Cape Vidal Camp

Going in as a day visitor is a hassle, you van do it on line- but they do not have a scanner at the gate to scan your phone - meaning you have to go stand in the que anyway. Once inside the nature and views are amazing - that is until you need to make use of the public toilets.... it is DISGUSTING!!!! roofs falling in, no water - meaning what ever is being left behind is just heaping up. The showers at the beach very seldom work. The lookout points are rotting away with planks breaking and ropes hanging in tatters, with just a piece barrier tape. The side road boards are near unreadable!! Being a UNESCO site, the image of our pride in our heritage and this special place we have is seriously lacking!!!!

You cannot book here. You will be very dissapointed. The cabins are filthy, falling apart, the bedding, kitchen, everything, what can I say that is not wrong. The places does not get cleaned properly at all. You will go from cabin to cabin to try and find the least problematic. The thing is, if you complain, with booking agencies, they tell you, it is the first time they hear about it. Stay away, I have all the photos to proof it.

We've been here more than our fair share of times and it has always been nice and relaxing. Seeing some animals out by the cabins and all that. Besides the monkeys, everything was great. But coming to our most recent stay (be aware, we are still part ways through this trip until Sunday) it has been nothing but terrible. There has been no electricity at all since our arrival and apparently, it had been that way 3 days before we even arrived with no sign of them ficing it no matter how many times we brought it up with reception, who couldn't even provide us with proper information regarding it. This is unacceptable. For the amount we paid to be here for a week, it has not lived up to it's former reputation.

For what we paid, R3780 per night for 6 nights, totalling R22680. I think its fair to expect at the very least the basics to be right. Being someone who loves camping, I am really not fussy, but wanted something decent for my wife, kids and their friends. Unfortunately to total opposite. Various lights not working, electricity tripping, doors not locking, safe no key, open electrical sockets, torn window mesh, half broken misquito / monkey mesh, broken kitchen drawers, dark chocolate brown water, stinking sewer smell, shower drains flowing out under cabin into braai area. Broken braai, with no outside light. To top it all watch and jewelry stolen out of our bedroom on first morning as we could not lock it in safe. Roads danferously eroding away. Shop very expensive, poorly stocked. Parking area very badly eroded with only 4x4 vehicles that can access parking area. Many cabinsnit in use due to having rotten away and unusable. ISimangaliso blames KZN Ezemvelo Wildlife..... My view put the monkey on the back it belongs......sure iSimangaliso should be overseeying servixe standards, hut with their own being below terribly poor, perhaps it will be better to reinstate the KZN Ezemveli Wildlife with FULL management, FULL controll and FULL financial control and administratio so they can save the Reserve from Fast rotting decay its suffering under current management. The St Lucia Estuary ( no idea why its called this is packed with reeds with water not visible from most roads, not surw how much longer boats will be able to offee boat cruises If you wonder off more than 300m either North or South from Vidal beach, the rubbish is disturbing and very concerning for birds, animals, fish and turtles, a threat to many of the animals

Where to start....We hired a 4 sleeper cabin (Cabin no 28) from 26 - 31 December 2023. Upon arrival at 4pm, we found that the stove was still dirty from previous occupants, the bathroom hadn't been cleaned, and all the dustbins were still full. Housekeeping was called, and a clean up was done at about 6pm and apologies issued. We then found that the stove didn't work properly - you turn one plate on, and the oven switches on (and doesn't turn off even when you turn the plate off). Slight fire hazard in a log cabin! The mozzie netting over each window had huge holes in. The kitchen light didn't work - housekeeping replaced the bulbs the next day, and then the entire light, this didn't work so no kitchen light for the stay. The outside shower was completely broken and overgrown, housekeeping came to look at it, and left it untouched. Then the water and electricity failed for the next 3 days due to some cable fault (management tried to blame it on loadshedding). When the electricity and water finally came back on, our geyser kept tripping so no hot showers. When it rained, the roof leaked directly onto the beds. World Heritage Site??? Not a chance - World Embarrassment Site. Clearly no maintenance has been done for years, and despite the hefty price tag you pay per cabin, you get very little for it (other than a depressing feeling that the money paid definitely doesn't get used for what it should be used for). We'll definitely not be staying in the cabins again, and suggest that anyone thinks twice before choosing them. Ezemvelo Wildlife has a monopoly on the accommodation, and their attitude looks very much to be a "take it or leave it", there is no commitment evident to provide any kind of facilities commensurate to the beauty of the area. Very sad.

The location is wonderful but the facilities were terrible. The water from the taps in our cabin was a dark brown colour, the cabin was generally dilapidated, the toilet leaked, there was a lack of electric sockets, etc. The shop had little in stock and closed at lunchtime. It’s a sad disappointment to see somewhere with such potential fall so short.