!Xaus Lodge

!Xaus Lodge offers Kalahari accommodation situated in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park and is a perfect destination for eco-tourists and visitors. The lodge boasts a central building and 12 individual chalets including a family unit, each with its own deck overlooking a vast saltpan and waterhole fed with fresh water.

The main lodge consists of a welcoming reception area with unique wall-hanging made by the ladies of Vezokhule, a sewing co-operative in Upington. The cosy lounge has a fireplace and a library of selected books for paging through before dinner. The dining area overlooks the pan, with furniture hand-made in Upington and images burnt by Bushmen artists.

Visit the large observation deck from which guests gaze in wonder at the night sky, and by day the swimming pool provides cool relief from the desert heat. Wood is a precious commodity in the Kalahari, so the inviting fire in the boma is made in the traditional method with three or four crossed sticks around which everyone huddles companionably.

In the en-suite chalets, guests are provided with purified drinking water from the desert which can be found in a flask in the bathroom. Winter sheets and gas heaters provide comfort for cold nights, and ceiling fans bring relief in the hot months.

Game drives
Enjoy a fantastic sunset game drive on the pan or an after-dinner drive to explore some of the night creatures the Kalahari has to offer. A complimentary six to seven-hour drive through the dunes is available to guests staying four nights or longer.

Guided dune walks
An early start with the guides and bushman trackers will take you through the dunes as you learn all about your natural surroundings. A shorter guided walk is also arranged to see the ‘heart’ of the pan.

Visit the Bushman Craft Village
Take a walk to our recreated cultural village and see the Busman crafters at work.

Night skies
Clean air and no light pollution makes for a wonderful opportunity to gaze at the night sky. The best night-sky viewing is during the new moon when the sky is at its darkest.

The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park

The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is an immense desert area, with grass-covered sand dunes. Formally known as the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park on the South African side and the Gemsbok National Park in Botswana, it existed as a single ecological unit and the international border between the two countries. At over 3,5 million hectares, it’s almost twice the size of the Kruger National Park (and about the same size as the Netherlands), and is jointly managed by the South African and Botswana wildlife authorities. A constant high pressure cell forms a ‘lid’ over the interior, preventing moist air from the ocean reaching the area, and as a consequence the long-term rainfall average is just 213mm per annum, which classifies the Kgalagadi as a true desert. Unusually, there is an abundance of desert grasses, giving the landscape an appearance of a semi-desert.