Nestled in the heart of the Cape Winelands, Riebeek Kasteel is one of South Africa’s oldest and most charming villages. Just 80 km north-east of Cape Town, this hidden gem offers a perfect escape for food lovers, wine enthusiasts, and history buffs alike. Riebeek-Kasteel (Afrikaans: [ˈribiək kasˈtiəl]) is situated in The Riebeek Valley together with its sister town Riebeek West.
With a population of around 4800 residents, it’s not difficult to fall in love with this charming place. In 2009 Riebeek-Kasteel was chosen one of the three most beautiful towns of the Western Cape by the newspaper "Rapport".
With its stunning mountain views, award-winning wineries, artisanal shops, and vibrant local culture, Riebeek Kasteel invites visitors to slow down, sip world-class wines, and soak in the charm of its picturesque streets. Visitors should come during the Olive Festival in May, Shiraz and Art Weekend in October or the annual Med Fest in March - celebrating the wine, olives, food and culture of the area.
Riebeek Kasteel and the Riebeek Valley have some serious history - stone-age tools and ancient KhoiSan rock art kind of old. But these days, it’s more about lazy weekends and good vibes, especially for Capetonians looking to escape the city for a few days.
Read also: Experience the Mövenpick Ambassador Hotel
The area was first visited in 1661 by a Dutch party who named the mountain peak after their Commander, Jan van Riebeek. They set off in the direction of Paardeberg and on 3 February 1661 they ascended a lonely mountain and came upon the fertile vista of the Riebeek Valley.
But that’s a narrow-minded, very Eurocentric comment, given that it had been known for thousands of years to the Khoi people who lived here long before the Dutch ever set their beady little eyes on it. Just saying.
A Glimpse into History
In the 17th century, governor Simon van der Stel’s son Wilhem opened up the area of Riebeek Valley for farmers who had not yet gotten land. Some of the farms established back then are still working today. A canon was mounted on top of Kasteelberg, which was part of a signalling system with the Cape.
Some of the farmers that settled in the Riebeek Valley were Hugenots, so vineyards were immediately erected to start wine farming. In the mid 1730s, some farmers retired and move the more quiet town of Riebeek West. Riebeek West was a grander town than Riebeek Kasteel, as seen in their style of houses.
In the 19th century, both DF Malan and Jan Smuts, prominent figures in South African history, were born on farms in the Riebeek area. Farmers established themselves in this valley and during 1900 the town was laid out around its existing church. A Dutch Reformed Church was built in the 1850’s in Riebeek Kasteel (which still stands today and is known as De Oude Kerk).
Read also: Nairobi Accommodation Guide
Top Things to Do in Riebeek Kasteel
1. Visit the Wine Farms
If you’re in the mood for more wine, head to Allesverloren, the oldest wine farm in the Riebeek Valley. It’s best known for reds - including cultivars like shiraz, cabernet and tinta barocca - and for its port. Or visit Meerhof, which has a fine view from a hilltop looking down into the valley. You’ll find a range of whites, reds and rosé to taste. They also make a dessert wine called Mooistrooi with delicious pineapple and citrus flavours.
Pulpit Rock at the foot of the Kasteelberg has an imposing modern design, two humongous barrel maturation cellars and a 1000-ton production capacity. Try a few of the wines from three ranges. The budget Stories collection includes a chenin blanc/viognier blend and a shiraz/pinotage/grenache blend. In the Brink Family Vineyards range, you might want to try sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon or merlot. The Louisa collection includes an MCC, a red blend and a dessert wine.
Enjoy a wine tasting in what used to be the old wine cellar at Kloovenburg. The estate grows sauvignon blanc way up on the mountain slopes - the highest sauvignon blanc in the Swartland. This is perfect for the grapes because it’s cooler up there. Keep an eye out for their Eight Feet white and red blends, named after the four young sons in the family who used to have a blast stomping grapes with their feet.
