Giants Trail Huts

This is a general notice to all who use the Giants Trail Huts. Recently my family booked the Swiman Hut only to find another group had booked it for the same night. We have nothing against sharing with fellow berg lovers but sharing close quarters with 20 strangers can alter the ambiance a little. I expressed this to KZN Wildlife who offered the following response:

"I have come to the conclusion that Ezemvelo is at fault in that our reservations failed to inform you that the unit that you booked was a trail hut that can house various groups up to a maximum of 30 people at any given time, even if they are from different groups.

I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience that you and your family experienced.

Further to this, the relevant reservations manager have addressed this issue with the booking consultants to ensure that correct information is given to avoid future miscommunication and complaints. In addition, we have requested that visitors are also informed of this by adding this information on their reservation confirmation."

My suggestion is that possibly for a suitable minimum fee the Hut could be booked exclusively for the night. Thought I would post it to the forum as a heads up and for input.

When I booked Swiman Hut last year (the day before going there) I was told that we may be sharing it and that that is standard protocol. This weekend my group and a group from Jo'burg had both booked Bannerman Hut, same story. If I'm correct, EKZN policy is that mountain huts are hiking accommodation, not general accommodation (even though you can use it for other purposes under their policy) and thus the hut is shared whenever more than one group books it.