LOCATION
Located
in the lush, sub-tropical village of Kloof, Protea
Hotel Makaranga is set amongst 30 acres of lush vegetation.
The village of Kloof lies approximately 30 kilometres
from KwaZulu Natal's largest city, Durban, and about
50 kilometres from the provincial capital, Pietermaritzburg.
From Durban's beaches, one of South Africa's premier
holiday destinations, the road rises to 550 meters
above sea level, leaving behind the sometimes oppressive
heat and humidity of the coast.
Kloof
borders the Krantzkloof Nature Reserve, run by the
Natal Parks Board since the 1950's and featuring a
variety of wildlife and birds making their homes in
the indigenous forest habitat. The reserve is centred
on the Kloof Gorge (Kloof is the Afrikaans word for
"gorge" or "ravine"), through
which runs the Molweni River. The river features a
series of spectacular waterfalls, a short distance
from the popular picnic area. In the village itself,
Kloof boasts several shopping centres, all of the
facilities you would expect to find in a small town,
as well as several top public and private schools.
Kloof
does not experience extremes of either heat or cold
and is therefore one of the most desirable residential
areas in the country, and it's climate one of the
healthiest in the world. Summer temperatures range
from 18°C to 30°C, with the temperatures in
winter averaging between 11°C and 20°C. The
rainy season falls over summer (November to March),
with a little over 1000 millimetres of rain being
recorded on average each year.
NEARBY
ATTRACTIONS
The
Valley of a Thousand Hills offers:
- Shopping
and dinner theatre (Heritage Market)
- Cultural
Village with Zulu dancing and a safari park (PheZulu)
- Golf
course nearby
- Horse
riding and polo at Shongweni Polo Club (9km distance)
- Hiking
and walking in the spectacular Kloof Gorge, Kranzkloof
Nature Reserve, Shongweni dam etc.
- Arts
and crafts (beadwork, ceramics, woodwork, wire art
etc.)
- Adventure
tourism (paragliding, quad biking, watersports and
more can be arranged)
- Steam
train the first and last Sunday of every month departing
from Kloof station for a fun day out.
For
more information on what attractions are in the area
or what is playing at the nearby dinner theatre, please
email email
us
Useful
Links
- www.1000hills.kzn.org.za
- www.phezulusafaripark.co.za
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