Music of the Sea, Pennington, South Coast, KwaZulu Natal

This was our second time visiting Pennington, we would've loved to stay at Gumpost Cottage again but as we were travelling in a bigger group, we needed a few more bathrooms!

The house is great for a group stay with three bedrooms and two bathrooms as well as an additional self-contained flatlet. Although there are no sea views, the beach is literally a 5 minute walk away!

Bedroom 1 - two single beds

Shared bathroom for bedroom 1 and 2

Bedroom 2 - two single beds

Main en-suite - double bed

En-suite bathroom

Flatlet - bedroom 2 single beds

Flatlet - bathroom (basin, shower, toilet)

Flatlet - kitchen 

The inside of the house was a bit dark for our liking (even with all the lights on) and needed a good airing when we arrived. 

Lounge

TV lounge

Dining-room

We preferred to spend our time on the lovely under-cover verandah - the perfect place to enjoy your meals, have a braai and socialise. 

We spent most of our time on the verandah

These chairs come with cushions and are very comfortable

Built-in braai

A beautiful garden that attracts hundreds of birds (what a treat for the bird-watcher) will also keep the kids entertained with lots of space to run and play as well as a jungle gym (you can keep an eye on them from the verandah)

Jungle gym 

One of the many gorgeous plants in the garden

Side gate - cannot be opened

With two fridges and enough space to prepare meals for a group, the kitchen was adequate. 

Kitchen - well equipped

Great features:

* Close to the beach

* Lovely outdoor area and garden

* Outdoor hot and cold shower for rinsing off after a day at the beach

Not so great features:

* We were only left 1/4 roll of toilet paper in each bathroom - remember to pack your own

* There was no dish-washing liquid. Although there is a dish-washer, you still need it for washing pots etc. 

* The interior is a bit dark and needs to be thoroughly aired before visitors arrive

* Although we do not watch a lot of tv, the unit is advertised with dstv which was not working at all for our entire stay

Price: Budget/mid-range (Less than R500 per person)

Recommended for: Family / group 

The host/s:

We never met the owner but she was friendly enough over email, she very kindly allowed us an earlier check-in on the day of arrival.

For more information and bookings:
chaplins@futurenet.co.za 

Gumtree Glen, Curry's Post, Natal Midlands, KwaZulu Natal

Unfortunately the weekend we visited it was bitterly cold so we were forced to spend most of our time indoors. 

The unit, although small, was not as 'cosy' as the owner described with only one heater, which did warm the place but not quite enough to take the chill off our stay. We were however very warm at night as the comfortable bed is covered with a large heavy duvet and water-bottles for heating. 

Single heater

The bed was comfortable and had plenty bedding

We were pleasantly surprised by all the lovely little extras that were provided - fresh milk, half a dozen farm fresh eggs, jam, biscuits, rusks, sherry, tea, coffee, sugar, bread, fruit and a few toiletries. 

A few of the unexpected extras

The sherry helped with the cold

The view from the unit was pretty - it overlooks a farm and there are a few hills to the left.

Even if the weather had been fantastic, there was not much of an out-door seating area - basically you could sit on plastic chairs in the driveway.

Entrance to unit and 'outdoor seating area'

The kitchen was tiny - only one person can fit in there at a time but at least having the stove on helps warm the place up a bit. It was surprisingly well equipped for the small space it occupies.

Kitchen - small but sufficient

Some old fashioned bed-warmers and the glass cabinet

Although we do not normally watch tv, we were grateful for the free dstv offered - at least we could watch a few nature programs during our stay. 

Lounge area

Great features: 

* The added extras

* Peace and quiet

* Close to the Karkloof Nature Reserve and quite a few 'Meandery' attractions

Not so great features: 

* An extra heater would've helped with warming up the bathroom, a fire-place in the unit would make it fantastic!

* The outdoor area left much to be desired

* The unit is 'underneath' the owner's house

Price:  Budget (Less than R500 per person)

Recommended for:

A couple who need a base from which to explore the surrounding area.

The host/s: 

We never met the lady who we made the booking with but the gentleman that let us in was friendly and gave us our privacy. 

For more information and bookings:

petalee@iafrica.com 

Gumpost Cottage, Pennington, South Coast, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa

What a gem of a place, this was our first time travelling to Pennington together and I cannot wait to go back! We stayed as a couple but the cottage has 3 bedrooms (two double beds and two singles) and two bathrooms so it is perfect for a family holiday.

Bedroom 1

Bedroom 2

Main bedroom with en-suite bathroom (below)

The beautiful, well maintained garden comes to life in the afternoon with an amazing variety of birds and butterflies. We spotted a grey-hooded bush shrike and a white-bellied fly-catcher while soaking up the last of the afternoon rays from the comfortable couches on the large under-cover patio. 

Comfortable out-door furniture

Additional seating and table

A sparkling splash pool adds to the holiday feel and is perfect for cooling down after a morning at the beach or before sun-downers. 

Gorgeous sunrises and sea views can be enjoyed from the lovely wooden deck and this is where we were lucky enough to have a black-headed heron land in a tree right in front of us!

Wooden deck

Sunrise from the deck 

The heron

Another stunning sunrise

Should you, for whatever reason, wish to remain indoors, there is a dining-room table and large lounge (with a tv) where you can enjoy the meals you prepared in the well equipped kitchen, or perhaps play board-games with the family.

The kitchen - with all the essentials

Dining-room table and chairs

Lounge

We spent most of our time at the gorgeous beach, soaking up the sun, swimming in the crystal clear warm waters and exploring the rock pools filled with abundant sea creatures. 

Pennington beach

Sea grass?

Rocks and rock pools provide endless entertainment

Great features:

Everything mentioned above!

Not so great features:

Only one shower

Price: Budget to mid-range and worth every cent! (Less than R500 per person)

Recommended for: Couples, friends, a quiet family (it is a very peaceful and quiet neighbourhood)

The host/s:  Absolutely fantastic! We were made to feel very welcome and even given some home grown vegetables straight out of the garden. 

For more information and bookings:

jonsteph@telkomsa.net 

Aliwal Cottages, Umkomaas, South Coast, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa

The unit is basic but clean and comfortable. We stayed in the garden cottage which sleeps two - lounge, kitchenette, bathroom with a shower and bedroom with a queen sized bed. 

The kitchen has all you need for a self catering stay and it was wonderful not to have to search through endless cupboards and drawers to find what we were looking for!

The couches were surprisingly comfortable and we used the wicker chairs from inside the lounge on the little undercover patio. Partial sea views can be enjoyed from here as well as lovely trees and plants surrounding you. 

There is a pool but unfortunately it does not get much sun so we enjoyed the comfortable loungers until 2 pm when the entire area was shaded. 

The beautiful beach is a quick 10 minute drive away and there are quite a few restaurants in the area. It is an ideal spot for those wishing to go shark-cage diving or exploring the Aliwal Shoal. 

Great features:

* Quiet, peaceful area

* Short drive to the beach


Not so great features:

* The unit is on a property with permanent residents at the back and front so not recommended for rowdy guests.

* Unfortunately the pool does not get a lot of sun

Price: Budget (Less than R500 per person)

Recommended for: A quiet couple who will be spending most of the day out and about 

The host/s: Very friendly and kind!

For more information and bookings:
aliwalcottages@lantic.net

Undercover patio

Table and chairs on patio

Lounge

Kitchen

Bedroom with queen sized bed

Pool area

Shower