North West Province - From Magaliesberg Mountain Ranges to the Vaal River
With Mafikeng as its capital city, the North West Province of South Africa is located to the west of the densely populated Gauteng Province with Limpopo Province to the northeast, Free State to the southeast, Northern Cape to the southwest, and neighboring Botswana to the north. The majestic Magaliesberg mountain range extends from Pretoria through to Rustenburg and the Vaal River winds its way along the southern border of the province. The terrain of the North West Province is primarily flat, consisting of grasslands dotted with trees and shrubs providing ideal game spotting conditions.
The mining of gold, uranium, platinum, and diamonds form the backbone of North West Province's economy, providing jobs for around twenty-five percent of the workforce. Farming and tourism are also important sources of income, with Sun City, an upscale entertainment and casino complex, providing jobs and bringing revenue into the province, while the "Big 5" Pilanesberg Game Reserve and a number of privately owned game farms offer an authentic South African bushveld experience. Many North West Province towns, such as Hartebeespoort, Rustenburg and Groot Marico offer city dwellers from Pretoria and Johannesburg easy access to some peace and tranquility without having to travel too far.
User Comments & Reviews
2010-01-03 17:10:31
Aasvoelkrans will never see me again. We went out for the day and was disgusted with what we got for the price they ask for the day. Most of the ladies toilets were out of order. Then we got to the swimming pool it was disgusting, a brown green colour. If you want to you go on the supertube you have to pay. So what do you get for your entrance fee, dirty swimming pools. The putt-putt course is also untidy, the grass is so long.
2009-12-11 12:47:31
Please could you let me know of a few picnic and braai spots in and around Hartebeespoort. Thank you
2009-09-28 11:49:59
Our family camped at Aasvoëlkrans this past weekend (24 - 27 September 2009) and we were all very disappointed. Firstly the office staff were very unfriendly and bossy. The ablution blocks were inadequate - 3 toilets, 3 showers (you stand in water after your shower because the floors always get wet), 1 bath and three basins for at least 100 women (no soap to wash your hands with). The ablution blocks are cleaned once a day. There are no cemented pathways to the ablution blocks, only sand so your feet are always dirty. There is an unprotected, not very visible at night, pool in the middle of the camping area - no fence - very unsafe. The caravan and tent sites are extremely small. The back of our neighbour's tent touched the end of our ground sheet. Our electrical box did not work. We got our electricity from my sister's site and our neighbour got his from us. We complained about the box but no effort was made to fix it. There is no parking space for your vehicle at your site. Only 4 people per stand allowed - there is no space for another tent. The shaded ports where we were did not have braai areas - ever heard about a camp site that did not have a braai area? The taps are on the same pole as the electrical box and there it no cement bowl or hole or something to catch the waste water. If we rinsed something under the tap (the water smelt like sewerage) the waste water would run under our neighbour's tent. The shaded ports are so high they provide no shade at all and there are a lot of thorns - no cement to camp on or grass. The stands are also very uneven. Our caravan stood on fire wood with the wheels on the one side dangling in the air and it was still not very balanced. The put-put course needs a lot of attention. There are not a lot of clubs and when we wanted to go and play there were only 3 - we were 5 that wanted to play. I was given the 3 clubs and 5 balls and was charged as 4 players - one 2 year old, one 4 year old, a 10 year old and two adults. They offer bicycles for rent as an activity but when I wanted to rent one I was told that they are all out of order. A group of people from Johannesburg were camping near us. They have an adopted little black boy (no offence intended) who they have had since he was 4 weeks old. They were told that Aasvoëlkrans did not allow blacks (again no offence intended) in the resort and when they phoned to ask about this they were told that their case is different. I did see some coloured people (again no offense intended) camping there though. Finally three very disgusting comments. Friends of my sister were camping in another part of the camp site and used a different ablution block. There were no signs on the doors to say that the drains are septic tanks and that sanitary towels and tampons should not be disposed of in them. There are also no bins provided for these items so needless to say these items were thrown into the toilets. The drains overflowed and the used items were seen to be laying in a ditch leading from the said drains. I don't know it this is true, I did not see it myself but I have no reason to think that my sister's friends, both mother and daughter, would lie about it. On our first morning there the men in our group reported disgustedly that some person had taken poop and rubbed it on the seat of one of the toilets in the men's ablution section. The paper that he used to do this disgusting deed was left laying next to one of the basins. Another morning they reported that someone had chucked a toilet roll (of which there were never enough to get through the day with) in the toilet and pooped all over it. My brother actually apologised to the cleaner for her having to clean after the white trash person that did it. I am afraid that that is the type of person that this resort attracts. Others were running around with a blow-up doll. A joke is a joke but people must be careful with their jokes when there are kids around. All in all I can honestly say that this is not the resort for enthusiastic but discerning campers.
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