Name: Lakenvlei Forest lodge
Address: R540, Belfast, 1100, South Africa, ZA
Telephone: +27 83 570 1517

Lakenvlei Forest lodge is a lodging, located at R540, Belfast, 1100, South Africa. They can be contacted via phone at +27 83 570 1517 for more detailed information.

Location :

R540, Belfast, 1100

Contacts :

Added by Jopie, at 10 October 2017

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Idrees Dadabhay

18 February 2018

Crisp air.
Charles Gilfillan

09 January 2018

This was my fourth visit to Lakenvlei Forest Lodge. My last visit was in 2009. The first three visits where amazing which is why I returned in the first week of January 2018. What a disappointment.
The paved road from the main road to the lodge is collapsing from a lack of maintenance. We arrived at 3:45 pm to very impatient reception staff who very quickly booked us in and gave us the key to our chalet because the reception was closing at 4pm. After 4pm there is nobody in the lodge until 8 am the next morning. People arriving after 4pm have nobody to great them and show them where thee chalets is.
The road from reception up to the chalets is in a terrible state as it is badly washed away. I am glad I drive an Isuzu pick up as I would not want to drive a normal car on that road. We were booked in chalets no 12 which is a four-bed chalet.
The couch and two chairs around the fire place has not been cleaned in years and there are burn marks in the fabric on the couch. We opened the windows in the chalets. Many of the blinds in the chalets have been damaged. Then latter the evening when we tried to close the widows we discovered the widows where stuck. I had to slam the windows shut from the outside and the widow frame of the bedroom window was broken. It is obvious that the chalet had not been maintained in years. There is a menu on the fridge but the restaurant closes at 4pm so there is no way that you can order anything from the restaurant after 4pm.
The evidence of a lack of maintenance did not end with the chalet. The observatory in front of the lodge is gone and the boardwalk up to the observatory is closed and is collapsing. We went to visit the bird hide only to discover that the boardwalk to the bird hide has collapsed so you cannot even get to the bird hide. I have no idea if the bird hide is even still there.
I am also very concerned about how secure the farm and the lodge is. After the failed outing to the bird hide we saw four men fishing in the Bass dam. The four men where not staying at the lodge and fishing is not allowed in the Bass dam anymore. So how did these four men gain access to the farm, very easy as there is no staff on the farm after 4pm in the evening.
We then visited the ruins. The sign post at the ruins has fallen over, another example of a lack of maintenance. The lack road signs directing you back to the lodge resulted in us getting lost in the pine plantation after visiting the ruins. Fortunately, we were able to find out way back to the lodge but it was nerve racking to get lost in a pine planation as the sun is setting.
Then finally after visiting Dulstroom on Saturday we return to the lodge to discover there is a party going on in the lodge with music blaring. I paid for piece and quite at Lakenvlei and not to listen to music from a party at the lodge. I can do that at home in Pretoria.
The only saving grace of our trip to Lakenvlei was the wetland at Lakenvlei which is still beautiful with fantastic birding and the wild flowers were also stunning. It is just very disappointing that the lodge is in such a state of disrepair and that it took a just nine years for the lodge to get so bad with no indication that it will ever improve. This is the last time we will ever stay at Lakenvlei. We will be looking for alternative accommodation the next time we visit Belfast and Dullstroom. Very disappointing and sad indeed.
OR Kwape

25 December 2017

Excellent food. Beautiful people.
Danie Ehlers

26 November 2017

Awesomeness!
Karen Matthysen

30 October 2017

Google maps coordinates are totally wrong for this lodge and direct you to a road that does not exist
Johan Matthysen

17 October 2017

Very nice place. Your staff are friendly and helpful. Just a bit short staffed when I left. I also reported faulty wiring on a stand lamp in my chalet, which actually shocked my wife. I believe this was attended to. In general, we enjoyed the stay, thank you.