Marataba Residence

The Waterberg mountain range is a spectacular backdrop to your exclusive-use Residence within the malaria-free Marakele National Park. Due to the Marakele's location in a transition zone between the dry western and wetter eastern regions the park has an impressive abundance and diversity of fauna and flora, including the Big Five – with a healthy population of the critically-endangered black rhino, brown hyena, cheetah, bat-eared fox, and the world’s largest colony of endangered Cape vultures. Besides this incredible biodiversity, there is San rock art and Iron Age sites of great historical significance.

Your professional FGASA-accredited field guide and your own safari vehicle set the tone for a personalised safari adventure at Marataba. Our Rhino Veterinary Conservation Experience, from April to September, offers the unique opportunity to participate in a rhino intervention alongside vets. Water safaris on the Matlabas River introduce you to a world of yawning hippos, elephants, and an incredible biodiversity of birdlife. Enjoy coffee stops with a twist, sundowners in strategic viewing spots, and dinner outdoors under starry African skies. There’s fun for the young ones too with nature treasure hunts and spoor identification.

This Residence offers a tranquil family nature retreat alongside the serene Matalabas River where wildlife watching starts on your doorstep. The interiors are light and bright, a sophisticated fusion of traditional and contemporary. The wide decks and pool are positioned for immersing yourself in the view. This is 23,000-hectares of unspoilt Africa in a malaria-free zone with minimal vehicles traversing the reserve, ensuring sightings are all yours to enjoy.

Marataba Residence features four separate Luxury Tents spread out along the edge of the river yet connected by a central common area. This unique layout comfortably accommodates eight adults and two children (all ages are welcome). The Residence's main area includes a fully equipped interactive kitchen, lounge, dining area, welcoming fireplace, a boma facility, and a pool. Your residence butler takes care of the details, and our concierge can customise your stay. Your personal chef arranges gourmet breakfasts, lunches and dinners, and everything in-between, taking due care for all dietary requirements. With everything taken care of, you can relax and enjoy all the wonders of a safari at Marataba.

About the Marakele National Park

The Marakele National Park in the heart of the Waterberg mountains, only 2 and a half hours from Pretoria, has become a 'place of sanctuary' for a vast variety of wildlife mainly due to its location in the transitional zone between the dry western and moist eastern regions of South Africa.

The Marakele National Park is characterised by contrasting majestic mountain landscapes, grass-clad hills and deep valleys. Rare finds of yellowwood and cedar trees, five-metre high cycads and tree ferns are some of the plant species found here. All the large game species from elephant to rhino to the big cats as well as an amazing variety of birds including the largest colony of endangered Cape Vultures (more than 800 breeding pairs) in the world have settled here. The Marakele National park is an excellent place to look for raptors, with many species using the uplift generated off the cliff faces of the Waterberg to sore on the thermals.

Apart from the vultures, visitors should look for Gymnogene, Jackal Buzzard and several eagle species, including Black Eagle, African Hawk, Black-breasted Snake and Brown Snake Eagle. In summer Wahlberg’s Eagle becomes prominent. On areas of high ground, Cape Rock Thrush, Mocking and Mountain Chat, Malachite and Greater Double-collared Sunbird and Swee Waxbill should be searched for.

Other species to look out for in the lower-lying bushveld and broadleaf woodland regions include Purple Roller, Black Cuckooshrike, Brubru, White-crowned Shrike and White Helmetshrike and the exquisite Blue Waxbill, Violeteared and Black-cheeked Waxbills. Bee-eaters are conspicuous, particularly White-fronted and Little with Swallow-tailed (winter) and Carmine and European (summer) present as well.

Resident antelope include sable, kudu, eland, impala, waterbuck, tsessebe and many smaller species. Chacma baboons and velvet monkeys are two species to be watched carefully for mischief, particularly around the rest camps.