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Garden Route hotels
The number of hotels along the Garden Route has exploded in recent years, as more and more Europeans have caught on to this scenic stretch, a mix of California's Route 1 and Sonoma County. While the lion's share of lodgings lie in and around the towns of Plettenberg Bay (nicknamed "Plett") and Knysna—including grande dames like Pezula and the Plettenberg)—there are excellent choices along the entire length of the Garden Route, from oceanfront castles to treetop villas, eco-lodges to funky boutique hotels. It's best to select two or three hotels, driving from one to the next to sample the different scenery, wildlife, and eateries along the way.
Hotels along the Garden Route make the most of their surroundings—perching on cliffs, beside lakes, and along rivers and estuaries—making this an ideal trip for nature lovers and sporty types. Most hotels have guides or will help coordinate tours, and on-site activities can include kayaking, horseback riding, hiking, and bird-watching. Hotels in the area also tend toward the romantic: Fireplaces are de rigueur, and private retreats like Plettenberg Park and Phantom Forest are tucked away amid lush greenery. Hotel restaurants are some of the best eateries along the route, focusing on hearty fare made with local ingredients, washed down with South Africa's famous chenin blancs and cabernets.
Imagine a California hotel—beiges and pale blues, clean lines, massive windows onto the sea—crossed with an English manor house, and you've got the...more
This private home was extended five years ago into a ten-room boutique hotel perched dramatically on the edge of a cliff. From the rocks in front of the hotel,...more
Pezula's 78 rooms are scattered in groups of four across a headland that overlooks the Knysna lagoon to one side and the Indian Ocean on the other. Bordering...more
Melton Manor, a villa with accommodations for eight, is the latest addition to Kwandwe, a privately owned game reserve spanning 62,000 acres in the malaria-free...more
Part of "The Collection," a group of five-star hotels in the Cape Province from proprietor Liz McGrath (which includes The Cellars-Hohenhort and The...more
Ten of Kurland's 12 suites have the words "Paddock" or "Rose Garden" in their name, which tells you a lot about the hotel's twin obsessions: flowers and horses....more
The Addo Elephant National Park—home to black rhinos, lions, Cape buffalo, antelope, and the world's densest elephant population—is also home to...more
Built in the 1960s using stones carried by hand from the base of this astounding cliff, the original castle was for years the holiday retreat of the present...more
Set on a dramatic rocky bluff, this opulent boutique has views over Walker Bay—where southern right whales migrate between May and December and calve...more
Tsala's stone-and-wood suites are built on stilts at the end of a gorge some five miles from Plettenberg Bay. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlook a canopy of...more
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