Wetlands Country House & Sheds

Wetlands Country House & Sheds stands on Van Riebeeck Street in Wakkerstroom, with Martin's Dam and the Wakkerstroom River below the property and the wetland beyond. Wakkerstroom is one of the best-known birding destinations in the country, and the view from the breakfast room and the guesthouse deck is the reason most guests come.

Three Luxury Queen Rooms have en-suite bathrooms, fireplaces, Nespresso machines, mini fridges and private decks over the dam. The Luxury Garden Room is the single-bedded room, also en-suite and with a fireplace and a garden patio. Garden Room 5 is a newer semi-luxury room whose two singles make up as a king. Three self-catering Queen Sheds are open plan with equipped kitchens, lounge and dining areas, braais and verandahs over the river. Water Oak Cottage is private, with two en-suite queen rooms, an open-plan living and kitchen area, a braai, a verandah and two carports.

The kitchen serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, or packs them up for a day out, and a picnic can be set under the trees. Table reservations before check-in are essential. One unit is partly wheelchair-friendly.

Local qualified bird guides can be arranged through reception for the grassland and wetland endemics, and there is walking on the property along the river and up the bordering mountain. Trout and bass fishing, mountain-bike routes, horse riding and Ossewakop are all nearby, and the village keeps a set of historical buildings worth an hour.