While you’re at Kloovenburg, you can also do an olive tasting or grab a picnic from Kringe Inni Bos, which is right next door to the tasting room. Kloovenburg Pastorie, originally the pastorie for the Dutch Reformed church, also provides elegant Riebeek Kasteel accommodation.
Read also: Unforgettable Experiences in Hermanus
Marras Wines has a tasting centre in Riebeek West where you can try some of their three ranges, including some light-style summer reds. We tasted an appealing barrel-fermented chenin, a rosé, an unusual dry hanepoot, and a light grenache. There’s a restaurant on the property too.
Mullineux & Leeu Wines do tastings of their Signature and Single Terroir wines on the first Friday of the month only for those who book ahead.
RIEBEEK VALLEY WINE CO.
2. Taste Olives and Olive Oils
Olive tasting in the Riebeek Valley is seriously tasty business. Don’t miss Het Vlock Casteel on Kerk Street - hands-down my favourite spot for olive tasting. It could be in Tuscany with its gorgeous villa vibe and views from the upper courtyard. The tasting is super generous - think 10 to 12 different types, from green to black to dried and even smoked olives, as well as olives flavoured with balsamic, fig, pomegranate, chilli, or lemon. Choose from a bunch of single cultivar extra virgin olive oils (like mission, frantoio, leccino, coratina - olive nerd heaven) or their flagship blend. The shop’s also packed with olive-themed goodies like olive relish, chutney, soaps, and hand cream.
Visit the Olive Boutique opposite to discover delicious bottled olives from a much smaller producer. My favourite kalamatas were in blueberry dressing, or with rosemary and garlic. You can try a range of different olive oils, from light/delicate (much loved by South Africans and Australians) to a more intense coratina (which is the choice of serious tasters in the Mediterranean). There’s also a range of olive oil body-care products.
Goedgedacht and Kloovenburg also produce olives, and you can do a tasting at Kloovenburg.
3. Visit Jan Smuts’ Birthplace
The lovely old Cape Dutch house where Jan Smuts was born in 1870 was once on a farm called Ongegund in Riebeek West, a few kilometres down the drag from Riebeek Kasteel. Today it stands on property owned by a cement factory, but don’t let that put you off; it’s still well worth a visit. It’s furnished as it would have been when Smuts lived here till he was eight years old. There are dung floors and rietdak ceilings in the kitchen and passage, a separate building depicting his military and political life.
Entry to the museum is free. The Smuts house museum is situated at the PPC factory in Riebeek West, a short drive from Riebeek Kasteel,on the original Ongegund farm.
4. Hike the Kasteelberg
If you’re a keen hiker you won’t be able to resist the challenge of making it to the top of the Kasteelberg to look out over the valley. A trail starts behind Pulpit Rock winery at about 248m above sea level and continues for 2km to around 850m. It’s not a hike to be taken lightly, so be sure you’re fit for five hours or more to get to the top and back. Let someone know where you’re going. Take sun protection and lots of water. Don’t go alone and don’t overdo it, rather turn back. Wear proper hiking boots rather than takkies.
If that trail is closed , try one of the other hikes in the area. For instance, check in at the tasting room at Kloovenburg to fill in an indemnity form and get a route map of the trails on their property. Choose from three trails, including the family-friendly Olive Route (one-hour 1.8km) and the Mountain Route (2 hours, 3.8km).
There’s also a selection of hiking trails at Goedgedacht just outside Riebeek Kasteel . They vary from a gentle 2.8km with good views to a much tougher 13.4km to the top of a mountain. Check in at reception at the main house before you walk to pay a small fee and so they know you’re on their property.
5. Sit on the Longest Stoep South of the Limpopo
Riebeek Kasteel’s Royal Hotel claims to have the longest stoep south of the Limpopo. The hotel has its origins in the mid-1800s and the date inscribed on the gable is 1862, but the facade we see today was only built in the 1920s. History aside, The Royal is a great place for high tea or gin-and-tonics on that impressive stoep while you watch the world go by. There’s also a restaurant that’s well-rated on Tripadvisor, although we haven’t eaten there yet.
