Transfrontier Park Destinations (TFPD) has a long-held vision of partnering with communities to commercialise their tourism assets, create sustainable job opportunities and encourage sustainable economic activity. It is with the invaluable support of homegrown, global companies that it’s been possible to build on this vision. One of TFPD’s projects is !Xaus Lodge, (pronounced Kaus, with [...]
!Xaus Lodge is the winner of the Most Compelling Sustainability Story for the WTM Africa Awards 2020 inaugural African Travel Week Travel & Tourism Awards. Here's the nomination that was submitted: The International Dark Sky Certification campaign led and developed by !Xaus Lodge for the !Ae !Hai Kalahari Heritage Park resulted in the Park’s certification [...]
Photograph by Melanie van Zyl National Geographic Traveler today launched its Best Trips 2020 - and selected as one of the 25 best places in the world to visit in 2020 is !Xaus Lodge. The author of the article, Ana Hogas had this to say about the nominations: "Now I can reveal [...]
Suzi Manley tells us about recent sightings at !Xaus Lodge “The big news of the moment is that we’ve had a remarkable ‘once in a lifetime’ spotting of two leopards at the Lodge. Not just tracks, and a fleeting sight, but proper sightings. Not much to tell. We've known they're around but didn't have a [...]
Story and photos by Louise de Waal Driving through the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park gate after a three-year absence, feels like returning to my happy space. This endless arid landscape of red dunes, dry river beds, and camel thorn trees, swallows me in my tiny rental car, but that doesn’t take away from the pure [...]
Transfrontier Parks Destinations (TFPD), South Africa’s leading group focused on promoting community-based tourism, has become Fair Trade Tourism certified. The group, which is headquartered in Cape Town, launched in 2004 with a mission to manage community-owned properties in transfrontier parks and adjacent conservation areas. Since inception, responsible tourism and conservation has been at the heart of [...]
Anthony Manley (Manager at !Xaus Lodge): First decent rain of the season. 20mm so far and it still looks like more to come. Just what the Kgalagadi needs to sprout some green. 27 December 2016 at 07:34 - Travel For Wildlife: Beautiful! We are so excited to visit in April. It has [...]
Reducing negative impacts on local communities, environments, and celebrating local culture. !Xaus Lodge, by bringing guests into the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park who pay a conservation levy, contributes directly to the conservation authority’s revenue and thus its ability to run one of the best desert parks in the world. At the lodge itself, !Xaus [...]
The ownership model and funding. !Xaus Lodge; the land, the infrastructure and the fittings and furnishings are wholly owned by the Mier and ǂKhomani San communities. They appointed commercial management and marketing operators, Transfrontier Parks Destinations (TFPD) on a long-term basis. TFPD have paid their Joint Management Board (JMB) a percentage of turnover [...]
!Xaus Lodge’s most significant achievement in reducing poverty among the local community In the 8 years of its operation under management of Transfrontier Parks Destinations (TFPD), !Xaus Lodge comprising a mere 24 guest beds, and located deep in the desert of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park (KTP), has contributed more than R28,9 million (US$1,9 [...]
