After 2 long years of endless searching, as soon as Gaylyn and Maurice Hammond drove down the winding gravel road under the canopy of a lush indigenous forest, and crossed the little bridge over the Sabie River, they already knew they not only found their future family’s home, but also a very special place to start a lodge.

Timamoon was purchased in 1998 as a small banana and avocado farm, which is still in use today. It was then slowly transformed, year-by-year, into the unusual and exotic lodge it is today. The name Timamoon comes from an enchanted oasis called Timimoun in the Sahara, Algeria which, Gaylyn and Maurice visited on of their romantic adventures. The oasis is well known for it’s beautiful red mud Sudanese styled architecture. Both the style and ambience of Timamoon is encompassed by the couple’s 31 odd years of travels into the world’s more exotic and remote destinations. During these trips artefacts and items are hand picked and brought back to share with the guest’s visiting Timamoon. Be it a 4 poster beds from Zanzibar, antique temple windows from India or mammoth double wooden doors from Tibet, the collection is vast and holds a very sentimental place in the lives of the “Timamoon” family who still own and run the lodge together.

All three children are now actively involved in managing the lodge and are passionate about ensuring that it remains a very unique and personal place to visit.