In a country renowned for its beauty, there is more … a hotel that meets the highest standards of elegance, comfort and exclusivity. Located in the stunning backdrop of South Africa’s largest natural lagoon, mountains and the floral treasures of a biosphere reserve, the Arabella Western Cape Hotel & Spa on the Arabella Country Estate on the Bot River at Kleinmond provides a unique opportunity to enjoy an unsurpassed lifestyle experience in one of the 145 spacious, luxurious rooms and suites, the Acquabella Spa & Wellness Centre, listed in “100 Best of the World”, and the 18-hole Arabella Golf Course, one of South Africa’s top 10.
International recognition for the 5-star Luxury Collection Arabella Western Cape Hotel & Spa on the Arabella Country Estate on the Bot River lagoon in Kleinmond in the Overberg has come, thanks to the 5-Star diamond award presented by the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences at ITB, the international travel industry expo in Berlin in March. This award has put the hotel in the league of the George V Hotel in Paris and the Adlon in Berlin, and is the only hotel in Africa to have achieved it.
Close to the whale haven of Hermanus, the winelands of Stellenbosch and the Waterfront as well as to the sharks and the most southern tip of the continent at Cape Agulhas, the hotel is in the Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve, one of the world’s heritage sites.
Architecture makes use of natural South African coastal elements, including stone and wood and the imposing cathedral-like foyer is a taste of things to come. There are 145 spacious bedrooms and suites, all with terraces and balconies, that open on to spectacular views of lagoon, golf course, pools or mountains. The bedrooms’ kingsize beds, people say, are the most comfortable they have ever slept in. Two presidential suites have a butler on 24-hour duty, their own saunas and Jacuzzis, and all the bedrooms have the latest business facilities including email. Suites have television in the huge bathrooms. If guests have any complaints, it is that the bedrooms are so comfortable they don’t want to leave them, not even to go bird watching or hiking in the surrounding reserve!
Fine dining at the Premiere Restaurant and contemporary cuisine at Jamani’s show kitchen have restaurant reviewers raving – and the wine list from the Nebuchadnezzar Wine Bar is extensive. Making the choice of wine is easy, thanks to the expert resident sommelier, whose experience is legendry. A special wellness menu is available, too. The hotel boasts several bars and lounges – the Barnabas Bar with its intriguing cocktails and freshly-brewed Paulaner beer, views across the pools and frequent live music, Cristobal’s Cigar Bar with its selection of cigars, cognacs and other liquors, Laguna Lounge where tea, coffee and cakes are enjoyed overlooking the lagoon and golf course. The poolside bar is open during summer.
The Arabella Golf Course, as one of the top ten in the country, has hosted players of the calibre of Ernie Els. Considered to be one of the most beautiful in the country, its 18-hole 72 par course was a challenge to design along the shores of the ecologically sensitive Bot River lagoon. It draws full fields day after day with golfers eager to experience one of the most exciting new courses. The 250 houses on the estate, which has received the first ISO 14001 for environmental management on a golf estate, are attractive to both players and non-players from South Africa and abroad and have been snapped up for their design and layout dotted around the course.
Presenting golf and wellness is a concept that has taken off – and at the Western Cape Hotel & Spa conventions are turned on their heads as men join women pampering themselves at the spa. Aready chosen for inclusion in the book “100 Best Spas of the World”, the hotel’s stunning Arabella Spa & Wellness Centre is so popular that people book long in advance to come as day trippers. The spa has state of the art facilities and an extensive number of treatments from balneo therapy treatments to a multitude of massages and beauty treatments, hydropools with bubble jets and a heated indoor-outdoor pool. Its Hamam Centre or Turkish Bath House, an optional nude area, has a brine flotation pool, along with a Rassoul Mud Chamber, where different types of chalks renew the spirit and the body.
The Kogelberg Conference Centre rates highly in terms of location and facilities and can seat 260 for a banquet or dinner dance. (See separate entry.) It also hosts special events like Designer Collection fashion shows and art exhibitions.
The Arabella Country Estate is reached via the national N2 road (take the R44 to Hermanus and the R43 to Kleinmond) or the scenic drive (the R43 via Gordon’s Bay) and is just over one hour from the city. The hotel, which has been rated one of the top two in South Africa by the leading German newspaper, Die Welt, is part of Arabella SA, which houses the South African investments of the Schorghuber Corporate Group of Munich. The investments include the Paulaner Bräuhaus at the V&A Waterfront and the Blaauwklippen Wine Estate in Stellenbosch. BotRiver*
