Written by Tamaryn Williams at RedLip PR

I went on an adventure with strangers to Inverdoorn Private Game Reserve. Just a few hours outside of Cape Town, a cheetah conservation sanctuary and safari destination awaited our arrival. We all met at a central point in Cape Town where we were soon collected by our transfer. So excited, conversation just flowed in between our mouthfuls of delicious Jason’s bakery croissants. Writers, influences and content creators – all thrown into one vehicle… a team of creatives ready for adventure.

On arrival, we were greeted by the Inverdoorn team and what a warm greeting it was. Literally about 30 degrees – but they cooled us all down with champagne and cool beverages. After being shown to our beautiful rooms where a welcome basket of goodies awaited us, we all met for a private lunch of three exceptional courses. The very talented chefs masterfully combined vegan dishes with a more conventional style of cooking and all with a wildlife flare. We had some down time after lunch before our first safari journey and with full bellies lazing by the pool was in definite order.

With phones charged, excitement rampant and the majestic animals awaiting us, we were gifted a XXX hat before departing on our sunset safari at 5pm. On route to the Western Cape Cheetah Conservation Sanctuary, which was our priority for this trip, we met some giraffe, zebra and wildebeest, all feeding before sunset.  We were lucky enough to catch all four of the cheetahs relaxing in the last few rays of sun while learning about reintroduction into the wild and how the entire process works.

Before heading back for the evening, we were treated to a full gin bar with snacks at the sundowners hut complete with a spectacular view of a red sunset to properly set the mood for the cooling evening. Back in the vehicle headed towards to the comforts of our accommodation and another delectable meal, we made a final stop at the watering hole to see a crash of hippopotamus wading in the waters.

On our return, the stars were already out in all of their fiery glory and we all separated for a quick freshen up in our rooms (where we were met with more surprises and a beautiful turn down) before meeting for dinner.

Dinner was another tasteful delight of mixed dietary preferences abundant with champagne and enthusiastic conversation. The perfectly lit tables, superb service, scrumptious food and great conversation was the perfect ending to what I couldn’t believe was still our first day at Inverdoorn. Before we all went to bed, we snuggled under blankets on one of the chalet roofs and looked to the heavens and stargazed whilst finishing the last of our drinks.

Up before the sun, I decided to head to the pool side and watch the sun rise. What a sight to behold. Everyone started peeking out their heads and we grabbed some morning coffees to warm up and headed to the vehicle for our morning game drive. This morning’s mission was to see lions. On the way we saw giraffes, zebras, a few birds, wildebeest, elephants and rhinoceroses. The rhinos – who were both curious and annoyed – walked right past our vehicle which led to a mild heart attack on my part. As nerve wracking as it was, it was still incredible all the same.

We made it to the lions and what a humbling experience it was. We were mere metres away from one extremely large male with a passive female relaxing in the shades of the trees. Our guides explained their rescue and how they have been rehabilitating them. Education around rehabilitation and conservation goes an extremely long way in understanding the importance of the work they do and why they do it. We watched them for a few more moments before heading out to the huts for coffee and biscuits where we further chatted about all things Inverdoorn before heading back for a hearty breakfast.

Breakfast was a buffet of deliciousness with warm and cool foods to choose from. After eating, we  finished packing and were ready to be collected from our rooms. A big thank you to Inverdoorn for such a magical experience. Our rangers were full of knowledge and passion for their jobs, our hosts were extremely accommodating and altogether it was simply a truly magical trip.