HEAVENLY hideaways
Some of South Africa’s best escapes were known only to locals – until now, writes Alison Stewart.
THEY ARE the stuff of memories – that familiar beach, river or mountain hideaway that lives on in dreams of childhood.
Every country has holiday spots that are cherished as part of our happier selves. Though I’ve lived elsewhere for more than 35 years, places I visited as a child in South Africa stay with me and I’ve been lucky enough to revisit them over the years on family trips home.
South Africa is still brimming with such places, which mostly cater to locals constrained from extensive overseas travel by their weak currency.
The lodges have loyal followings, are often off the beaten track and are relative bargains for overseas visitors.
Our 2000-kilometre ‘‘local secrets’’ road trip takes us from Durban through the Drakensberg Mountains, Wild Coast and Garden Route to Cape Town. Some of these places have only dirt road access.
Book well in advance for these five gems, especially during school holidays, and try to stay for at least two nights.
UMNGAZI RIVER BUNGALOWS AND SPA
The western sky floods crimson as we relax on the deck of Ntabeni, our luxury spa bungalow with sweeping views of sea, beach and river estuary. We’re in the heart of Pondoland on the subtropical Wild Coast, one of South Africa’s unspoiled areas, five hours’ drive from Durban.
Below us, the broad Umngazi estuary glistens and across the river, children surf the giant sand dunes while Nguni cattle plod homewards.
We’re beyond relaxed from our late afternoon couples’ massage with spa and champagne, so it’s no wonder we’re lolling stupidly on Ntabeni’s sun loungers, with a cheese platter and yes, another bottle of something delicious.
But the motto of this place goes something like: ‘‘Don’t worry about tomorrow – shoes optional.’’ We’re happy to oblige.
This full-board, family-run lodge, which evolved from a tiny trading station in 1906, is a perfect example of a place that makes memories. Most guests are South African and families who met when their children were babies still return with adult offspring. You hear their joyous reunions in Basil’s Bar, named after Umngazi founder Basil Leach.
Umngazi is where guests learn the art of playing, exploring, relaxing and running wild. There’s fishing, sunset cruises, night crabbing, canoeing, mountain biking, horse riding, hiking or just mucking around swimming, playing tennis, trampolining or excavating the sandpit.
The 52 thatched-roofed bungalows are scattered up the estuary’s eastern hill amid indigenous gardens, with Sugar Loaf Peak above. There are six different types – garden, sea or river views are child-friendly, while the honeymoon, Ntabeni and Emlonyeni are adults only.
Ntabeni is majestic, with elegant furnishings in cream and salmon, soaring thatch ceilings, spa bath and double outdoor shower, dressing room, kitchen area, delicious ‘‘Transkei gold’’ coffee and fruit. Generous homecooked meals are served in the dining areas, but we elect to have breakfast delivered to our suite, happy to laze and watch the vista turn gold by degrees. See umngazi.co.za.
UNDER MILKWOOD SELF-CATERING CHALETS
Knysna, one of the gems of the Cape Garden Route, 500 kilometres from Cape Town, has a special place in my childhood memories. My grandmother’s Knysna house was a holiday haven and Under Milkwood’s log chalets on the Knysna Lagoon, nestled amid indigenous gardens and sheltered from the south-east winds, became a retreat for generations of my family.
So it’s always good to return to these self-catering chalets that sprawl up the hill on the eastern side of Knysna Heads, with their