With 2019 done and dusted and the new decade already in full swing … we thought it would be fun to give you an insight into some amusing; interesting and quirky facts and figures from the past year. 2019 was a year to remember with many highlights and now we are excited to focus and accomplish even more in this new decade.
All Who Come As Guests Leave As Friends
In 2019 AtholPlace Hotel & Villa welcomed 4129 guests from 60 different countries including 16 African countries. We said “hello” to 265 children and rolled out the red carpet for a Duke, a Duchess and their little one. Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge recordeda total of 3540 bed nights and Morukuru Family Madikwe had a total of 4079 bed night bookings. Wow!
Eat, drink and be merry!
The most popular drink on a game drive is a Gin & Tonic sundowner and at Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge 220 bottles of Inveroche Gin were consumed of which 160 bottles were the Amber Gin.
We served a grand total of 1230 bottles of red wine at Morukuru Family Madikwe and squeezed 10 000 oranges at AtholPlace Hotel & Villa for our daily fresh orange juice. AtholPlace Hotel & Villa broke the baking record with 7000 cookies making it out of our ovens under the careful eye of our pastry chef. Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge reported that coffee was a bestseller at Bites and the most popular seafood choice amongst guests is Kabeljou.
All creatures great and small
The humble Impala is the most commonly spotted animal at Morukuru Family Madikwe. Recordkeepers on the ground at Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge tell us the red-winged Starling is the most noted bird; the bontebok is the most sighted terrestrial animal and the Southern Right Whale is the winner in the aquatic stakes.
Say what!
There was a tie for first prize for the funniest guest comments at Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge. It came down to “the dunes are very sandy” and “This fish tastes fishy.” A close runner-up goes to an interesting, FAQ “At what time do you feed the whales?” Which is just as amusing as “when do you let the animals out” at Morukuru Family Madikwe.
Flats, flats and more flats.
You can’t live and work in the wild without a few occupational hazards. Flat Tyres are one of those for sure. Morukuru Family Madikwe reported 126 Flat Tyres for 2019 and Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge clocked up 6. These figures include flat tyres of guests travelling to our properties as well as our own vehicles. A quick Google search reveals that changing a tyre takes approximately 15 minutes (if you are an expert and really quick)...so we spent a minimum 33 hours getting people back on the road. Whew!
Relax, you’re on Morukuru Time...
Guests at AtholPlace Hotel & Villa rate guided tours to Soweto and the Apartheid museum as their favourite excursion. Sandboarding is the top-ranked activity at Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge with visitors enjoying on average 7 runs down the pristine white dunes. The interactive Marine Walk comes in a close second on guests’ wish lists. Evidence from Morukuru Family Madikwe backs up our understanding that downtime is the main aim - with the spa therapists clocking up an impressive 20 hours over just two days (that translates to 20 treatments over 2 days - which we can further breakdown into over one treatment per waking hour!)
Memories are the best souvenirs
The most popular souvenir from the curio shop at Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge is our homemade bubble bath - guests can’t get enough of that. The housekeeping team at AtholPlace Hotel & Villa tell us that most nicked item from the hotel is the laundry bag (naughty naughty). Binoculars don’t’ last long at our shop at Morukuru Family Madikwe - our team replenishes stock every week.
Numbers Rule The Universe (Pythagoras)
Calculations at Morukuru Family Madikwe show that we carried out 10 Rhino Notching’s, we collared 1 Female Wild dog and we counted about 1200 elephants in the reserve at the last game count.
It turns out that that ancient Greek philosopher guy was right after all - numbers are super-important.
Eat, drink and be merry!
The most popular drink on a game drive is a Gin & Tonic sundowner and at Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge 220 bottles of Inveroche Gin were consumed of which 160 bottles were the Amber Gin.
We served a grand total of 1230 bottles of red wine at Morukuru Family Madikwe and squeezed 10 000 oranges at AtholPlace Hotel & Villa for our daily fresh orange juice. AtholPlace Hotel & Villa broke the baking record with 7000 cookies making it out of our ovens under the careful eye of our pastry chef. Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge reported that coffee was a bestseller at Bites and the most popular seafood choice amongst guests is Kabeljou.
All creatures great and small
The humble Impala is the most commonly spotted animal at Morukuru Family Madikwe. Recordkeepers on the ground at Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge tell us the red-winged Starling is the most noted bird; the bontebok is the most sighted terrestrial animal and the Southern Right Whale is the winner in the aquatic stakes.
Say what!
There was a tie for first prize for the funniest guest comments at Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge. It came down to “the dunes are very sandy” and “This fish tastes fishy.” A close runner-up goes to an interesting, FAQ “At what time do you feed the whales?” Which is just as amusing as “when do you let the animals out” at Morukuru Family Madikwe.
Flats, flats and more flats.
You can’t live and work in the wild without a few occupational hazards. Flat Tyres are one of those for sure. Morukuru Family Madikwe reported 126 Flat Tyres for 2019 and Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge clocked up 6. These figures include flat tyres of guests travelling to our properties as well as our own vehicles. A quick Google search reveals that changing a tyre takes approximately 15 minutes (if you are an expert and really quick)...so we spent a minimum 33 hours getting people back on the road. Whew!
Relax, you’re on Morukuru Time...
Guests at AtholPlace Hotel & Villa rate guided tours to Soweto and the Apartheid museum as their favourite excursion. Sandboarding is the top-ranked activity at Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge with visitors enjoying on average 7 runs down the pristine white dunes. The interactive Marine Walk comes in a close second on guests’ wish lists. Evidence from Morukuru Family Madikwe backs up our understanding that downtime is the main aim - with the spa therapists clocking up an impressive 20 hours over just two days (that translates to 20 treatments over 2 days - which we can further breakdown into over one treatment per waking hour!)
Memories are the best souvenirs
The most popular souvenir from the curio shop at Morukuru Ocean House and Beach Lodge is our homemade bubble bath - guests can’t get enough of that. The housekeeping team at AtholPlace Hotel & Villa tell us that most nicked item from the hotel is the laundry bag (naughty naughty). Binoculars don’t’ last long at our shop at Morukuru Family Madikwe - our team replenishes stock every week.
Numbers Rule The Universe (Pythagoras)
Calculations at Morukuru Family Madikwe show that we carried out 10 Rhino Notching’s, we collared 1 Female Wild dog and we counted about 1200 elephants in the reserve at the last game count.
It turns out that that ancient Greek philosopher guy was right after all - numbers are super-important.
