Hamba Kancane Maafrica Guesthouse

The room behind the garage was filthy. The bed sagged in the middle, and the old bedding was both torn and dirty. The bathroom was clean, but there was nothing to clean up with after a bath, not even a mop. We had booked two nights and ended up leaving the next morning. The owner shouted at me and insulted me for arriving after 6:30 pm, and was extremely disrespectful and arrogant. You also need an extra R200 if you're driving late. The stay was traumatic, and there were plenty of other problems too. Only book here if you're desperate, otherwise look elsewhere.

The owner treated us like children and wouldn't listen. We later felt she was treating us badly because we booked through booking.com and she thought she was losing out. I strongly suggest avoiding this place. We waited two to three hours for her to arrive and let us in. We'd booked because the listing on booking.com said the chalets were self-catering, but she denied that. Since we'd already bought groceries, we asked to cook and were charged an extra R200 for electricity. The next morning, she asked how we'd slept. We honestly said the place was dusty and unclean, and I and two others had to take allegex. On Saturday morning, we showed her a broken iron after she'd said we'd have to pay R500 or more if we broke anything. She denied it was already broken, so it seemed she was blaming us for it. She was rude, and the whole stay was one disorganized problem after another.

It was basically somewhere to sleep. We stayed in an upstairs room and could hear everyone talking. My aunt and mother-in-law eventually moved to the outside flat or room because that was the only one with a shower. The host was accommodating, but the guesthouse needs a lot of care. The TVs are there but don't work, the braai is rusted through, and the microwave turns on without heating anything. There's an alarm and beams, which is good, though it felt like a prison: be back by 10 pm or she sets the alarm and locks the gate. Breakfast was offered at check-in, but when we asked for it Tuesday morning, nobody came or offered it again.

I lost my money and had to find somewhere else to stay. I booked online, then got delayed by fog on the way. The owner had said someone would stay to hand over the keys for an extra charge, but canceled my booking while I was in Sabie. When I arrived, I honked once. Some guests were complaining that the electricity kept tripping, and she called the police. The owner was very rude. I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone.