Tag: remote

Erebero Hills – The Best of Bwindi

Posted on by James

The considered design of Erebero Hills – meaning “a place where you can see far” – takes creative inspiration from the surrounding landscape of rolling hills. Sweeping views across the forest will be on offer from all guest suites, or from the hillside swimming pool on warm afternoons. Combining sustainable luxury with the thrill of observing one of the world’s most endangered species in their natural habitat, Erebero Hills will provide a unique and rewarding safari experience.

Located on the northern edge of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Erebero Hills holds an enviable position offering both privacy and convenient access to a preferred gorilla trekking location.

An AMAZING SPECIAL OFFER is currently on the go; due to high demand, Asilia are extending their exclusive opening special to offer ONE FREE GORILLA PERMIT PER PERSON for all new bookings confirmed by 28th February 2025.

Book now, and be one of the first to stay in what will likely prove to be a groundbreaking new lodge in this discreet corner of Uganda.

Driving an ambitious reforestation project, Asilia aims to create a forest buffer zone within the 45 acres surrounding the lodge. A long-term project, this will eventually deliver an accessible forest for the Batwa people who are no longer allowed in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, and will create sustainable livelihood opportunities for local communities both now during the planting phase, and for many years to come.

Imagine yourself in a rare moment, crouched on the forest floor, respectfully avoiding eye contact while observing some of the last remaining eastern and mountain gorillas up close.

These majestic creatures are found only in three countries – Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo – and live in four national parks, including Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, Volcanoes National Park, and Virunga National Park. Asilia’s gorilla trekking tours offer an exclusive opportunity, a privilege, to witness them in their natural habitat.

Erebero Hills is set to provide the service and attention to detail that Asilia is well-renowned for, alongside a meaningful and empowering positive impact commitment.

Eight forest-view suites tucked into the hillside – each with a private viewing deck and uninterrupted views of the forest across the valley – have been designed for style and luxury. The spacious, glass fronted interiors are filled with natural light, with a king-sized bed and both indoor and outdoor seating options designed to maximise the expansive views. A boot-room at the entrance to each suite offers a thoughtful design element, while the en suite bathroom applies the finishing touches with a free-standing bathtub and both an indoor and outdoor shower, all with breathtaking views of the forest. The main lounge and swimming pool offer additional areas for relaxation, while spa treatments can be enjoyed in-room to ease tired muscles.

In addition to housing more than half the world’s remaining population of mountain gorilla, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest plays home to staggeringly rich array of biodiversity. Over 350 species of bird, more than 200 species of butterfly, and more than 100 mammal species, of which 10 are primates. With convenient flights from Kenya, Erebero Hills combines easily with Asilia’s Kenya portfolio, allowing for an incredible East Africa adventure.

Gorillas live in family groups led by a dominant silverback male and are majestic, highly intelligent, and social creatures. They communicate through a repertoire of up to 25 distinct sounds. They share strong family bonds and are known to create and use tools. It’s fascinating to see them building nests on the ground or in trees using branches and leaves, which they use both during the day and at night. Sadly, they are critically endangered, according to the IUCN Red List. 

If you would like to be one of the vanguard to stay in what may prove to be Asilia’s flagship lodge, we’d just like to remind you about the special offer, with a free gorilla trekking permit for every booking confirmed before 28th February. That amounts to a saving of $600 per person.

Get in touch through info@iconicafrica.com to enquire…

Shipwreck Lodge: Unfettered Wilderness

Posted on by James

The Skeleton Coast National Park is officially the least visited of all of Namibia’s parks. If it is true, unadulterated wilderness you ejoy, then this is the place to find it.
Shipwreck Lodge is located in the Skeleton Coast Central Concession Area, a critically important piece of land for protecting vulnerable wildlife species. The lodge is a joint venture between Natural Selection and local Namibian companies Trip Travel and Journeys Namibia, as well as the local communities that border the park. The future of African conservation lies firmly in fostering community involvement, and Shipwreck Lodge epitomises such an approach.

Uniquely designed around the enigmatic shipwrecks that line the coast, there’s nowhere on the continent quite like Shipwreck Lodge, which is certainly Iconic Africa’s pick of top lodge from which to explore this part of the world.
In fact, there’s nowhere on the continent quite like the Skeleton Coast. It’s a raw, rugged and impossibly remote slice of African wilderness, where towering dunes and wind-swept plains roll as far as the eye can see, buffeted by the icy Atlantic ocean.

But there’s much more to the area than just the isolation factor. Go on game drive in search of desert-dwelling fauna like oryx, springbok, desert-adapted lion and elephants; discover the enchanting desert flora (succulents and lichens); sit atop the dunes as the sun sinks below the horizon; spend the day beach-combing for whale bones and debris from centuries of shipwrecks; and marvel at the geologically-remarkable Clay Castles. This is truly a unique environment!

The words ‘eerie’ and ‘mysterious’ are often bandied around when it comes to describing Africa’s most interesting locations, but the Skeleton Coast has to be one place that truly deserves the metaphors. Shrouded in mist, the jaw-droppingly beautiful National Park begins at the Ugab River and runs roughly 500 kilometres up the Atlantic Coast to the Kunene River, which forms the border between Namibia and Angola for a few hundred kilometres inland.. Described by the San Bushmen as ‘the Land God Made in Anger’, the beaches are strewn with bleached whale bones and the wrecks of over a thousand ships, and the interior is an uninhabited desert of rolling, endless sand. But it’s magical and hauntingly picturesque, and, in our books, that makes it an absolute must-see.

Shipwreck Lodge itself is located in an unrivalled spot in the Skeleton Coast Central Concession Area, a piece of land between the Hoarusib and Hoanib rivers. The lodge is within the Skeleton Coast National Park and roughly 45 kilometres from Mowe Bay. The area contains irreplaceable and vulnerable wildlife habitat for species of the highest conservation importance, including elephant and the elusive brown hyena. Importantly, it also hosts the only other viable lion population in Namibia outside of Etosha National Park.

The Skeleton Coast is an area known primarily for its extraordinary landscapes and wide open vistas. Wildlife is not densely populated in this arid environment, so when do you spot something, it’s that much more special. Giraffes, mountain zebras, brown hyenas… creatures that just seem to belong and some that seem totally incongruous with this part of the world. Plants and insects survive from the moisture of the cold fog that drifts inland from the ocean, and the ocean itself is brimming with life. The nutrient-rich Atlantic supports a huge population of Cape fur seals, whose colonies dot the shoreline. Birdlife here features a number of special endemics, so make sure your binoculars are packed…

The lodge itself features ten rooms; 8 as twins or doubles and two family rooms. Each features an en suite bathrooms with indoor showers, and hairdryers are available on request. Charging facilities, a laundry service, and all the mod cons one would expect from a quality operation are found here, including wifi in the main area.

The Skeleton Coast stays relatively cool throughout the year, governed by the cool temperatures of the Atlantic, more specifically the Benguela current that comes sweeping up the coast from Antarctica, but venture away from the coast and temperatures can change just like that, going from freezing to boiling in a very short space of time. Always pack a jersey when heading on an excursion!

If you enjoy solitude, deep relaxation and the complete absence of time pressure, then Shipwreck Lodge is the place for you. The lunar landscapes will leave you both breathless and enchanted, and when it comes time to leave, it’ll feel like you’ve been there for both a day and two weeks.

Get in touch with us through info@iconicafrica.com to find out more about this unique destination, and the Skeleton Coast in general…