Thali Thali: West Coast getaway an hour from Cape Town

By Roxanne Reid
It used to be a cattle farm. Then it reinvented itself as a game and fynbos reserve in 2011. I’m talking about Thali Thali Game Lodge, a West Coast getaway just off the R27 near Langebaan. About an hour’s drive from Cape Town, it’s a place to get out in the open air when the sun is shining.

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​The three-star Thali Thali Game Lodge is on a 1,460 hectare reserve just a hop, skip and jump from the West Coast National Park. It accommodates up to 28 people, from B&B in luxury en suite tents to self-catering in farm labourers’ cottages and the recently renovated four-bedroom farmhouse, ideal for bigger families or groups of friends.

The old farmhouse has a wrap-around stoep

One of the five luxury tents under a moody sky

It was spitting and cold the spring afternoon we arrived, then it started to rain in earnest. We stayed in one of the tents, which would have been lovely had the weather been better. The space was pleasant, with a sofa where we could put our feet up and a small cupboard with cutlery and glasses, mugs and a kettle so we could have a coffee pick-me-up or snack. But the tents aren’t really geared for self-catering; if that’s what you want, the cottages with their own kitchens are a better bet.

Inside the tent

It was a great pity we had to keep all the flaps closed against the rain and wind – no watching the sun filtering through the flaps, no sitting on the deck with a cool drink, just unrelenting rain that painted the surroundings grey, the inside of the tent dark enough to need the lights to be switched on.

You might see giraffe on your game drive

The rain also put a dampener on any enthusiasm we might have had for a game drive in the lodge’s open safari vehicles. A couple from the UK, not likely to get another opportunity for a game drive once they returned home, decided to be brave and sallied forth in a light drizzle. He later admitted that the heavens opened about 30 minutes later and they got a thorough soaking, the open-sided vehicle giving them no protection from the wet or the biting cold.

In spring the fields are carpeting with flowers on the West Coast

It cleared up around 6pm and we saw the sky for first time that day. Our view was of electricity pylons on the hill in the distance, but birds began to chirp, the sun came out and the mood changed, with prisms of rainbow colours in the water droplets. Hairy fat caterpillars were foraging in the bush next to our tent and we heard a zebra call in the distance, silenced by a dog barking.

The dining area, with French doors to the deck

We walked over wet grass to the restaurant for dinner. The space was warm and inviting, with a fire burning in the open hearth, and hearty tummy-warming food like oxtail and sweet potatoes.

The next morning dawned clear, the croak of frogs nearby, the hoot of an owl. Birds like spurfowl, sparrows and sunbirds flitted about their early morning business and a cow moaned loudly in the distance, breaking the sense of away-from-it-all wilderness, reminding us of the lodge’s farmland origins here where the West Coast Way’s Scenic and Foodie routes meet.

If you're lucky you may hear the call of the Burchell's zebra from your tent

We had a full day of activity ahead so we had hoped to join an early morning game drive to take advantage of the sunnier weather, but the scheduled drives only leave at 10am. It might have been a chance to see animals like kudu, giraffe, zebra, red hartebeest and eland that have been reintroduced. 

The garden on a rainy afternoon

Other things to do at Thali Thali are unguided walks through the fynbos for a chance of spotting birds, grasses and flowers, lazing at the swimming pool or taking an archery lesson.

The pool and playground area, with the function marquee and one of the cottages in the background

Note: I was a guest of Thali Thali for one night, but the opinions are mine.

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