Singita Lebombo

Surrounded by vineyards and gardens and just minutes from the village of Franschhoek is Leeu Estates, a boutique hotel, winery and wellness spa. Set within 68 hectares between the Dassenberg mountains and Franschhoek River, it offers guests the opportunity to enjoy stunning natural beauty in total luxury. Each room is individually styled and upholstered in natural linens giving a relaxed yet sophisticated feel. The luxury en-suite bathrooms have marble floors with underfloor heating and some feature a freestanding bath tub. You’ll enjoy your beautiful surroundings from the moment you wake up, with windows that look out over the gardens and orchard. Located within the Manor House is The Dining Room, where uncomplicated dishes let the locally produced ingredients shine though. In the warmer months, choose to dine al fresco and enjoy soaking up the sun from the garden terrace. For when you want to simply relax and unwind, The Reading Room is an intimate space with a fireplace, opening onto a veranda with views of the gardens, vineyards and Franschhoek Valley. There is plenty of reading material and enough board games to keep you occupied, but if you do fancy engaging in something more active then make a beeline for the gym, pool and spa.

Located in the popular V&A waterfront, the One&Only is the most contemporary of Cape Town’s top hotels. As one might expect from the top luxury resort specialists, the service is excellent. The very spacious rooms and suites (107) have an elegant style, fabrics and textiles taking an African influence with rich colourful hues. The main hotel area sits around a lagoon in which an island has been created. This is where the outdoor pool, jacuzzis and spa are located, to give more of a ‘resort’ style feel to the hotel. Special Island suites are also available here. Inside the hotel itself there are large communal areas including a vast lobby and bar area as well as restaurants from South African celebrity Chef Reuben Rifell and Nobu. The resort also has a particularly good kids club, which they can be left in comfortably for the day as the adults go out exploring.

The malaria free Tswalu Reserve, owned by the Oppenheimer family, consists of over 100,000 hectares of the ‘green’ Kalahari grasslands home to eighty mammal species and 340 varieties of bird. Furthermore, the reserve is not further divided up into concessions or reserves and the only accommodation is the Motse Camp and Tarkuni House, which only allow for a maximum of thirty guests at one time in the entire of Tswalu. If you are staying for three nights or more you’ll also get a complimentary private vehicle, guide and tracker to make this your very own private Kalahari. The motto is, if you see another Range Rover on your game drives, complain. And whilst you really couldn’t get any further from a package holiday, the accommodation at Tswalu truly does have it all ‘wrapped up’ as far as a five-star safari lodge goes, with more luxury, authenticity, exclusivity and conscientiousness than any other in Africa. Having won awards for both their spa and conservation work, you just have to see the efforts they make to look after the wildlife and support local communities to know the lengths they go to look after you.

Perfectly poised on the headland between two bays and at the heart of what is considered one of the best whale-watching destinations in the world, the 2,500-hectare Grootbos Private Nature Reserve is well-positioned to help you enjoy both the area’s thrilling and more relaxing activities. Part of what makes Grootbos extra special is the property’s commitment to making a positive impact through various projects. From horse-riding on wild Atlantic beaches and spotting whales and pods of dolphin cavorting in Walker Bay, to tasting regional wines and discovering the unique heritage of towns such as De Kelders and Hermanus, then learning about the intriguing fynbos flora and fauna, you won’t be short of things to do here on the Whale Coast and at Grootbos. For budding botanists, the reserve encompasses a vast swathe of the beautiful Cape Floristic Region, the smallest of earth’s six recognised floral kingdoms. There are two fabulous places to stay here – the homely Garden Lodge and contemporary Forest Lodge – as well as two fabulous Private Villas, all of which admire incredible vistas to the sea and mountains.