Hermanus Boutique Guest House: The #selfcarestaycation of that dreams are made of

I had a last-minute urge to get out of town, catch up on some much-needed me time, relax recharge reset, and I had been talking to Stars of Africa / Hermanus Boutique Guest House, who arranged a last-minute visit for me like absolute LEGENDS and the next morning I was off to Hermanus!!

Hermanus is a seaside town, the start(ish) of the Garden Route, about a 2-hour-drive out of Cape Town. It’s known primarily for whale watching during winter, which is up there with the best in the world (I’m manifesting a return trip) but with its backdrop of mountains and greenery, complementing the rugged seaside cliffs and crashing waves, this is the blissful escape we all need/want/DESERVE.

One of the things I love about Cape Town is you can pop an hour or two outside of the city and you’re in a completely different world, less crowded less busy more peaceful, surrounded by nature. It takes 1 day for me to get back to myself and feel flowy again.

Hermanus Guest House delivers this and then takes it to the next level.

Honestly this might be the most luxurious place I’ve ever stayed in my life. I walked in and just laughed in disbelief. I am staying in the penthouse suite, which is bigger than any apartment I’ve ever lived in in my life, and it has a full panoramic view of the sea, where you can hear the waves 24/7. The suite is STUN NING. It is so elegantly decorated, with rich blues and yellows, a gorgeous full-wall piece of art, exposed brick and white marble. The bed is a cloud and the feng shui (facing the sea, of course) is just on point. There is the most amazing bathtub (I now cannot sleep without having a bath which will be difficult transitioning back into real life) and the mountain-view shower turns into a fricken STEAM ROOM. There are also little things that show so much thought and go so far — like how they bring you fresh cold water and a chocolate in the late afternoon, and my personal favourite, how the nightlight in the little toilet room is motion sensored for when you’re not ready to manually turn on/process real light yet. IT’S THE LITTLE THINGS.

I am in full-on self care mode, having finally been finishing up and letting go of some major consuming work things. I am doing yoga, drinking wine, eating pizza, having baths, meditating, writing, even watching Netflix which I never do! Unfortunately I can’t live like this full time (although I can manifest it) but even for a short getaway, I can’t tell you how full my soul is just from being in front of the sea in a beautiful space like this. What a magical spot.

Hermanus is so stunning. The cliffside walk is so so beautiful, rugged raw peaceful, the plants the flowers the little waterfalls the rocks the waves. It’s such a meditative and restorative vibe. It’s a quaint and quiet town at the moment, with boutique shops to browse through, restaurants and wine bars, art galleries and street murals to admire. The best and vibiest restaurant is Fick’s, which conveniently is right across the street from the Guest House! (I can see it from my room :) Keep an eye out for dassies, whose closest relative is the elephant, scurrying around the rocks and trying to steal the sugar!

One afternoon I went to the Fernkloof Nature Reserve, which is just 3km outside of Hermanus town and has free entry. The thing about South Africa is it is SO SO STUNNING, with staggeringly tall mountains, lush greenery, insanely beautiful and diverse plant species, waterfalls, etc etc — AND YOU’RE THE ONLY ONE THERE!!! It’s not common to find a waterfall and swimming hole all to yourself (Bali could *never*) and it is just such a peaceful and incredible vibe being out there away from the crowds, just one with the mountains. Fernkloof was absolutely stunning and I even went for a cheeky dip in the dam!

My favourite part of my time here had to be the sunrises — every morning brought something different and my weird early riser body was rewarded with incredible sunrises over the ocean. It’s a beautiful life, you know?

Message me if you would like to stay in this amazing place!