As a local traveller, I've encountered some of the bumpiest landings in George. From a pilot's perspective, I imagine the area's prevailing bluster, perpetual mist and mountainous topography make the logistics of a smooth touchdown quite tricky.
So recently when our budget airline embraced the Garden Route city's asphalt with the tenderness of a lover, my tensed body and clenched buttocks were pleasantly surprised. No small feat, given the cloudy conditions and turbulence encountered on the descent.
Our captain announced our arrival in such a cool fashion, you could just about picture the celebratory virgin martini in hand, with an olive neither shaken nor stirred by such a gentle connection with terra firma.
It set the tone for a breezy 24 hours in what remains my favourite destination in the country.
Cape Town has its Lion's Head and vineyards, Durban its verdant hills and warm climate, Gqeberha its friendly people. But George's mystique hits differently with its seaside views, lush valleys, breathtaking forestry and endless mountain ranges. The air there tastes like evaporated Evian. It's clean and rarefied, in stark contrast to the murky haze to which Joburgers' bronchial tubes have adapted. After the day's business had concluded, we descended on the new Hawthorn Boutique Hotel. It's about 10km from the airport and you'll pass institutions such as Fancourt along the way.
My colleagues found it hilarious that the hotel is intersected by Morning Glory Road. Maybe the town planner was a fan of that one Oasis album.
It's just off the main road, so you might be forgiven for mistaking Hawthorn as a sparse, businesslike place to lay your head for a quick overnight. But it's got the word “boutique” in it, remember? Walk through the neat, cobblestone parking lot and you'll find an entrance that could belong in one of Franschhoek's finest establishments.
Hawthorn's architectural execution is one of colonial meets modern. Wooden floors juxtaposed with sealed fireplaces, mahogany with cement floors. Purportedly, the original street lights that once illuminated Cape Town's Adderley Street now live on in the hotel's garden.
I said earlier that Hawthorn is new, but technically, it's reborn. The hotel has been a fixture in the suburb of Heatherlands since the 1940s. After years of dereliction, the establishment was acquired by a businessman at an auction in 2017. The proprietor is said to have a penchant for antiques — and a number of the original fixtures of the building were said to have been “sympathetically restored” and balanced with the “careful integration” of modern amenities. You can feel this old-and-new mix-up as you mosey up the timber-intensive staircase of the main building.
The standard rooms are perhaps closest to what you might experience at a chain establishment: minimalist, compact, replete with expected conveniences (coffee station, large television). Your superior room is much the same, but a little bigger. The deluxe set-up boasts a patio and a large bathtub from which you can view the bed and vice versa.
But the manor suites or garden studios are likely where you want to be for the full, enchanting effect of a sojourn in George. The former offers a fireplace, while both are outfitted with heavyset tables and chests that clearly hail from a pre-Rochester era of furniture.
Speaking of lounging, there are two spaces in the main hotel where you can bask away the hours: the Art Deco lounge has velvet curtains and a glass chandelier; The Bay lounge gets natural sunlight and offers garden views.
On a tight schedule, idle time was not part of my agenda. But there were a few minutes for pre-dinner drinks at Pronk bar. Suitably lubricated with rooibos tea, my appetite had been primed for supper at The Forester Restaurant. Our set menu comprised a calamari starter, rump flanked by garden vegetables and a chocolatey panna cotta affair for dessert — which we opted to skip as the wait between courses had eaten significantly into sleep time, ahead of a midmorning flight the next day. I would like to return for the dining experience at leisure.
The Sunday lunch menu looked enticing, with offerings such as oxtail and barley soup, leg of lamb and hot fig pudding.
Could be the angle you need to persuade your travel partner to make an impromptu George overnighter. That air will do you good.
• Rates from R2,000 for a Garden Studio in low season up to R4,500 for a Manor Suite. Prices are per room per night (max two adults) and include breakfast. For more information or to book, see their website.
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