A trip to Hermanus & stay at Aloe Guest House
Overseas trips are so expensive for families our size, that for our December holiday, we decided to take a road trip to Hermanus, with our 4 children in tow (ages 9, 6, 4 and 1). Hermanus is a 100km drive from Cape Town, and popular weekend getaway for Capetonians. During the summer one can bask on its beaches (some days in winter one can do this too!), and from July to September it's a favourite whale-watching spot.
We hired a VW minibus at Cape Town Airport, and all 6 of us and our belongings fit in with ease (we even had 2 seats to spare). After the relatively short drive we arrived at our home for the next 2 nights - the Aloe Lodge Guest House. At this point, I should point out that this stay was fully paid for by ourselves, and the owners of the Aloe had no idea that we were carrying out a review.
To drive to Aloe Guest House take the N2 from Cape Town, and then turn onto the R43 towards Hermanus. Just as you near the middle of Hermanus, the Aloe Lodge Guest House appears on your left (53 Main Road - the R43 is called "Main Road" in Hermanus). At busy times expect backed up traffic as the N2 passes Strand stretching over the mountain pass.
We were staying in the family room at Aloe - a double story, with 2 double sofa-beds at the bottom and one double bed at the top. The minibar stocked craft beer and rooibos blended cooldrinks. There were 2 bottles of wine. The family room has a private garden and private pool, with a gate to keep other guests out. It also has its own wifi. It was necessitated by the size of our family to stay there, but there is a great feeling being in the best room at the establishment. The shower can best be described as indoor outdoor, as it had only glass separating it from part of the private garden (at the back end, where nobody wanders.
Tripadvisor rating
Aloe has a 5/5 rating on Tripadvisor, which surprisingly only places it 31st out of 86 B&Bs (rating on 16 Dec 2016) in Hermanus. Feedback included:
- Owners are most welcoming and friendly. [I agree - Lesley welcomed us with 2 arms, personally helped carry our luggage in (it was a public holiday, so staff left at 3pm), and wrote down each of our 4 kids' names so she would remember them].
- Situated close to town centre, and go past the police station as going to town (so feel secure)
- For breakfast the choices were less than one would get at a hotel, but sufficient. For example, no muffins, baked beans and the fruit salad was set out and in the same quantity as one would expect at a fine dining restaurant. But there were 3 choices of cereal, toast; and could order sausages, bacon, eggs and mushroom. Note that breakfasts are cooked to order, instead of there being a buffet - so order your cooked food first thing, as the kitchen is slow.
- If guests are smoking outside their rooms, the smoke can drift into your room. Guests should smoke at the tables next to the braai and pool (the designated smoking area).
- On Tripadvisor there'd been a complaint about "the smell of the shower drains" - it seemed fine to me.
- I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel as far as complaints go, but the lock for the gate leading to the family room was fairly tricky...Lesley did explain how it worked, but I only started getting the hang of it when we were just about to leave.
Secure Parking Area
As you enter Aloe Lodge you immediately park in its secure parking area (not how the lodge Lodge looks small from the outside). This is a secure parking area, with guests being provided with a remote crontrol, to open and close the gate. From Mondays to Fridays your car is washed whilst you have breakfast.
Pools
Not everybody know that the Aloe Lodge has 3 pools. Here's the 2 most people know about:
And there's this little plunge pool in a secluded spot next to the family room, in an area available only to those staying in the family room:
It's particularly pleasant chill out next to the pool after a day at the beach. The pools are not heated (there are pipes which look like they used to be part of a solar connection), and its temperature is cool but swimmable.
If your kids don't know how to swim, then you'll either have to keep an eye on them all the time or stay somewhere else, as the pools are not in enclosed areas.
In a lovely gesture, as we were chcecking out we were offered a 15% discount on our next stay.
