Mirage against the red sands of Sossusvlei

The Leading Lodges portfolio contains tourism establishments of equal standards all over Namibia. The Van de Vijver family’s next step was to acquire land near Sossusvlei for their first establishment in the south.

The original building of Le Mirage, which now serves as reception and library, was built by Eric Hesemans, who also constructed Kulala Desert Lodge, more than a decade ago. Eric sold the building and a section of the farm Geluk to the Van de Vijvers to develop the lodge to fit in with their Leading Lodges concept.

The luscious bedroom at Le Mirage Desert Lodge

Le Mirage Desert Lodge is situated 21 km from the Sesriem Gate on the C26. Built entirely in local, natural, rough stone by 300 Namibian workers, the main lodge was completed within six months.

Most of the ironmongery and carpentry was done on site. The 25 spacious luxury rooms are air-conditioned and lavishly decorated with touches of exotic Morocco and colours of India.

Le Mirage is not merely the mirage of an oasis. It is an oasis. Enormous wooden entrance gates in the fort-like structure of the main building open onto a lush green courtyard with a sparkling pool.

All rooms open onto the courtyard, with staircases in the two entrance towers leading to the top floor and two open-air suites on top of the towers.

A desert welcome at Sossusvlei

The spa facilities are located in the main building and include treatment rooms for specialised massages, aromatherapy baths, Thai massages and de-stress and beauty treatments. Well-trained personnel offer treatments throughout the day and evening.

Since the early nineties Eric Hesemans, who is now responsible for the activities on Le Mirage, conducted balloon trips from Sesriem Camp at the entrance to Sossusvlei.

Quad-bike trips, nature drives, excursions into Sossusvlei, sundowners in the dunes and balloon trips are conducted from the lodge as an added service to guests. A Sky Shuttle is available for transfers from Windhoek’s Hosea Kutako International Airport to the lodge, and from there to any other tourism destination in Namibia. A normal road-shuttle service is also available to and from Windhoek.

This article appeared in the Oct/Nov ‘04 edition of Travel News Namibia.