Recommend February 2012 - (Page 22)

savoring the ZULU KINGDOM continued from page 20 It’s easy to see why Thanda is becoming a popular choice with Goway clients—its one-stop luxury-and-wildlife combo leaves little to the imagination. With Truman and Winneth serving as our guide and tracker, once we got on our open-topped Land Rovers it wasn’t long before we were running into regal elephants sauntering about, giraffe peeking out above the treetops and cheetah completely unimpressed with the visitors whose jaws were dropping. Early-morning and late-afternoonto-evening game drives also revealed buffalo and wildebeest, funnylooking warthogs and a pride of lions lounging about, with cubs playing and getting into trouble as their mom looked on. You can drive for days on end around this expansive area and not come close to discovering all of its inhabitants, but we were lucky enough to also spot prized ﬁnds such as white and black rhino, a Mozambique spitting cobra—admired from a distance, of course—and a furtive leopard, eyes shining in the night. Mid-drive, there is a morning coffee- or cocktail hour-stop, with hot chocolate, beer and other libations warming up guests before the discovery continues. The main building at Thanda, where meals take place, is not without its share of vervet monkeys and starlings hanging around—Thanda is a birdwatcher’s haven as well, with hundreds of species ﬂuttering about. The main building is where fruit smoothies and a generous spread greet guests after morning drives, where afternoon tea and dinner under the stars take place and where a cozy library provides space for a quiet read. Outside of the daily show put on by nature, however, the standouts at Thanda are the bush villas—huge spaces with a ﬁreplace warming up the bedroom and lounge area, bedroom-size bathrooms with both indoor and outdoor shower and an oval-shaped tub that looks out to the reserve, plus sliding doors framing the world outside. Each villa comes with an expansive deck from which to admire surrounding wildlife, complete with a circular outdoor bed and inﬁnity pool; depending on which villa you get, you might wake up to spot an elephant looking in as it showers itself with the water from your pool. Thanda also has a knockout 5-bedroom villa—fenced in to keep animals at bay—with a large pool that is ideal for families wanting their own huge home away from home, plus a newly refurbished deluxe tented camp opening this month that provides an intimate bush experience with added comforts such as beds and bathrooms. After a game drive or guided walk, head to Thanda’s spa for a heavenly massage or body treatment with Africology products. A 2-night stay at Thanda through Goway, fully inclusive of all meals, game drives and transfer from King Shaka International Airport in Durban, starts at $1,127 pp dbl. Fairmont offers an array of accommodations here, all the way to a 4-bedroom villa, although the beauty of the property calls for long hours by one of the pools or brisk walks and birdwatching. An array of dining options range from seafood braai (prepared on the grill) and live entertainment on Friday nights at Ayoba to premium grain-fed beef at OSA. Then there’s Fairmont’s renowned Willow Stream Spa, which in this location expands to include indigenous alternatives such as an African Potato Anti-Aging Treatment and a tailor-made African Monarch treatment that includes a full-body scrub, mineral bath, massage and masks for the body, face and hair. A stay at Fairmont Zimbali with Goway starts at $174 pp per night with breakfast, with a “pay for three nights and stay for four” special from May through August. Clients can also pay for six nights and stay for seven nights through the end of April and from September through the end of October. South African Airways is running a JFK-to-Durban roundtrip special that starts at $1,089 through March 31. It has also introduced operations from Johannesburg to Kigali, Rwanda and onwards to Bujumbura, Burundi. away with goway Tailoring getaways to clients’ tastes and expectations is nothing new to Goway, although clients may be surprised by the breadth of options outside of the company’s pre-packaged choices. The region of KwaZulu-Natal, says Smith, is wonderful for a self-drive option in which clients can incorporate ﬁrst-class or deluxe stays and rent a car through Goway. “What we’re also ﬁnding is that a lot of clients are looking to combine different game areas in one trip, so they may perhaps choose the Sabi Sands and then combine it with KwaZulu-Natal, or perhaps even something in the Kalahari or the Eastern Cape,” she explains, adding that clients are ﬁnding out that they have options beyond the beautiful Mpumalanga area and the always-popular Kruger National Park for big ﬁve viewing. “South Africa is such a popular destination,” declares Smith. “We’ve seen an almost 20 percent growth in the last year, which is fantastic.” These days, she says, “It’s not so much the cost, it’s about the value.” A prime example: Goway’s A World in One Country small-group tour, which visits Joburg, Mpulanga, Kruger National Park, Durban, the Garden Route, Cape Town, the Cape Peninsula and more—even Swaziland—in 14 days. This option starts at $3,503 pp, inclusive of accommodations and most meals. n seaside deluxe Leaving the all-natural pleasures of the bush behind, the Fairmont Zimbali Resort awaits outside of Durban in a seaside enclave ﬂush with green. “After a safari,” explains Smith, “Zimbali is a wonderful way to ﬁnish your stay at a fantastic beach resort.” It’s not just humans that admire its location, however; a vervet monkey deep in thought was perched on the wall of our garden suite’s terrace, contemplating the state of the world as he looked out to the Indian Ocean. He and his brothers, along with the bushbuck, blue duikers and others we spotted, know the value of good real estate, but it’s us who get to enjoy the clean lines and comforts of the suite, which comes with a kitchen and huge living room, with beautiful African accents throughout. Archived related articles (available on recommend.com): South Africa Always Steals the Limelight (November 2011) contact information Fairmont Zimbali Resort: (800) 257-7544; fairmont.com/zimbaliresort Goway Travel: (800) 557-2841; goway.com/africaexperts.com KwaZulu-Natal Tourist Authority: zulu.org.za South African Airways: (800) 722-9675; ﬂysaa.com South African Tourism: (800) 593-1318; soutafrica.net Thanda Private Game Reserve: thanda.com 22 february 2012 recommend.com http://www.recommend.com http://www.fairmont.com/zimbaliresort http://www.goway.com http://www.afterexperts.com http://zulu.org.za http://www.ysaa.com http://www.southafrica.net http://www.thanda.com http://www.recommend.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend February 2012

Editor's Notes/Agent Speak
Hotel Desk: The Lodge at Woodloch
Tour Talk: Swain Tours
Celebrity Silhouette
Savoring the Zulu Kingdom
The Falkland Islands-Nature's Last Stand
Asia
One Bal Harbour, Florida
Las Vegas Spa Retreats
Beaver Creek Lodge, Colorado
Bliss Springs Eternal at Esperanza
The Ritz-Carlton, Cancun
Time to "Czech" Out Moravia
Caribbean Uber-Luxe

Recommend February 2012