Our safari vehicle ascended into the Soutpansberg Mountains, passing 2,000-year-old acacia trees, craggy red cliffs, and pinstriped kudu browsing the bushes. With every switchback, anticipation built for our South Africa glamping stay at Few & Far Luvhondo, Sarah and Jacob Dusek’s great return to outdoor hospitality after selling Under Canvas in 2018. Unlike their previous model of building glamping camps near the most popular national parks, they chose a remote region of Limpopo, “The Forgotten Mountains.”
Despite being a hotbed of biodiversity with an abundance of rare and endemic species within the UNESCO Vhembe Biosphere Reserve, the Soutpansberg Range has been quietly degrading due to deforestation and mining, and faces further threats from proposed industrial development. Taking on ecosystem restoration, much less mining bros and government bureaucracy, is no small feat, but if you’ve read Sarah’s book, Thinking Bigger: A Pitch-Deck Formula for Women Who Want to Change the World…she’s just the person for the job.
Welcome to Few & Far
The sounds of African drumming, a tray of lychee lemonade, warm scented hand towels, and smiling faces welcomed us to the entrance of Few & Far Luvhondo. The GM, Giselle, showed us to the main building with a canvas structure that fanned around a tree, mimicking the baobab’s shape, strength, and timeless elegance. The Limpopo Province, and specifically this property, is home to some of the largest baobabs in Southern Africa. These “Trees of Life” are a driving inspiration in the Duseks’ design and Few & Far’s deep sense of place.
Behind the Scenes: The dining area’s canvas canopy didn’t arrive with the required opening, so co-founder Jacob was tapped to make the nerve-wracking incision to fit it around the tree. Turning a design snafu into a family project, it was eventually installed with the help of the Duseks’ two teenage boys!
Cliff Suites
Giselle showed us to our cliff suite, a C-curved canvas and wood structure framing sweeping views on both ends. She pointed out the Few & Far field guide and binoculars on the desk, and said, “Keep an eye out for giraffe, nyala, and zebra; they can often be seen along the valley floor.” I had visions of going on safari right from our outdoor shower, clawfoot tub, and sumptuous canopy bed, and couldn’t help but smile.
After she wished us an excellent stay, the hospitality continued with a handwritten note on the cocktail-and-espresso-bar, “Welcome to Few & Far Luvhondo, we’re so pleased you made it to our forgotten mountains. We hope you’ll feel at home, find a little magic in the wild, and maybe even carry it with you when you leave.”
Dining with Purpose
Lunch was served by the infinity pool with special guest, Dr. Dawn Cory Toussaint, Few & Far’s resident ecologist and reserve manager. With their ambitious vision to protect, rewild, and restore a contiguous 100,000 hectares of the Soutpansberg Mountains, Dawn was among the first hires in 2021. Petite and cheery, she’s not exactly who you’d imagine behind the excavator removing invasive species or hauling out hundreds of poaching snares, but like all the women in Sarah’s orbit, they are never to be underestimated. While enjoying an exquisite lunch of beetroot gnocchi and brick-oven pizzas with veggies from their farm, Dawn shared the good news.
Conservation Goals & Achievements
With the hard work of Few & Far and the Endangered Wildlife Trust, 11,000 hectares of the Soutpansberg Mountains were recently granted formal environmental protection, and an additional 25,000 hectares are on track for later this year. We raised our glasses in celebration and admiration of Few & Far’s 50-year plan to save a mountain range and sequester 100,000 tons of carbon annually.
Behind the Scenes: A $100 per person per day conservation levy is included in a guest’s stay, which supports Few & Far’s carbon offsetting initiatives and ecosystem restoration efforts. For those who want to make a physical contribution, guests can participate in the “Conservationist for a Day” program, which involves rewilding and carbon capture by removing invasive species and planting native trees, shrubs, and grasses.
Female Empowerment
“Are you ready for your afternoon game drive?” said a young woman in shades of green. With Sarah continuing her role as managing partner of Enygma Ventures, an investment fund for African female entrepreneurs, it’s fitting that she hired Lizzie as a safari guide. Lizzie grew up eating many of her meals at a nature reserve’s soup kitchen, but would stay longer each day to volunteer and learn about the environment. Her hard work and passion earned her a scholarship for guiding school. Lizzie is one of Few & Far’s many female staff members and a part of a growing movement for women’s empowerment in the African tourism sector.
Soutpansberg Safaris
Over the course of our three-day stay, we hiked and drove across thousands of acres in this private reserve, from a secret 100-foot waterfall to the famed Waterpoort Gorge that remarkably cuts through their property. In all that time, we never saw another soul, but the presence of life was all around us. The Soutpansberg is home to 3,000 vascular plant species, 594 native tree species, 250 species of butterflies, and 60% of Africa’s bird species.
In addition to big game sightings, such as giraffes and Cape buffalos, we saw fresh leopard tracks and tusk gouges on trees from long-lost elephants — but Few & Far is working on that too. Collaborating with neighboring properties, they are tearing down fences to bring back the elephants someday and open wildlife corridors for an interconnected ecosystem.
Sleepout Under the Stars
Seeing tracks of leopards and African wild dogs is always exciting, except when you are trying to build courage for a “Sleep Out Under The Stars,” a bed on a mountaintop with nothing but a mosquito net to protect you from the elements (including sharp claws). Hiking at dusk to an undisclosed location, I’ll admit, I almost chickened out. Then I saw the twinkling lanterns, our friendly barman pouring welcome drinks, a beautifully set dinner table, and the fluffiest bed on a pedestal…I wanted to stay forever. Gazing at the stars from under our linen duvet and waking up to the sunrise cresting over our cozy toes, we had a remarkably good sleep.
Behind the Scenes: Setting up a pop-up camp is no small task. Hours before our arrival, the Few & Far team was hauling up furniture, setting up an outdoor kitchen, and creating outdoor living spaces with no nearby facilities. Though with enough planning, time, and coordination, they made the Sleep Out look seamless, and it became our favorite experience from two months in Africa.
Vhudziki Spa
While we could have used the Sleep Out’s glorious outdoor shower with panoramic views, we had an even better bathtime ahead. Under the shade of Luvhondo’s grandest baobab and a thatch-roof rondavel, the Vhudziki Spa is inspired by the indigenous Venda culture and their natural remedies. Nungo, a member of the tribe and wellness specialist, welcomed us in.
A bath infused with essential baobab oils and topped with bougainvillea awaited me on the stone patio, while Mike’s foot-bath tub was just baked in the sun by a local ceramist and undoubtedly adding minerals and good vibes to his treatment. With the twist of a rain stick, she had me pull a card, which read, “We are all connected to everyone and everything in the universe. Therefore, everything one does as an individual affects the whole.” While I’ve never been one for tarot, I left feeling a sense of gratitude for this special place and a responsibility to it.
The Best South Africa Glamping
As travelers, we have so many choices. By choosing glamping and conservation tourism operations like Few & Far Luvhondo, we drive positive change. “We desire not just to create access to extraordinary places in nature or simply be sustainable, but to be regenerative,” says Sarah Dusek. “And by being regenerative, I mean creating impact, moving the needle, solving some big world problems.” When outfitters think this way and more people support these changemakers, travel heads in the right direction.
This article was originally featured in our column for Glamping Business Americas, the premier trade publication for the outdoor hospitality industry. To stay up to date with glamping news and read our latest guest experience articles, subscribe to the (free) magazine.
For more South Africa glamping, check out our Sabi Sands article.