SA V IN G G R A C E
LOCATION
It’s hard to believe that the middle-ofnowhere mountain feeling you get here is a 90-minute drive from Joburg — well, 90 minutes if you take it easy, as you should.
STYLE
Wide lawns, fountain courtyards and stone fireplaces give it that lavish country house vibe, with a certain loopy opulence in the finishing touches. Think velvet curtains, wide swathes of damask wallpaper and oversized wingbacks (Madhatter’s tea party, anyone?) The Twist dining room, for instance, is lit by enormous chandeliers built from old kitchen utensils and beads. It’s Africa, Alice, but not as we know it.
ROOMS
Golf carts rumble back and forth from the main house to the villas on the hill, which have a separate lounge area, showers that can convert to the outdoor kind — just slide open the door — and private decks overlooking the bush, with plunge pools that light up as the sun goes down.
FACILITIES
AFRICAN PRIDE MOUNT GRACE COUNTRY HOUSE & SPA, MAGALIESBURG ELIZABETH SLEITH
The once adults-only hotel now has a kids’ club, so families are welcome. The primary adult attraction, though, is the spa. Booking any treatment gives you access to a private garden, the spa café, and the heavenly flotation pool — where meditation music is piped under the water and the slowly spinning, salty pond will keep you afloat as long as you wish to lie back and listen.
THE EATING
The fine-dining Rambling Vine is the dressup, special-occasion option. Less formal Twist does breakfast, lunch and dinner with heaving buffets. My lamb stew here was so divine I asked to shake hands with the chef — and a beaming sous chef Albert Netshishivhe emerged from the kitchen. “How long did you cook this?” I asked — the mark of a great stew always being how long it’s been bubbling away. “Twenty-two years,” he grinned. “Practice makes perfect.” Indeed, it had.
THE ‘DO’ LIST
These are the mountains, so adventure abounds but, honestly, there’s no shame in just revelling in your short-term tenancy of a five-star hotel. Eat, spa, eat, repeat.
RATES
From R2 500 to R4 800 per room per night.
BOOKING
See marriott.com Sleith was a guest of Mount Grace