FIRE IT UP
The warmest local weekend getaways for winter
THE PRESIDENT, CAPE TOWN
FEW hotels come better positioned than The President, which gazes loftily down on Bantry Bay. It’s not quite Art Deco but looks like it could be and if you like your hotels in classic style with lots of light and space and a feeling like you just walked into the 1930s — in a good way — then The President ticks all the boxes. It’s quite big as hotels go — 349 rooms — but the advantage of bigger places is more bars, restaurants and lounges. The terrace overlooks the Atlantic and is a fine place to while away those rare, calm and sunlit Cape winter days.
The hotel is offering a “winter warmer special” dinner with such delights as braised shoulder of lamb and Thai green chicken curry — cold season comfort food if ever there was any. — Paul Ash RATES: The hotel is offering a stay for three, pay for two special until August 31 as well as a Family Saver rate of R1 500 per night in a 1-bed apartment until July 31. The Winter Warmer dining special starts from R100pp, until August 31.
CONTACT: Tel: 021 434 8111, email reservations@presidenthotel.co.za or see presidenthotel.co.za.
ARNISTON SPA HOTEL, ARNISTON
THE hotel is the centrepiece of this classic Cape fishing village with its thatched cottages, its wooden fishing boats pulled up on the beach, and dunes rolling back from the sea. Those little boats sometimes bring in the catch that ends up on the hotel’s menu — it really doesn’t get fresher than that.
The Arniston Hotel is a marvellous refuge from winter storms. Ask for one of the luxury sea-facing rooms, light the fire (yes, a real fireplace!) and from your balcony watch the Northwester drive the spindrift across that green sea. (Spare a thought for the castaways of the East Indiaman Arniston which ran aground here one gale-swept morning in 1815.) The food is unfussy and excellent. Should you be so inclined, there is the very civilised touch of do-it-yourself Bloody Marys every morning at breakfast. — Paul Ash RATES: The hotel is currently offering a special rate of R799 per person sharing per night including dinner and breakfast. CONTACT: Tel: 028 445 9000, email info@arnistonhotel.com or see arnistonhotel.com.
THE LORD MILNER, MATJIESFONTEIN
NOW the wind can come scouring off the Karoo in winter and the sky can glower and there will be snow sometimes on the Langeberg. That’s when you want to be cosied-up in the coffee shop — or the bar — at the Lord Milner in Matjiesfontein, recharging on Karoo lamb and good whiskey and listening to the bartender’s ghost stories. With its fire blazing in the sitting room, its towering gum trees and old fuel pumps, the piano in the bar and the trains hooting at night, James Douglas Logan’s Karoo folly is always interesting — I only wish that it wasn’t so far away. Some day I will spend more than just one night there. — Paul Ash RATES: From R1 272 (double) during the week. There are also various cottages and villas (from R1 200 to R3 420) as well as the Matjies Motel rooms in the hotel’s expansive gardens (from R800).
CONTACT: Tel: 023 561 3011, email milner2@mweb.co.za, or see matjiesfontein.com.
DRAKENSBERG SUN, CENTRAL DRAKENSBERG
THIS classy hotel in the shadow of the ’Berg offers a fine winter escape amid gorgeous, rolling greenery edged by some of the most astounding peaks, including Champagne Castle, South Africa’s second-highest mountain. The enormous, dark-wood dining room is the heart of the hotel. Breakfast is the usual bonanza of eggs and bacon or pancakes or waffles or, go on, just have a bit of everything because you’ll be needing that energy for all the day’s activities. There is a tree-top canopy tour — a dreamy morning spent suspending disbelief as you soar over the Blue Grotto forest on lines that get progressively more hair-raising as you go — mountain-biking, horse-riding and canoeing. This is a year-round destination but in winter you should find snow on the mountains, a roaring fire in the foyer and hot chocolate on tap. — Elizabeth Sleith RATES: The hotel is offering a “Mountain
Winter Break” special at R1 999 per room for two adults, including dinner, bed and breakfast. The offer is available until August 30 but not during peak periods, school holidays or long weekends.
CONTACT: Tel: 036 468 1000, email drakensbergsun.reservations@tsogosun.com or see tsogosunhotels.com.
THE PROTEA EDWARD, DURBAN
YOU can’t beat Durban for a winter getaway. In winter, Durban’s climate is actually useful for someone not from there — the air is silky and not too warm, not too cold. Staying on the beachfront always gives me a kick, as does checking in to the Edward, a former grand dame built by an American insurance salesman and movie promoter named Isadore Schlesinger. The Edward’s Art Deco façade is one of the most compelling sights on the beachfront and even if times are a little tougher these days a sense of superiority lingers. It’s also in the heart of Durban and that’s what counts. We strolled on the beach at sunset. Mothers were towelling off their tired kids — you can swim in winter, because the sea is year-round usable — fishermen were heading along the piers for a night’s fishing and the funfair was still in full swing.
The front rooms have proper, man-sized balconies with chairs, where you can sit in the early mornings with a cup of coffee, watching the sun rise and pondering the reason why there are so many ships anchored in the roadstead. — Paul Ash RATES: The hotel has family and standard ooms from R1 287 per night. The rate is for the room only, minimum stay two nights. CONTACT: Email reservations@proteaedward.co.za or see marriott.com.
THE OYSTER BOX, DURBAN
THIS is one of the classic South African beachfront hotels, famed for its lighthouse views, fine dining and Skebenga the Cat. Once it had that seaside hotel aroma of Sunday roasts and sea air but since its two-year revamp in 2009, the Oyster Box has joined the world stage of luxury hotels. The Oyster Box has 86 rooms, suites and villas. Every room is different but all combine old-worlde charm with modern comfort. On the lower ground floor with its own terrace, our cabana provided a view of the sea, the ships on the horizon and a “close up” of the lighthouse. There are fresh oysters and champagne for breakfast, and the Ocean Terrace offers pizzas from its wood-fired oven and freshly caught seafood. The curry buffet is always a hit. — Nivashni Nair RATES: The hotel offers various packages including a night’s accommodation in a luxury sea-facing room for two people (mid-week) for R2 080 per person sharing. The offer includes breakfast and the Curry Buffet dinner.
CONTACT: Tel: 031 514 5000, email reservations@oysterbox.co.za or see oysterboxhotel.com.
WALKERSONS, DULLSTROOM
WALKERSONS is 17km from Dullstroom but once over the threshold you enter a parallel universe. Some suspect that Walkersons is actually in Scotland, a feeling helped on its way as we warmed our whiskies by the fire after walking in the chilly mist. The consistently five-star treatment includes, if you like, a fire lit in your room while you are at dinner. There are few things as comforting as walking out of a wet night into a bedroom warmed by glowing flames (behind a glass fire door, of course). Then there is the novel sensation of standing under trees in the silvery mist while warm water beats down on you from the outside shower.
Chef Adri van Wieringen, prominent member of the international gastronomic society Chaîne des Rôtisseurs, changes the dinner menu every night. A tasting menu with wine pairing can be requested, as can afternoon tea or a picnic. This is trout country, so the pink-fleshed fish comes in all its variegated forms alongside whatever other deliciousness Van Wieringen and his team feel like creating from the day’s produce. — Sue de Groot RATES: Hotel (dinner, B&B) from R2 090 pp sharing per night. Self-catering cottages from R1 900 (week nights, four people) to R6 000 (peak, 8-10 people).
CONTACT: Phone 013 253 7000, e-mail reservations@ walkersons .co.za or visit walkersons .co.za.