The family owned Malealea Lodge in the remote village of Malealea is located in a fertile valley and is surrounded by beautiful mountains. It is a hiking and horseback riding paradise, and was one of our top five experiences during our four month visit!
First, lets have another look at where Lesotho is located...
Lesotho is totally surrounded by South Africa.
Once we crossed the border, we had to drive into the mountains and across the "Gates of Paradise" pass. The dirt road that leads to the lodge is about 7 kms and it's a good thing you need to drive slowly because you'll be too busy enjoying the fantastic scenery!
The road to Malealea Lodge in Lesotho.
We arrived at the lodge and got ourselves checked in. They have a variety of accommodation options, and while they're all pretty basic, they're clean and comfortable.
We stayed in the middle room for the first week.
And then when we came back from our overnight pony trek we stayed in this cute little rondoval.
Interior of the rondoval. I forgot to get an interior shot, so had to borrow this one from their website!
They also have camping area, and a lot of people who visit Lesotho do it while camping. And they have two communal kitchens too, so it's easy to make your own meals if you want to economize like we do. However, it's worthwhile taking advantage of their meal options for at least a few dinners...you won't go hungry, that's for sure!
T-bone steak for dinner!
The main reason we visited Lesotho was for the hiking and horseback riding. This is the best way to fully experience the scenery that this beautiful country has to offer. During our ten day visit, we did two guided hikes, one guided pony trek, and one guided overnight hike. As well as many little exploratory walks around the area on our own.
A typical rondoval house. Most locals still live in this type of housing.
Ruth and our guide hiking.
Kevin, admiring the scenery.
For our overnight excursion, we hired a guide and a horse from Malealea Lodge to carry our gear!
Wow.
Looking at these photos makes me want to go back again!
A road to paradise in Lesotho.
Lonely Planet travel guide says this about Malealea Lodge...
“Malealea Lodge is a century-old trading post transformed into a well-run lodge with pony treks and good meals."
Truly a beautiful place. One of our best travel experiences ever. We will go back someday.
Ruth, enjoying the view at Malealea Lodge.
Beautiful photos, Ruth and Kevin!
ReplyDeleteThank you Paula and Jerry, it was really hard not to take a good picture there, the scenery was amazing.
DeleteAgree - so beautiful! That was a great trip and we enjoyed tagging along with you on it.
ReplyDeleteThanks Connie and Barry, it was beautiful and like Kevin said, looking at the pictures sure makes us want to go back again.
DeleteThanks for sharing your African adventure with us. I'm still convinced that Ruth should be doing tourism brochures.
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome Chris. Sure hope that you and Juan can make a trip there sometime, we know that you would both love it.
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