Golfing holiday in South Africa
This was our second visit to South Africa and we love the country. It has stunning scenery, wonderful food and wine, glorious golf courses and all the people we have met have always been incredibly friendly and helpful. We stayed at three different golf resorts which are owned by Golf Resorts Club. The quality of all the residences is extremely high with great facilities and good security. The courses are based all around South Africa but for this trip we were on the Western Cape. We flew to Cape Town and hired a car which is very easy to arrange. The road system is good with high quality roads and it feels safe driving around the country. Before travelling to South Africa I had read a lot about how unsafe South Africa was but in the tourist areas we have visited I have never felt unsafe or threatened and the security of all the resorts is very comprehensive and secure.
The quality of the food is extremely good and is of a much higher standard than I was expecting. It is also excellent value which means that eating out is an absolute joy.
We were there in November which is an ideal time – the temperature tends to be in the mid-twenties which is perfect for golf. Our standard day involved playing golf first thing in the morning followed by a delicious leisurely lunch then maybe tennis or the gym later in the afternoon then finally a light supper washed down with more delicious South African wine – a perfect day
Boschenmeer Golf and Country Estate
Boschenmeer Estate is near Paarl in the heart of the Western Cape wine region. It has 27 golf holes which are divided into 3 nine hole courses and you tend to play 2 of the nines each time. It is probably the least spectacular of the three golf resorts but is still a lovely course to play and has tennis courts and a pool as well. However, what makes it a great venue is its proximity to the vineyards. As well as producing excellent wines a lot of them also have high end restaurants which make great places for lunch. Franschhoek is also only 15 miles a way which is a pretty town and well worth a visit. On this visit we ate at a number of restaurants.
La Paris Bistro on the Paris Estate. This is in a lovely setting and is elegantly decorated. We had an excellent meal here – the star turn being prawns with avocado and chilli coriander.
Babel restaurant on the Babylonstoren estate. This needs to be booked well in advance of your holiday This was an absolutely spectacular meal – the best of the holiday and the setting is also stunning. There were many star performers in this meal but standouts were a Pea Soup with smoked ricotta which was exquisite and marrows with an aioli of mayonnaise,garlic and parsley.
Boschendal picnic. This is another beautiful winery which has a weekly picnic on Saturday. The picnic is huge and delicious. There is a live band playing music in the background and it is a great way to spend an afternoon – you can even have a dance if the fancy takes you.
Arabella Golf Course
Arabella is a beautiful golf course and the complex also has tennis courts and a lovely outdoor pool. The practice facilities are excellent and are free. It is near Hermanus which is a good place for whale watching – sometimes from the shore or from a variety of arranged boat trips. It is also close to the Kogelberg Nature Reserve which has a variety of beautiful walks in the native fynbos.
There are fewer vineyards than around Boschenmeer but there are enough to keep one happy during a one week stay. We ate at a few of them and every meal was very good.
Beaumont Family Wine – very friendly place which served a simple menu but very well cooked. Star performer of the meal was a Thyme onion and Gruyère tart. There own label Chenin Blanc was also excellent
Manny’s Kitchen is a well established restaurant in Botrivier owned by Manny a Portuguese man. Fish is the star here and the calamaris and sardines were delicious.
Gabriëlskloof is in a stunning location and serves excellent food – best meal at Arabella. Star performer here was the capalleti stuffed with ricotta in a mushroom sauce.
Fancourt Golf Course
Fancourt is in the city of George which is 430km east of Cape Town on the garden route and is about a 5 hour drive from Cape Town. Fancourt is a stunning complex of golf courses with amazing extra facilities – superb practice area, indoor and outdoor pool, first class gym, bikes to borrow to explore the estate and a number of excellent restaurants. The courses are beautiful with lots of water and flowers surrounded by mountains.
It is a 4 hour drive from Arabella and luckily there is an excellent little restaurant at Swellendam called the Belle Alliance to break the journey. The only downside of Fancourt is that there are no vineyards and restaurants are much more limited than in the other resorts. However the villas are in such beautiful settings it was no hardship having a barbecue out on the terrace watching the sun set behind the mountains. We did find a charming cafe on the main street called Nina’s which served a good lunch and which is opposite to a fantastic pottery called Wonki Ware. My wife loves pottery and so she was in seventh heaven – the only problem was getting everything back in our hand luggage!
