Only 4 hours from Cape Town on Route 62, the longest wine route in the world, is Calitzdorp the Port Wine Capital of South Africa. Nestled amongst the vineyards overlooking Calitzdorp is the magnificent Calitzdorp Country House. It is beautifully furnished with antiques and offers spectacular views across a valley of orchards to the majestic Swartberg Mountains. Our luxurious accommodation includes five air-conditioned bedrooms with king-sized beds, en-suite bathrooms and a private patio. The Italian-tiled bathrooms include large showers, twin washbasins and outsize baths. Crisp linens, soft fluffy towels and gowns all add to your feeling of pampered care. After a spectacular Klein Karoo sunset, delight in a gourmet meal and end the evening by enjoying some of Calitzdorp’s best Port Wines.

Andrew and Nell quit the rat race in Johannesburg in March 2014. We decided to purchase the Calitzdorp Country House, which we have been running since July 2014. In order to expand our knowledge of the area, we both qualified as Western and Eastern Cape tour guides in 2015. Our success thus far is based on our personal interaction with our guests.

The towns of Calitzdorp, Ladismith, Zoar and VanWyksdorp make up the municipal area called Kannaland. Kannaland was named after the kanna plant (Sceletium tortuosum) known as nature's Prozac. The kanna plant has been used by South Africans as a mood-altering substance since prehistoric times. The first known written account of the plant's use was in 1662 by Jan van Riebeeck. The traditionally prepared dried Sceletium was often chewed and the saliva swallowed, but it has also been made into gel caps, teas and tinctures. It is also used as a snuff or smoked and it is legal. The fertile Calitzdorp valley was originally a large lake. The soil is mainly alluvial (loose, unconsolidated soil or sediments) and agricultural crops are grown for about 1km on either side of the Nel’s and Gamka (lion in Khoi) rivers. There is evidence of the presence of early San and Khoi people in the numerous rock paintings found in the surrounding mountains. Early writings show that the Khoi called Kannaland ‘the valley with no grass’.