One of the most beautiful places to visit in South Africa is the West Coast National Park, which lies just an hour drive away from Cape Town Airport yet features some pretty amazing scenery and incredible wildlife, not to mention the lagoon where I have finally been able to find water warm enough for me to swim in… By warm I mean not as cold as the rest of the region, but it’s still pretty chilly.
We rented a fisherman’s house in the off-grid village of Churchhaven, which is located inside the the West Coast National Park, right outside the Postberg Flower Reserve. The village was once the home of whalers and fishermen, and has gorgeous white-washed houses, which have now been refurbished as holiday homes. We rented Whaler’s Way through Perfect Hideaways. This is the perfect place for off-grid relaxation and some peace and quiet, especially if you come outside of the most popular times (usually August to October when the flowers are blooming and during the December holiday month). We came in February, it was blissfully deserted.
The West Coast National Park features a flower reserve which is incredible during Spring, but it also houses over 250 bird species including flamingos, ostriches, etc. Funny story: on one of the nights, I woke up convinced someone was roaming on the gravel right outside of the house, it was in fact a couple of curious ostriches. Flamingos would walk in the lagoon in front of the house most afternoons. On the sea-side, we could spot many marine birds, as well as sea lions. In the Postberg section of the park we saw some kudu, mountain zebras, and of course springboks… If you come during September and October, you may be lucky and spot a whale or two, and some dolphins.
There are many hiking trails in the park itself but our favourite outing was KraalBaai just five minutes from Churchhaven, it has the most transparent water and whitest sand I’ve seen in South Africa, and yes as I mentioned, warmish temperature, good for swimming! The water is shallow and super safe for the children. We really enjoyed watching time go by and reading on the terrace of the house, looking over the lagoon and seeing the light change as birds came and went… We did try to walk over to see the flamingos up close a few times but they are very skittish animals, they don’t like company much.
A few great outings just a short drive away are Yzerfontein (surfer’s paradise), Paternoster (a bit like a Greek village if it weren’t for the super long bay and the waves) and Langebaan. We spent a delicious afternoon there at Die Strandloper, a seafood boma restaurant by the beach, where you come with your own wine and then lazily graze through the most amazing seafood dishes (ten in total), all cooked on open coal fires on the beach, as your children make sand castles by the tables, and someone plays reggae tunes on a guitar. We were so spoiled we were sent away by the hostess with a loaf of their fabulous freshly baked bread to enjoy with breakfast the next day. I cannot recommend the place enough.
My advice, come to Churchhaven for the quiet off-grid life right by the edge of the water, the unspoilt surroundings deep in a natural reserve, don’t expect a nightlife (bring some good books), and expect to just chill, cook, eat delicious seafood. Remember you can find this trip in my Instagram highlights, it’s under Churchhaven. We combined this with a three-day stay in Cape Town, for the perfect balance. But that’s for another post…
With love, S.
A Styled Life 