made their appearance under cover of darkness.
For some reason, these glass ‘grapes’ fascinated me and on returning home and settling down to edit images, I realized that I had an inordinate amount of images from various angles. Hence including this one to make certain that other guests look out for them.
The elephants DO enjoy the water from the pool, even though there is a waterhole just a short distance away.
Even though the weather was just starting to turn when we visited, the Lowveld sun was warm during the day and guests, my wife included, took the opportunity to lounge on the loungers and enjoy the passing animal parade.
This is the way that seating should be at a camp. Pick a seat and enjoy the company of your fellow guests. But choose wisely, or you might end up seated next to international guests who cannot speak English. But does that really matter? Not at all.
Seating all the guests at the same table allows them to interact and to learn the various occupations or professions of your fellow guests.
I have discovered that aside from my wife, who is a medical doctor, there are always representatives of the medical profession in the group. In this case, it was an NHS doctor from Britain! But we have shared a table with dentists, an anaesthetist and I have even met a family that ran a funeral parlour…and that made for interesting chats.
This male frog has to move between this potplant and the top of a map on the wall behind the craft station as the woman in his life keeps him hopping between the two.
Often these frogs can be found in the guest accommodation as well and although harmless to humans they can scare a guest who is not expecting to find them in a bathroom or balanced quietly on the frame of a mirror, waiting for prey to scuttle past.
Looking west as the sun starts to vanish beyond the horizon. Sunsets in the Lowveld are truly spectacular.
When it is all just too much and as these large males proved, a nap as the sun set was exactly what was needed before heading off in search of a meal.
It turns out that these boys liked sleeping under the house of the owner of the camp and their vocalization in the early hours of the morning (02h00) was enough to cause our accommodation the vibrate. So much so that I was wondering if they were under our unit, which they were not.
The lounge/bar/reception area was the heart of the camp and with a plethora of books and magazines to choose from as well as an uninterrupted view out over the plains and the waterhole, it is an ideal spot for guests to relax and enjoy the opportunities that are offered as far as ‘sofa sightings’ are concerned.
Although there was a fire lit every night we were in camp, the guests, ourselves included, chose to sit in the lounge area before going through to supper.
But it is part of the ambience of being in the bush and it does add to the overall experience. And fire is not referred to as ‘bush tv’ for no reason. Watching the flames as they leap and dance is hypnotic and can be very conducive to sleep…especially after a busy day.
To find out what the camp offers as far as current specials are concerned, click on the logo above to be taken to their website.
To discover more about Sun Destinations properties, both here and in Southern Africa, click on the logo above.
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