The story so far... Inspired by the natural beauty of South Africa, the cultural and societal richness and the progressive attitude of the country, Stuart and Louisa McLachlan decided to buy some land in a Private Wildlife Estate and an accommodation establishment and vineyard called 5 Mountains Lodge. The former being a wonderful piece of Bushveld with a view over 30 kilometres to the mountains framing the Blyde River Canyon, and the latter was at the time a rather tired looking guest house but in a dramatic Cape Winelands location.

“We felt that South Africa had so much to offer tourists, but some of the classy establishments were becoming so expensive. We felt inspired to invest in building and renovating two boutique establishments that bring elegance, luxury, and contact with some of the most beautiful places on earth at affordable prices” says Louisa.

So the adventure began and in 2001, Exclusive Escapes cc was set up with accommodation, food, dining, weddings, conferences and other activities being the ingredients that represent the business. As you can imagine there is always excitement to be had and we have enjoyed our fair share of “uniquely African” events.

Exclusive Escapes and our experiences can now reach out via this blog and we look forward to engaging anyone who may be interested in the future of these wonderful places.