The Waterberg safari lodges, located on a private game reserve, are in a unique part of South Africa's Waterberg mountains. Nestled in a secluded valley, it is home to a huge diversity of game, bird life and flora. Ride horses, hike, learn about nature or go on a jeep safari.

Waterberg Safari Lodge

Ride on horseback or jeep up to game such as rhino, giraffe and eland. Discover the mysteries of spoor, and learn the fruits and medicinal use of the local trees and plants. The mountains and gorges create amazing views and vistas of the Waterberg, and make sundowners and surprise bush breakfasts just perfect. The Waterberg safari lodges, located on a private game reserve, are in a unique part of South Africa's Waterberg mountains. Nestled in a secluded valley, it is home to a huge diversity of game, bird life and flora. The old colonial homestead of Ant and Tessa Barber, your hosts, now features two luxury lodges: Ant's Nest and Ant's Hill. With its classic furniture fashioned from local timbers, its warm fireplaces and crisp plunge pools, make this the ideal place to unwind and to explore the magnificence of the surrounds.

IT-SASR03
2008 Rates include luxurious private safari lodge accommodations at Ants Hill, all meals, daily rides and safari excursions
5 day/ 4 nights  $ 1,760
  Low Season $ 1,480  
... see full rates list
High Season:
12/01-02/19   03/21-05/14   07/01-11/04
Low Season:
02/20-03/20   05/15-06/30   11/05-11/30
  Check Availability

Meeting:  Ant's Hill
Airport:    Johannesburg
Transfer: $260 per car from J'burg (2 pax)
                 each way  ... see details
Level:       Novice to Intermediate
Tack:        Mclellan, English and Australian
Horses:    Thoroughbred,  Anglo Arab
Pace:        Moderate with trots and canters
Max Riders: 8

Note: luxury combined with excellent riding and wild game make this one of the best rides in South Africa.
Please make sure to bring sufficient funds for extras such as tips and shopping with you as the lodge doesn't accept credit cards!
Single supplement can be waived outside of High Season.

Accommodations:
These secluded bush homes cater for a maximum of 8 people, in 3 double bedrooms and a twin room. The accommodation consists of a separate thatched Rondavel with ensuite bathroom and private verandah, an upstairs thatched guest bedroom, also with bathroom ensuite and a private elevated verandah, with wonderful views over the plains and Waterberg hills in the distance - the perfect chill out spot! The main house has a double ensuite room and a twin room with its own adjacent bathroom. This house has a cozy sitting room and open fireplace with adjoining dining room.
The large verandah surrounding the main house is an ideal setting for afternoon siestas or for reading that good book. All our double rooms feature unique hand crafted, wooden, four poster beds. Surrounding the lodge are beautiful landscaped gardens filled with indigenous succulents and plants, very attractive to our native bee-eaters and rarely seen black sunbirds. The plunge pool is a popular feature, inviting guests in the hot sunny afternoons.
Tessa with her influence from Kenya has brought, to the old colonial homes, a stylish warmth in her use of classic furniture fashioned from local timber, fabrics and stone. An atmosphere of relaxation and tranquility awaits you. Each lodge caters to a maximum of eight people and you may have exclusive use with a group of four.
This safari lodge takes pride in it's sumptuous cuisine, carefully prepared by a chef, from fresh and native produce. Meals are taken in a variety of secluded and alternative places. You may find yourself enjoying a hearty breakfast under a shady syringa, somewhere out in the bush, or a 3 course evening meal dining in the cozy reed boma, around an open campfire, under a starlit African sky.
Wining and Dining on your Horse Riding Safari
We take great pride in our sumptuous home cooking, dining outside whenever possible under shady trees. We often end morning riding activities with a bush lunch, while at night we sit around open fires under the stars. Excellent South African estate wines are served. We can cater for all dietary requirements.
see  details    Ants Hill     Ants Nest

Horseback and more:
You can ride as much or as little as you like, combining this experience with other activities. From here guests are taken to discover other parts of the Waterberg such as Lapalala Wilderness (with its famous population of black rhino, bushman paintings and iron age sites), the Clive Walker Rhino Museum, Marakele National Park, or the spectacular Mokolo River, to name a few.
With a fine selection of nearly 50 fit, reliable and responsive horses and ponies and over 10 years of experience we take great care in perfecting the match between horse and rider’s ability for our horse riding safaris. Due to the varying topography and ecology across the reserves, the bush is teaming with an incredible variety of game species from rhino and buffalo to leggy giraffe, rare sable antelope, herds of eland, zebra, wildebeest, big spiral horned kudu to the fleet footed oryx just to mention but a few.
The riding pace on our horseback safaris can vary from galloping with giraffe and wildebeest to meandering along high rocky bluffs watching the setting African sun, or quietly riding through a herd of grazing zebra or family of rhino. Both properties are ideal for not just the serious rider looking for a horse riding safari in South Africa, but also their non riding companions or families.

Other activities on the farm
We offer a wide range of other activities on the property such as game drives, guided walks, mountain bikes, clay pigeon and target shooting as well as a host of different activities in the area such as elephant back rides and historical tours or just relaxing to the dreamy pace of Africa. Each guest can do as much or as little horse riding as they wish and we pride ourselves on our flexibility.
Guided bush walks:
For those who prefer walking, our guides will guide you through the bushveld on foot. These walks are informative and interactive, enabling guests to gain knowledge of the flora, fauna and animals resident on the reserves. Learning to recognize tracks is great fun. Whilst these walks can be in the form of a gentle stroll, the more energetic can hike over the plains and down impressive gorges.
Game drives:
Our guides will be available to take you out in an open 4x4 Land cruiser either for a morning or afternoon game drive or using a spotlight at night to find elusive nocturnal animals, such as the rare brown hyena, aardvark and porcupine.
Mountain biking: The terrain being incredibly diverse offers from the gentle meander to extreme technical cycling.
Clay pigeon shooting:
For those wanting a bit more action you may wish to try out some target or clay pigeon shooting
Massages:
Whilst not traveling around or spending your time riding you can lounge by the pool or enjoy a massage.
Weddings:
Both bush homes make for a fabulous wedding venue and we can tailor make your special day.

View brochure  - PDF Format
View Horse&Rider article - PDF

Game To Be Seen On The Horse Riding Safari
Due to the diverse topography and vegetation both Ant’s Nest and Ant’s Hill carry an incredible range of different game species. There are: rhino, sable antelope, buffalo (a breeding conservation project at Ant’s Hill producing disease free buffalo) nyala, gemsbok (oryx), kudu, giraffe, livingstone eland, blue wildebeest, red hartebeest, zebra, impala, bushbuck, duiker, steenbuck, mountain reedbuck, waterbuck, warthog, blesbuck, baboons, bushpig, klipspringer, leopard, jackal, brown hyena, caracal, civet, genet to name but a few. There are 300 recorded bird species in the area to add to the exquisite variety of all forms of wildlife that the reserves support.
Our horses live out and graze amongst the game on a daily basis, the thoroughbreds being stabled at night. This has allowed the game to become habituated to the horses thus giving one a unique opportunity of really getting in and amongst the various species whilst riding.

Rates - per person per night in US Dollars (min 3 nights) and are fully inclusive of all meals, all drinks, guided walks, game drives, riding and laundry.  Additional activities are available in the area such as elephant back safaris at an additional price.

Ants Hill Rates -- valid to Dec 1  2007 to Nov 2008
Ants Hill is sold on a non-exclusive basis

Ants Nest Rates -- valid to Dec 1  2007 to Nov 2008
sold on an exclusive basis during High Season - other times with minimum rate