Kedar Spa in the Country - Rustenburg, North West

  

Review by Gwen Watkins

Out in the beautiful Rustenburg hills, only 25 kms from Sun City lies the tranquil beauty of the Kedar Hotel, which incorporates the wonderful Kedar Spa, run by the same professional team that operates the Misty Hills Spa in Muldersdrift.

The spa is situated in a wetland area with dams and streams creating a natural restful sound and the thatch and African décor for in naturally with the surroundings. There are four double treatment rooms all overlooking the dams and each with a water feature inside to complement nature. Outside on two jetties, overlooking the reeds, are two open-air massage tables ideal for the warm climate of Rustenburg.

There is a Vichy shower, a circulation shower, an outside shower, a sauna/steam room and a sparkling private pool – so no chance to dry out here!

I surrendered myself into the charming and capable hands of Gloria and Tshego for the Pamper Escape Spa Experience, which takes several hours. I started with the full body exfoliation and revelled in the aroma of orange, cinnamon and coffee. This was followed by a shower in the spacious shower cubicle and then back for the full butter shea body scrub and massage. Then into my private Jacuzzi for the spa bath relaxation – all too soon it was time for lunch.

I always worry about the term ‘light lunch’ (I love my food) but at Kedar, their idea of a light lunch is my idea of a feast. The starter of beef Carpaccio, decorated with flowers was a hearty beginning. This was followed by a chicken mango salad with a chilli and yogurt dressing and served with a bottle of Eva sparkling wine – deliciously decadent for a weekday morning! Rounded off with fruit kebabs and ice cream with nuts, it’s as well I didn’t have to get back in a bath because I would have sunk to the bottom!

The restaurant is in an open area under the thatch and you overlook the main dam where the Red Bishops nest in the reeds, on the acacia thorn threes the weavers have their nests and ducks paddle past – a revitalising moment for a city girl.

I then had my Wisdom of Africa Pinotage Facial, which was gentle and so soothing, that I could have easily dropped off to sleep. I rounded off my experience with coffee and a quick browse through the wonderful beauty products on sale.

The hotel itself is a wonderful country retreat and is situated on Boekenhoutfontein, the farm of former President Paul Kruger. His house, now a museum, is only a short drive into the property but unfortunately, it was closed but looked fascinating through the windows. The game farm is well stocked but you would need to drive around a bit to view the game, apart from the welcome team!

The hotel and spa are a good 165 kms from Johannesburg so I would recommend a weekend of it, after pampering, visiting the museum and viewing the game, you could always pop over to Sun City for a quick flutter.

The hotel is easy to find and the directions given are very clear – it’s on the west side of Rustenburg and the easiest way is to travel around the city on the freeway and follow the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace signs, as the hotel is just after the stadium. So it’s well placed for 2010 visitors, who would certainly come away with a wonderful view of South African hospitality.

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