Josephina Mwashindange
KING NEHALE – The much anticipated Etosha King Nehale lodge will open its doors on 28 April and promises a truly Namibian experience.
The lodge, owned by Gondwana Collection Namibia, is situated about 15km south west of Omuthiya en route to Etosha National Park.
As an effort to diversify its ventures, which mostly blends with the culture and environment, Gondwana decided to expand its services to the northern part of Namibia, by constructing a luxurious lodge named after erstwhile Aandonga King Nehale LyaMpingana.
The former king attacked Imperial Germany’s Schutztruppe at Fort Namutoni in the Battle of Namutoni.
“We decided to go north, because the north is rich in culture and history, it was always a dream to open this area up. I am so proud and it is an honour to bring tourism to the north, it is really something special,” said Mannfred Goldbeck, the brand and marketing manager of Gondwana.
The must see, lodge is designed in a way that it honours culture. Above all, it presents the virgin land of Namibia with its wild animals roaming as it is situated under the King Nehale conservancy. The 40 roomed lodge offers services such as accommodation and also hosts day guests on request, in addition to game drives. The lodge has its interior designed in a way that it portray the Aawambo culture and their wealth, for instance the most common jewellery of Aawambo, “Ekipa” a traditional ornament that comes in a form of bracelets and rings, among others. In addition, it also features a Nguni cow. “The whole theme is influenced by royal and that is why it is important that our kings and queens should be present. It is all about celebrating a night in a presence of a king, be it kings of human or animals,” said Melanie van der Merwe, a lady behind the rooms decorations. Gondwana is a tourism company that started in the year 1995 and owns 25 lodges in Zambezi, Kunene and the southern parts of the country. It has about 1 100 employees who also serve as shareholders of the company. It is a leading tourism company that has its values in culture and nature. The company gets close to 250 000 guests per annum.
The lodge will have lots of fun activities such as drum beating for the guests, introducing people to African attire in a fun way, photo shoot in Oshiwambo traditional outfit as well as tasting traditional food and beers while relaxing around the lodge.
“Family and celebration is important in tourism and it unifies us, sitting around a table as a family, for me this is a preference,” stated Van der Merwe.
*Josephina Mwashindange is the Acting Senior Information Officer at the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology in Oshikoto region.