Diamante Ontspanningsoord

Gauteng Province Phone: (012) 734-0222

01/03/2006 Diamante is approx 10 KM from Cullinan and about 20kms from the centre of Pretoria. The road out to Fourways is not too bad until you leave the freeway.  There are a lot of road works taking place and in some areas it is quite bumpy and slow moving. The gravel road leading to Diamante (+/- 8km) is well graded and maintained and apart from the red dust it is not a bad road at all. Traveling from the opposite direction adds a few KM to your trip but it was well worth the effort. Since Ben (the new manager) has taken over there has been quite a bit of upgrading.  He is extremely pleasant and also knows the land like the back of his hand. The lawns are establishing very nicely and they have plenty of irrigation which is evident by the nice green grass. There are facilities for a total of 150 sites once the camp has been fully renovated but at present about 70-80 sites are usable.  The camp is laid out in 3 levels.  The lower level at entrance has 10amp electrical boxes.  There are built in braais and although some of the braai grids are not in good shape the majority are usable and of a nice size for a large group.  There are dirt bins at each site which are cleaned daily by the ground staff as well as the braai being emptied of ash.  There is a lot of evidence of staff on site and the ablutions are cleaned twice daily and toilet paper is provided. The gate is locked at about 6.30 pm and during the day the manual boom is manned by one of the staff. They do allow day visitors and we noticed about 10-15 of them come in on Sunday.  The second camp is at a slightly higher level and not very well established and has two really old ablutions. The 3rd camp at the next level up is stunning and very private with brand new ablutions.  Very nicely tiled and clean.  A pity they only have showers as mothers with children prefer a bath.  There are no vanity slabs place your towel and toiletry bag on but the showers have double curtains with a raised seat between the curtains on which to place items and there are hooks for hanging up clothing.  This site lends itself to being the quiet area of the park and is also very pretty. There are two swimming pools, the smaller of the two is in slightly better condition.  The water is clean and the grass and paving surrounds are well maintained and very clean and tidy.  There are about 7 thatched bomas with new paving which are presumably for campers to set out tables and chairs to get out of the sun.  This is in good condition (obviously new).  The shop has limited stock. There is a putt putt course and a trampoline in good condition which is raised off the ground as well as a super tube into a catch pool.  The lawns and garden in the main entertainment area are stunning.  There is also a much larger boma, all under thatch which could be used for rally meetings, chairmans tea etc.  There are also two little pony's which will visit you at your site. They also have large facilities which can cater for up to 400 people.  These facilities are equipped with all kinds of equipment such as fridges, etc.