'Do like Balou' in the Overberg this Holiday Season

Arabella Western Cape Hotel

Take your lead from Balou the bear this hol­i­day sea­son and ‘for­get about your troubles and your strife’ at the Arabella Western Cape Hotel & Spa. Of course as the song lyr­ics cau­tion, you have to know the tricks of the trade in order to sur­vive, and this is exactly where the Arabella’s Kid’s Club at Balou’s adven­ture centre comes in. Balou’s offers a secure fun-filled envir­on­ment where chil­dren can enjoy stim­u­lat­ing and cre­at­ive activ­it­ies, whilst mom and dad relax with a round of golf on the Arabella Golf Course – recently selec­ted as “Best Golf Course in South Africa”, or a well deserved break at the award win­ning Arabella Spa.

The Arabella Western Cape Hotel & Spa, which was voted both South Africa’s “Leading Luxury Hotel” and “Africa’s Leading Family Resort” in 2009, is situ­ated in the Overberg, a scenic hour’s drive from Cape Town – in fact it will prob­ably take you longer to pack up your brood, than to get there. The Overberg region is situ­ated on the Southern most tip of Africa and is the meet­ing point of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans ...

Also known as the ‘whale coast,’ the area best known for its superb whale watch­ing, stretches from the Hottentots-Holland Mountains in the West to Swellendam in the East, and from the Riviersonderend Mountains in the North to the Atlantic and Indian Oceans in the South. It is eas­ily access­ible over the dra­matic Sir Lowry's Pass along the N2 or by a mean­der­ing coastal road along the sea cliffs from Gordon's Bay, through the mag­ni­fi­cent Kogelberg Biosphere. It can also be jour­neyed to from other regions of the Western Cape such as the Winelands, the Garden Route, the Breede River and the Klein Karoo.

Arabella Western Cape

But once you’ve sur­vived the car trip — what to do when you arrive? Apart from the coastline’s beau­ti­ful, child-friendly beaches, the Overberg prof­fers slow coun­try rambles, which are per­fect for walks, hikes and bik­ing, through nature reserves and farm­lands framed by rugged moun­tains and pretty fyn­bos land­scapes. The Overberg lies in the heart of the fam­ous Cape Floral Kingdom and is well-known for its pro­lific fyn­bos veget­a­tion, boast­ing more than 8 600 plant spe­cies, many of which are unique to the area.

Animal inhab­it­ants include many mam­mals, a wealth of birds, as well as rep­tiles, amphi­bi­ans and ter­restrial inver­teb­rates, not to men­tion aquatic inver­teb­rates and fish. The area is also home to pro­lific bird­life, includ­ing approx­im­ately half of the Blue Crane pop­u­la­tion, South Africa's national bird and an endangered spe­cies which thrives in a man-made crane-friendly hab­itat. Legendary wild horses, rem­nant from the Boer War com­mandos roam freely on the plains of the Rooisands Nature Reserve and add a mys­tical air of intrigue for vis­it­ors, both young and old.

A cul­tural melt­ing pot renowned for its hos­pit­al­ity, the Overberg is rich in his­tory. This is evid­ent in the area’s many museums, some, such as the pre­served mis­sion sta­tions of Elim and Genadendal, which occupy entire vil­lages. There are plenty of out­ings to amuse chil­dren of all ages includ­ing the Harold Porter Botanicals Gardens, the Toy and Miniature Museum and the Village Museum, both loc­ated in the quaint town of Stellenbosch. For creature lov­ers, Butterfly World, the Cheetah Outreach and Birds of Prey Sanctuaries, the Lion Park, as well as the Crocodile Farm, Monkey Town, Tygerberg Zoo, Wiesenhof Game Park and Stony Point Penguin Reserve – one of only two breed­ing grounds on the South African coast­line — are sure to delight. The fas­cin­at­ing Shipwreck Museum in Bredasdorp is well worth a visit and the Fairy Glen Picnic Site and Fairy Forest will cap­ture the ima­gin­a­tion of any little girl.

Arabella Western Cape

There are also the quaint sea­side towns of Hermanus, Kleinmond, Pringle Bay and Gansbaai to explore; and inland, the his­toric towns of Stanford and Greyton. The nearby Hemel-en-Aarde Valley boasts some of the Cape’s finest, award win­ning wine estates, many of which are child-friendly. A tour of the scenic Winelands will show­case a vari­ety of the area’s highly acclaimed wine cul­tivars, includ­ing a visit to Blaauwklippen, one of South Africa’s old­est wine estates.

For the ener­getic, moun­tain­eer­ing, bik­ing, hik­ing, walk­ing and run­ning trails are in abund­ance, as well as quad bik­ing and water sports such as shark cage diving, white water raft­ing, canoe­ing, kayak­ing, sail­ing, diving and angling. For out-of-town vis­it­ors and tour­ists, a Cape Town city tour will reveal the heart of the vibrant mother city, whilst a visit to the nearby town­ships provides an authen­tic slice of South African life. Game view­ing exper­i­ences are also at your fin­ger tips, with an oppor­tun­ity to view the Big 5, a mere 2 hours drive away. Whale watch­ing in-season and other eco-marine activ­it­ies such as dol­phin, seal and great white shark adven­tures, from land or boat, are on offer, whilst a birds-eye view of the whales con­greg­at­ing in Walker Bay dur­ing calv­ing sea­son can be enjoyed by helicopter.

When it comes to select­ing a fam­ily friendly milieu, the Arabella Western Cape Hotel & Spa offers it all. Children are heart­ily wel­comed and child guest facil­it­ies cater to their every need, ensur­ing a relaxed stay for kids and par­ents alike. On arrival, wel­come age appro­pri­ate treats add an extra sprink­ling of magic for young guests. The Balou Kid’s Club is open from 09:00 – 17:00 on Saturdays and Sundays and dur­ing school hol­i­days and caters for chil­dren aged four and up. Age appro­pri­ate leis­ure enter­tain­ment includes arts and craft activ­it­ies, board games, puzzles, books, Lego, a fun jungle gym, DVD’s, Sony Playstation and plenty of facil­it­ated play. Other activ­it­ies include out­ings, horse rid­ing, ten­nis, golf, mini cricket, putt-putt, scav­enger hunts, vol­ley­ball, Olympics and lively competitions.

Arabella Western Cape

For younger chil­dren, the hotel offers an exper­i­enced babysit­ter ser­vice that care for chil­dren in the com­fort of your room. The hotel’s expert chefs take spe­cial care to cre­ate uncom­plic­ated and enjoy­able children’s meals, guar­an­teed to sat­isfy even the most dis­cern­ing young gour­met. For com­plete peace of mind, the hotel will ensure that rooms are adap­ted to be baby or child friendly includ­ing thought­ful extras such as night­lights, plug socket cov­ers, anti-slip bath mats, baby baths and playpens. To make your stay as com­fort­able as pos­sible, other spe­cial baby / chil­dren items spe­cific to your needs are avail­able on request.

With so many fun filled activ­it­ies to choose from, the Overberg is an ideal fam­ily break­away. Hole up with your cubs at the Arabella Western Cape Hotel & Spa this sum­mer and enjoy more than ‘the bare neces­sit­ies of life.’

For more inform­a­tion, please con­tact the Arabella Western Cape Hotel & Spa – Telephone +27 (0)28 284‑0000, or visit their web­site: www.westerncapehotelandspa.co.za

Useful Links:
For more des­tin­a­tion inform­a­tion please see:
Cape Whale Coast
Western Cape Attractions
Western Cape Accommodation