Polentswa Lodge – owned by the Ta Shebube group and located in the Mabuasehube area on the Botswana side of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park – has reopened following a devastating veld fire that destroyed the nine-unit tented lodge in September 2021.

Shabani Ndzinge, Ta Shebube MD, told Tourism Update: "We have decided to open the lodge with just five units, with plans to add more later to make it twelve units, the maximum number of units we are allowed to build in the park."

Ndzinge explained that the lodge was recovering from the impact of COVID-19 and was constrained by a lack of resources, but it remains optimistic as tourists are returning.

The lodge now has a slightly different appearance. The raised walkway linking the guest rooms has been reduced to ground level, and there is a slight modification to the outdoor showers. Guests can now access the outdoor shower from inside the guest room instead of having to leave the room first. Additionally, the outdoor showers now have a rollover canvas flap window, which provides guests with the option to either bathe ‘in the open’ overlooking the pan or to be covered while showering.

Each unit has an en-suite bathroom and a balcony overlooking a waterhole. At night, a light illuminates the waterhole. Lodge facilities include a lounge area and a restaurant.

Poletswa Lodge first opened in 2013 and can be accessed via 4x4 from Botswana or South Africa through the Two Rivers gate of the transfrontier park.

Guests can fly in to the Nossob airstrip, which is 60 kilometres from the lodge and will be transferred to the lodge in game-drive vehicles while enjoying the scenic Kgalagadi landscape.

Activities include game drives, and the lodge is planning to purchase stargazing equipment. Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is home to migrating herds of wildebeest and springbok, as well as predators such as raptors and black-maned Kalahari lions.