Aloe Lodge Guest House
Aloe Guest House |
53 Main Road |
Tel : 028 313 1191 Fax : 028 313 1162 |
It's not just the sea views which are beautiful - here's the view from a house up on the mountain end of Hermanus:
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Things to do in Hermanus
Hermanus's pleasures revolve around the ocean - whale watching, shark cage diving, kayaking and soaking up sun, sea and sand. On our visit we enjoyed Grotto Beach - note that there's strictly no alcohol allowed on the beach (our cooler box was checked). Don't forget your suntan cream...otherwise you'll end up a rock lobster, like myself.
- Whale watching from September to November.
- Kayaking with Walkerbay Adventures (08h00, 10h30 or 13h00) for 2 hours.
- Shark diving with Walkerbay Adventures or White Shark Projects.
- Paragliding with Walker Bay Adventures.
- Tree Top Slides and Quad Bike Tours with SA Forest Adventures.
- Mountain biking.
Other Hotels & Guest Houses in Hermanus
49 Marine Drive |
Tel : 028 312 3727 Fax: 028 312 2181 |
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Marine Hotel |
Marine Drive |
Tel : 028 313 1000 Fax: 028 313 0160 |
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Misty Waves Boutique Hotel |
21 Marine Drive |
Tel : 028 313 8460 Fax: 028 312 1755 |
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Mulligans Guest Lodge |
275 Main Road |
info@mulligans-golflodge.co.za We all deserve a mulligan in life (a mulligan in sport refers to when a player gets a 2nd chance) If you're looking to mix a bit of golf in with your holiday, Mulligans Guest Lodge is a couple of minutes walk from the Hermanus Golf Club. It has large rooms with views over the golf club and mountains, and is close to the paths from which you can watch the southern right whales from July to October. |
Tel : 028 312 4469 Cell: 083 268 6805 |
R44 Kleinmond |
reservations@arabellawesterncapehotel.co.za westerncapehotelandspa |
Tel : 028 284 0000 Fax : 028 284 0003 |
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In November 2012 the Whale Coast Hotel joined the Three Cities Group and was renamed the Three Cities Whale Coast Hotel. |
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Three Cities Whale Coast Hotel |
c/o Lord Robert & Royal |
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Tel : 028 312 3096 Cell : 076 312 9468 |
Guest Houses
Baleia de Hermanus Guest House |
57 Main Road |
Tel : 028 312 2513 Cell : 082 367 13 38 |
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Beaumonte Guest House |
15 Alikreukelst |
Tel : 028 316 2870 Cell : 028 316 2870 |
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H & A Guest House |
Hemel-en-Aarde Estate |
info@hermanusguesthouses.co.za www.hermanusguesthouses.co.za |
Tel : 028 712 4898 Fax: 028 712 4898 |
Harbour House Guest House |
18 Harbour Road |
Tel : 028 313 7400 Fax: 028 312 1798 |
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Lavender Manor Guest House |
184 10th Street, |
Tel : 028 314 0361 Fax: 028 314 0824 |
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138 Marine Beachfront Guest House |
138 Marine Drive |
Tel : 028 316 3447 Fax: 0866 309 547 |
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Milkwood Lodge Bed & Breakfast |
152-154 Seventh Street |
www.hermanusbedandbreakfast.com |
Tel : 028 314 1736 Fax: 028 314 1736 |
Ocean Eleven Guest House |
11 Westcliff Road |
Tel : 028 312 1332/4 Fax: 028 312 1356 |
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Olive Tree Country House |
14 Olive Tree Lane |
Olivetreehouse |
Tel : 021 685 6461 Fax: 086 655 4760 |
Sunstays Marine penthouse |
74 Marine Drive |
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Whale Away Guest House |
223 Main Road |
Tel : 028 312 4468 Fax: 028 313 2956 |
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Whale View Guest House |
Hermanus Beach Club |
Tel : 082 300 9042 Fax: 028 313 2004 |
Bicycle Taxi
On the 8th April 2013 Hermanus started a free bicycle taxi service - not sure if it's still going.
Curro Schools
Want to move to Hermanus? Here's the contact details of Curro's school in Hermanus for your kids to go to.
Bettys Bay Penguin colony
On your way to or from Hermanus, go see the Bettys Bay penguin colony.
