BOTLIERSKOP SPA
Beauty in Mossel Bay

Situated between the magnificent Outeniqua Mountains and unspoiled beaches of the Indian Ocean, Botlierskop Private Game Reserve ensures its visitors of a unique safari experience. In the late 1700's Mossel Bay, a nearby historic town was developed as a busy export harbour for wool, ochre and ostrich feathers. According to the Legend, the koppie was used as a look-out point. This was a sign for the nearby farmers, that a ship was coming in, so they could get ready to bring fresh supplies to the ship. The captain of the ship used the fire as an old-fashion lighthouse. He has been in the game farming industry since 1960 and saw the opportunity to reintroduce wildlife in this area. After 4 years of recovering from domestic farming Botlierskop was ready to open in the year 2000, allowing their guests to experience the beautiful Cape environment as it was, when wild animals still roamed freely. Warm hospitality and personal service has ensured that visitors return time and again. Along with prosperity we also experienced hardship and disasters. It made the team grow stronger and Botlierskop can vouch for that! Although all staff, neighbouring farmers and friends, totalling 100 people, tried to prevent the main lodge and tented suites catching fire, we lost one tent and three were damaged. But they persevered and rebuilt the accommodation for the coming season. The entrance road also washed away which prevented access to the reserve. Dr Dirk Neethling passed away one year later also due to cancer. This is the first time that elephant back rides were offered in the Southern Cape. In 1996, Sarah Scarth, Emergency Relief Director for the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) met with Rita Miljo, founder and director of the Centre for Animal Rehabilitation and Education (CARE), after floods nearly destroyed the centre and IFAW provided emergency relief to help during this disaster. Unfortunately, the lions had completely outgrown their once sizeable enclosure and a new home had to be found. Rita had searched for months for a place where the lions could live in the wild or semi-wild, and in peace. While the lion’s new enclosure was being built, a young female lion cub was placed in Rita’s care. Because the lions could never be released back into the wild, the aim of the large 100-hectare sanctuary was to give them a home as close to the wild as possible. The owners expressed a desire for the lions to be relocated to their reserve and in turn established a magnificent sanctuary for them within the Botlierskop Private Game Reserve, where these four lions would always be protected. Historically, the African lion has been extinct from this region in the Cape since the 1860’s. With the Outeniqua Mountains in the north and the Indian Ocean in the south, the lions have finally come home. Their presence at Botlierskop Private Game Reserve marks the return of the King in the Cape.