Kwandwe, a Big Five private game reserve in South Africa, added a private safari villa. Opening July 1, the Kwandwe Fort House is a modern, sole-use safari villa situated in a secluded setting.
The villa comprises two master bedrooms and two twin suites, as well as an open-concept living and entertainment area. The Fort House’s décor includes significant use of natural fabrics: grass cloth wallpaper; linen and silk curtains; wool and cotton fabrics; leather furniture and hide rugs; walnut cabinetry and solid wood floors; and coir mats, Persian carpets and Kilims. Local South African artists are represented in all the rooms.
Additional amenities include a: terrace, available for guests to watch wildlife gather at the nearby watering hole; front lawn; pool; traditional boma with a table for outdoor dining; wine cellar and guest pantry; and spa treatment room. Staff is on-hand to ensure anything else is take care of.
The Fort House gets its name from a wattle and daub structure that was built as a century post to a crossing point on the Great Fish River, often used as a cattle rustling route and a bounty collection point for vermin, and would have reported to the larger and still-standing Fort Brown on Kwandwe’s Eastern Border. Centuries later, when ostriches were once again the popular farming stock, a large barn was built whilst the open areas around the existing Fort House, now known as the Fortlands, was where the birds were fed.
It remained this way until 1999 when the founders of Kwandwe embarked on their vision to return this region to its former natural habitat for wildlife. Since then, the building has been Kwandwe’s owners’ house. The Fort House sleeps eight and includes all meals, drinks and daily safari activities hosted by a dedicated guide and tracker team.
The 54,000-acre reserve is carbon-neutral.