MalandraBushveld Lodge Check availability
Malandra at dusk: a long, low pavilion of sandstone and steel-framed glass glowing warm from inside, a fire burning in a bronze bowl on the terrace and a dark plunge pool in front, with flat-topped Waterberg cliffs on the horizon

A quieter kind of luxury.

Waterberg · Limpopo

Seven suites on a sandstone ridge, three hours from Johannesburg.

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Malandra Bushveld Lodge

Seven suites on a sandstone ridge, built low and set far apart, each turned towards the same wide valley. We kept it small so that every evening could be unhurried.

  • 7suites, none overlooked
  • 3 hby road from Johannesburg
  • 2guided outings a day, included
  • 0malaria, all year round
The Acacia Pool Suite at sunset: a long dark plunge pool edged in pale sandstone leads to an open timber sala with a linen daybed, the suite's glass glowing to one side and the Waterberg cliffs beyond

Suite 07 · The Acacia Pool Suite

At the end of the boardwalk, the valley is yours.

The last pavilion on the ridge stands on its own. The glass slides fully away, so the bedroom, the deck and a private plunge pool become one long room facing west. There is a sala for the hottest hours, an outdoor shower walled in sandstone, and nothing between you and the cliffs but grass.

Space
96 m²
Sleeps
Two
Outside
Plunge pool, sala, outdoor shower

R10,800per person, per night, sharing. All meals, drinks and two guided outings a day.

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Inside the Acacia Pool Suite: a low linen bed and a clay lamp, the steel doors slid fully open to the deck, the plunge pool and the sala in late golden light
The bedroom opens fully to the deck and the pool.

Also on the ridge

Rates per person, per night, sharing, all-inclusive. Children aged 4 to 11 pay half.

Stone, timber, light

Made from the ridge it stands on.

The walls are Waterberg sandstone, split and laid by hand in thin courses by builders from Vaalwater. The floors are smoked oak and honed stone. Everything else is linen, clay and lime plaster, chosen to soften with use rather than date.

The main lounge: a full-height wall of dry-stacked sandstone around a fireplace, linen sofas and leather armchairs, and a double-height wall of steel-framed glass onto the deck and the cliffs at midday
The lounge. One fireplace, one wall of glass, and the whole valley.
Close-up of a sandstone wall laid dry in thin courses of ochre, rust and buff stone, low sun raking across it
Sandstone, laid dry, in courses no thicker than a hand.
The corner of a bed: stonewashed oatmeal linen and a folded olive throw falling over a smoked oak frame onto oak floorboards
Stonewashed linen and smoked oak. Nothing that squeaks, nothing that shines.

Moments at Malandra

A day, from first light to the last log on the fire.

There is no schedule to keep. These are simply the hours most guests come to love.

Experiences at Malandra
  1. A guide and two guests walking away along a sandy path through tall pale grass, mist filling the valley below and the cliffs catching first light

    First light

    Walk out with a guide while the mist is still in the valley. Tracks in the sand, the first birds, coffee from a flask on the rocks.

  2. A clay cup of coffee and a linen napkin on a sandstone ledge above a hazy valley at sunrise

    Breakfast on your terrace

    Coffee in clay cups, fruit, bread still warm from the oven. Nobody knocks unless you ask them to.

  3. A private plunge pool beside a timber sala with a linen daybed, the bushveld and cliffs glowing in the late sun

    The quiet hours

    The pool, a book, the sala. The bush goes still in the heat, and so, gratefully, do you.

  4. The fire circle at blue hour: a sunken ring of sandstone seats with linen cushions around a low fire, lanterns on the stone and the valley dark beyond

    The fire circle

    Guests drift in as the light goes. Something cold to drink, stories from the day, and a fire someone tends all evening.

  5. Two lounge chairs and a lantern on a timber deck at the edge of the ridge under the Milky Way

    Under the stars

    Far from any town lights, the sky goes all the way down to the cliffs. Ask a guide to name what you’re looking at, or don’t.

A long oak table on the terrace at dusk, set with linen runners, clay candle holders, stoneware and wine glasses, the valley turning blue beyond

Dining

Dinner is wherever the evening is.

On the terrace, at the fire, or on your own deck. The kitchen cooks over coals and from the season, with produce from farms in the valley and a short list of South African wines chosen to match.

Tonight

  • Ember-roasted butternut, Waterberg honey, dukkah
  • Fire-grilled Karoo lamb, wild garlic, charred greens
  • Malva pudding, Amarula custard
The table at Malandra

From the ridge

View the gallery
  • Pavilions strung along the ridge at dawn above a valley of mist
  • Sandstone laid in thin courses
  • A Stone Terrace Suite bedroom opening onto its terrace
  • The fire circle at blue hour
  • Linen and smoked oak
  • A plunge pool and sala in the late sun
  • The Milky Way over a suite deck

Stay with us

Two nights, or a week. The valley keeps.

Rates are per person, per night, sharing, and include every meal, two guided outings a day, local wine, beer, spirits and soft drinks.

From R7,450

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Dawn over the Waterberg: low pavilions of sandstone strung along a ridge above a valley filled with mist, red cliffs catching the first sun

Getting here

Three hours north, and a long way from everything else.

By road

From Johannesburg, take the N1 north to Modimolle, then the R33 towards Vaalwater. The last twelve kilometres are good gravel; any car will manage.

By air

Light aircraft can land at our airstrip, ten minutes from the lodge. Charters from Lanseria take about fifty-five minutes.

Before you come

The Waterberg is malaria-free. Summer days are warm; winter mornings are cold, and the fires are lit early.

Directions and contact