Wine and cheese tasting at Fairview and other Stellenbosch, South Africa Things to Do Tips

When you are staying in the heart of the Cape winelands, you definitely have to do a wine tour. A very good option, especially if you like cheese, is to visit Fairview winery. They make a wide variety of wines as well as cheese. You can go for a cheese and wine tasting for R15 (2 US$), this includes tasting your choice of 6 wines and the selected variety of cheese for the day.

They also have a restaurant with an outside area that is perfect for a summer afternoon and looks out onto their goat tower. There you can enjoy a cheese platter (your choice of 10 cheeses for R45 (6 US$) and a nice bottle of Fairview wine for a lazy afternoon.

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Phone: +27 21 863 2450
Address: Suid-Agter-Paarl Road, Suider-Paarl
Directions: Turn left on the N1 heading to Worcester to get onto the Suid-Agter-Paarl Road.
Website: www.fairview.co.za
Other Contact: info@fairview.co.za

If you share my love for chocolate and wine, then a chocolate & wine tasting at Waterford Estate in Stellenbosch is a must. Daily wine or chocolate & wine tastings are held in the stylish and comfortable lounge or courtyard, from Monday to Friday between 9am and 5pm or Saturdays, between 10am and 3pm. Such a tasting will cost you about R40 (< 6 US$).

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Phone: +27 21 880 0496
Address: Blaauwklippen Road, Stellenbosch
Directions: Turn left on the R44 on the Blaauwklippen Road and continue till right at the end.
Website: www.waterfordwines.com
Other Contact: info@waterfordestate.co.za

Spier is a wine estate that we used to visit for picnics almost every other Sunday as a child. A lot have changed over the past few years, but it is still as beautiful as ever. I was very upset when I red a very negative vt review about Spier being a tourist trap and went to have a visit just to be sure before I posted this review. Yes, it is true that Spier is on the more expensive side, but not so much that we as South Africans can't afford to lie around on the grass with a picnic or even visiting the cheetas. Some of the things to do at Spier:

Spier Picnic: Spier has a wonderful picnic area for children to play or just to lie around on the grass. Picnic supplies has to be purchased at the Spier deli which is a bit more expensive than a convenience store, but I am more than willing to pay this for the use of their well kept facilities! A picnic cost us less than R100 (<13 US$) for two people. This included a bottle of wine, wine glasses, plates, cutlery and cheese buns, cooked ham, ementhaler cheese and salmon cream cheese!

Visit the Cheetas: Entry costs R10 (< 2 US$) for adults or R5 (<1 US$) and you can have a cheeta encounter for R70 (< 10 US$)!

Horse Riding: R200 (< 30 US$) per person per hour or R350 (< 50 US $) for two hours.

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Phone: +27 (21) 809 1100
Directions: Take the Stellenbosch arterial out of Stellenbosch and turn left onto the R310. Continue on the road and Spier will be on your left.
Website: www.spier.co.za
Other Contact: info@spier.co.za

This is my favourate SA festival of all! Unfortunately it only happens once every year at the end of April. It all happens at Bien donne, Franschoek, about a 30 min drive away.

Here, you will find the biggest variety of SA wines and cheeses and other items from olives to goatsmilk fudge! It is an outdoor festival, so be sure to check the weather forecast to help you decide which day to attend. There is a limited amount of tickets, all available from CompuTicket at R75 (10 US$) per person. There is also a list of tips on the cheese festival website (given below). So if you are currently visiting SA, you simply have to go have a look!!!

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Phone: +27 21 975 4440/1/2/3
Address: BIEN DONNÉ
Directions: BIEN DONNÉ, on the R45 between Paarl and Franschhoek
Website: www.cheesefestival.co.za
Other Contact: cheese@agriexpo.co.za

Stellenbosch University is South Africa's oldest university and is situated in the centre of the town. With almost 20 000 students there is a guaranteed buzz on campus during the term. During December, January and also June/July campus is a ghost town when the students take a break from studying and go home.

On a map, I will suggest that the best bits of campus to walk around, is in the bounds between Victoria Street (one of the most beautiful streets in town!), Merriman, Cluver and Ryneveld Street. Another beautiful building is the Theology building which is out of the above mentioned block on Dorp Street.

For more information on Stellenbosch University, visit their website. Since it is an Afrikaans university, this website is initially in Afrikaans, but if you look at the top right side you can choose the option to view the website in English.

For some University gear such as T-shirst, wine coolers, etc, visit the Matie Shop in the Neelsie Student Centre at the centre of campus.

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Directions: Start at Victoria Street and just walk in whichever direction looks best to you!
Website: www.sun.ac.za

Towards the end of January the University students come back to Stellenbosch and mark the start of the new year with a Carnival which generates money for their community service. This usually occurs on the first week of February (check the University website to be sure www.sun.ac.za) and really only starts on the Thursday evening with an event called 'Vensters'. Every men's rez (a university hostel) teams up with a girls' rez and performs a rehearsed show full of dancing and joking. Even though these shows are in Afrikaans, it is still worth a look! The excitement in the air is really tangible!

On the Saturday morning, a variety of floats made by the different rez's are paraded around town. Be sure to find a spot along Bird Street (only the one half, you'll be able to tell which half...), since people goes to town very early to ensure a nice spot. Afterwards, some local talent performs on the 'braak' which is situated in Bird Street. This usually costs about R15 to see and is definitely worth while!

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Address: Al over the University campus

There are quite a few hiking trails in this reserve, they range from an easy 5,3 km scenic walk to the challenging 17.1 km Panorama Trail and the 18 km Swartboskloof Trail. We usually just take a relaxing hike to the second waterfall where you can just chill or have a dip in the icy mountain pools (only recommended during summer...)!

Entry is about US$4 per person and you pay extra if you take a car inside.

There are also mountain bikes for hire and you can just take a scenic ride around the Reserve or go off the main road (for the adventurer).

There are also a braai area where you can have your own South African braai in the Nature Reserve.

For more about Jonkershoek Flyfishing (best during winter) go to http://www.jonkershoek.com/

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Address: Jonkershoek Valley
Directions: From town just take Merriman (where MacDonalds is) and keep going past the circle right till the end of the road.