The first green at Olivewood, a downhill par 5 opener. The second hole is to the left.
DESTINATIONS
Olivewood is an Escape to a Relaxing lifestyle By Stuart McLean
V isiting as many golf cours- es as I do each year for the Top 100 rankings, I trea- sure stops along the way at boutique stay-and-play destinations. These are distinctly different from the premier hotel resorts such as Fan- court, Sun City, Champagne Sports, and Arabella, providing more intimate stayovers. I have a few favourites – Simola, Prince’s Grant, De Zalze, Umdoni Park among them – but for me the one that delivers the best stayover experience is Olivewood in the Eastern Cape. I find it immensely relaxing. It’s in an isolated part of the country for those who live in Gauteng or the Cape, yet I’ve happily driven long distances to spend time at this tranquil venue on my travels. The staff are friendly, the accommodation comfortable, and the restaurant is ex-
tery five-course menu paired with ex- quisite wines that I will save for another occasion. The service compliments the food experience, while prices are sur- prisingly inexpensive, which explains all the locals piling in. My last visit was in March, following the Investec SA Open at Durban Coun- try Club. Rather than drive directly back to Johannesburg on the monotonously dull N3 highway, why not rather savour a 1 600-kilometre detour via Olivewood through far more interesting and dra- matic Eastern Cape scenery. It’s testa- ment to the attraction of Olivewood that I would do that, although there was also the prospect of combining it with golf at one of our bucket-list courses, East Lon- don Golf Club. One of our least-visited great courses, I’d love to see it become a heritage site, along with the Humewood links, another Eastern Cape treasure.
ceptional. This has earned it the status of 4-star boutique hotel and 4-star con- ference centre. It’s a popular wedding venue. The food impressed me on my first visit five years ago – Olivewood is a relative newcomer as a golf estate and resort facility – and it has gone up in my estimation on every subsequent visit. A young female head chef, Jodie Delport, is the essential ingredient in the kitch- en, and she has trained her staff well. All meals are served in the Governors House restaurant but be warned it’s not open for dinner on Monday and Tues- day – that’s when the clubhouse 19th Hole deputises. The cuisine is superb, and my kingklip the first night was firm and scrumptious. I was tempted to re- peat the order on my final night, but in- stead chose a beef ragu dish which was even tastier. There’s a Chef’s Table mys-
70 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
JUNE 2025
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator