Cybele - A profile

Here is an overview of Cybele Lodge.

A Brief History of this Magical Lodge

At the end of a purple carpet of fallen Jacaranda blossoms, is a lodge of subtle decadence - Cybele Forest Lodge & Health Spa - set in the Mpumalanga lowveld between Hazyview and White River, close to the Kruger National Park and the private game lodges.

Like the Greek Goddess of the same name, Cybele changes magically with the seasons, enhanced by the moving colours of indigenous and exotic vegetation. Tree species such as Turpentine and Jacaranda, Tibouchina and Cassia exude their scent and colours adding to the tranquillity and sensuality of Cybele Forest Lodge & Health Spa.

The lodge is steeped in history; a century ago Cybele was a hunting lodge, a base from where men would embark upon hunting expeditions on horseback. Subsequently it was turned into a coffee farm and a guest house which was named Cybele Forest Lodge.

Cybele Forest Lodge & Health Spa has magical appeal. Upon visiting Cybele more than 30 years ago, the owners instantly fell in love with the old farmhouse and bought it with the intention of turning it into a weekend escape for people searching for peace and tranquillity away from the chaos and pressures of city life.

The farmhouse had only 7 bedrooms then, one central dining room, and an old reservoir that served as a swimming pool, a diesel generator, donkey boilers and lumpy mattresses! With their ambitious personalities and visionary imaginations, Rupert and Barbara got to work and in 1983 started with the first major changes. They introduced electricity and built the first of 4 Paddock Suites with outdoor showers and private pools, and included fireplaces, mini-bars, CD players and TV/ Video units. All of these suites and indeed all the rooms at Cybele are fully air-conditioned, and now is one of only eleven destination Clarins Spa’s in the country.

Today there is accommodation for 28 people and each of the various suites, cottages and paddocks have been individually decorated and personalised. All 6 suites have private heated swimming pools, ideal for an evening swim under a wide, enormous sky. Even the main pool is heated for year round swimming.

Barbara Jeffries’ personality is as big as the sky and her passion for beautiful things can be seen in everything, especially the food. Over the years she has traveled the culinary centres of the world and has perfected the fineries of different cooking styles, composing spectacular menus that combine classical French and traditional English.

The lodge’s recently expanded spa has been appropriately named The Spa in the Forest because it’s exactly that; an idyllic escape among the sounds of nature. This Tuscan styled hideaway provides guests with a wide range of therapies and treatments to revitalise and enrich body and soul. At the Spa in the Forest, water therapy is a pure sensorial indulgence and a large, open-air granite Jacuzzi bath in its own courtyard will soak away big city stress, plus a new indoor hydrotherapy bath and double treatment room … ideal for couples! And if you’re looking for something more rigorous, the Gymnasium at Cybele equipped with state of the art equipment is now open as well as Therapy, a relaxing espresso, cappuccino and cocktail bar with an exclusive gift emporium.

At Cybele there’s a lot to explore including forest walks to the nearby waterfall, helicopter flips or simply soaking up the warm sun at one of the swimming pools. But, at the end of the day, it’s about getting away from it all and simply relaxing in the calm of a living forest.

Cybele Forest Lodge & Health Spa epitomises that welcome home feeling with personal hospitality from well-trained, long-serving staff, relaxed yet luxurious surroundings, delicious food and the distant roar of lions in the Kruger Park.

If you haven’t been, you’ll never know …