Visitors to the World Cup are in for an extraordinary experience, not only because they'll be witnessing this spectacular tournament for the first time on African soil, but because they'll be staying in places that are unique to South Africa.

Thousands of fans are making the most of their World Cup experience and, instead of booking into hotels, are seeking safari-style accommodation in the wild outdoors, or in establishments offering an authentic South African service. The booking are being made either through Match (the official Fifa accommodation provider) or via travel agents.

Accommodation offerings in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site, west of Johannesburg, are filling up fast, for instance, with Maropeng Hotel already booked out and Kloofzicht Lodge, at the foothills of the Zwartkops mountains, reserved for the Australian team.

Lodges in Magaliesburg and Hartbeespoort are just as popular. The Mount Grace hotel is booked out for the period by a group from Continental Tyres, according to the reservations manager, and Hartbeespoort Dam Lodge is full over the duration of matches at the Royal Bafokeng stadium.

About 1 000 Dutch fans will be setting up camp for a week at Tshwane's Fountains Resort, an expansive municipal nature reserve near the Voortrekker Monument, while groups from America, the UK, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Asia are filling up the game parks or nature reserves close to the host cities.

"We have already reached our Match prescribed quota of 50 percent occupancy," says Tshepiso Letsela, reservations manager of Borakalalo, a game park close to Brits.

The five-star Didimalo game lodge, in Dinokeng north of Pretoria, is another popular establishment in the area, having been booked out for two weeks during the tournament.

A nationwide operator called Africa Ubuntu, which offers luxury safari tent accommodation at idyllic spots in or near all the host cities, has been taking group bookings of 500 and up, including one for a 1 000-strong group staying for 40 days at a fee of R45-million at its Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve site near Johannesburg.

"The camping concept is going down really well with visitors, because although soccer is why they're here, they also want to have a good time exploring the country's natural attractions," says marketing manager Claude Steyn.

The trend to seek out South African-style adventure has also prompted smaller operators to expand or diversify their offerings.

Hayward's Grand Safari Events and Expeditions, which offers luxury tents for group bookings, is setting up near the Kruger Park for 10 days before the tournament, then will move back to its base near Pretoria during the tournament, and is expecting full occupancy in both camps.

"We've had a lot of enquiries and provisional bookings, mostly from corporates," says manager Celia du Preez.

Authentic South Africa is the appeal of individual hosts such as Willem Pieterse, whose guesthouse, Marble Huis in Marble Hall in the Loskop Valley, is an ideal middle point between stadiums in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Polokwane and Rustenburg, while being a rustic African hideaway.

"I'll be offering day and night game drives, boat outings on the dam to see the crocodiles, visits to a citrus farm and even a trip to a shoe factory. We'll also be doing braais and serving traditional South African fare in the lapa, because even though it'll be winter, it's always warm in these parts," he says.

Marius van der Walt, who is offering a luxury house on a 200ha wildlife estate near the Mbombela stadium in Nelspruit, meanwhile, is hosting two big groups, one from Australia and another from New Zealand, in luxurious rooms done in African-style decor.

"From their windows they'll see animals grazing nearby that they usually only see on TV," he says.

Venison dishes will also be the value-add to the game park offering of Hannes de Vos, who owns Kudu Ridge Game Ranch near Port Elizabeth, which has been receiving enquiries from American and British fans. "Kudu steaks, bushpig fillets and even rabbit pies are on our menu," he says.

Another accommodation offering with a difference, and apparently hitting the jackpot given the intense interest so far, is the Old Mac Daddy Trailer Park in Elgin near Cape Town, a 25 000m2 expanse of vineyards and fruit orchards featuring imported Airstream trailers doubling as designer 4-star rooms sleeping four.

For the tournament there'll be an outdoor movie cinema and barn-style venue for entertainment, making for a quirky American kind of South African experience.

Township B&Bs and guesthouses provide another uniquely South African way to stay, and in Soweto, in particular, bookings have been steadily increasing.

"Match has booked rooms in many of the township guesthouses over June and July," says May Ncunu of Sis May B&B.

Beds at Lebo's Backpackers have been "selling well", says owner Lebo Malepa, who has decided to set up a campsite as well to accommodate fans on a budget.

All these accommodation providers are hoping that, by the end of the World Cup, their patrons will be hooked on South Africa and return to our shores, only if just to revisit a special place full of experiences that can't be compared to anywhere else in the world.
 

Source: IOL Travel - www.ioltravel.co.za

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