6. Enjoy the Short Street Precinct
Opposite the Royal Hotel you’ll find what looks like a collection of old buildings in a small square. Called Short Street, its Karoo-style architecture was in fact only built in the early 2000s, an inspired plan to create what has turned out to be one of Riebeek Kasteel’s most visited tourist attractions. Here you’ll find the Co-op wine bar selling the region’s wines at cellar prices, Ancient Spirit for women’s clothing, Still Pure essential oils, natural skin and body-care products, Lewis & Madge leather bags, wallets and purses, and Rof handmade boots.
7. Visit a Greenhouse and Nursery
Don’t miss a visit to the Riebeek Valley Garden Centre, or Die Boomhuis. You can’t miss the striking double-volume dark green building on the main road in Riebeek West. Even if you’re not planning to buy succulents, orchids or other well-fed plants, it’s worth visiting for the greenhouse alone. There’s a young baobab tree in the middle and stained glass windows catch the light, while moss-covered stone walls and waterfalls gently trickling in the background make for an enchanted jungle vibe. On our last visit, we spotted a barn owl resting at the top of a tree and someone told us there was another in an owl box. They’re hoping the owls will breed.
8. Wander the Streets
If you’re fascinated by old buildings and attractive gardens make your heart do a happy dance, then take some time to wander the streets of Riebeek Kasteel and Riebeek West - either on foot or cruising around on your bike. There are loads of charming old houses, some dating all the way back to the mid-1800s. I especially love the big, beautiful Victorians and Edwardians for their old-school elegance.
9. Visit a Museum in a Church
IIn Kerk Street you’ll find the Dutch Reformed Church that now serves as the Riebeek Valley Museum. Dating back to 1856, this national monument houses some old kitchen implements, farm equipment, sewing machines, carriages and other things that the Voortrekkers who came to the valley might have used. If you’re looking for ghosts, hang around the horse-drawn hearse and you might feel a chill. To bring the museum up to date and make it more inclusive, there’s a section on the forced removal of the Oukloof Coloured community in 1965. About 60 families were moved, their homes, church and community facilities destroyed.
10. Eat at Riebeek Kasteel Restaurants
If you’re a foodie, you’ll love the Riebeek Valley for its many restaurants worth a stop. There are many restaurants on offer to suit every visitors budget.
At Marras Wines on Riebeek West’s Voortrekker Street, we started with a wine tasting that flowed into lunch in the fresh-looking space that used to be an old stable. There are a few tables outside too. My pasta was enjoyable, but I was envious of my husband’s superb choice: sweet soy glazed belly with spicy green Thai curry, coconut cream, and tempura lychee. The menu also includes dishes like burgers, steaks, seafood, and pizzas.
Stop at Eight Feet Village, part of the Kloovenburg empire, even for a cup of coffee while you enjoy the sweeping views over the valley from the Bothmaskloof Pass. Order a pizza, steak, burger, or chicken prego from Die Deck, a venue that gets packed on the weekends. Or just enjoy coffee and a Belgian waffle. The more serious Mura restaurant at the same venue offers salads, burgers, steaks, chicken, pasta, and fish.
Beans About Coffee in Fontein Street, Riebeek Kasteel, does breakfasts, toasties and light lunches like quiches and burgers too. Their chicken mayo toastie on seed bread was super filling and I washed it down with an iced coffee with condensed milk - great on a meltingly hot day. There are mid-morning pick-me-ups in the form of carrot cake and cheesecake too.
Au Bouchon Rouge Brasserie & Patisserie next to the Royal Hotel, painted in mauve and white stripes, looked so inviting that we stopped for lunch. The chef is French so you’ll find things like garlic snails and pan bagnat on the blackboard menu, as well as prawns and steaks. We chose delicious linefish, which came with potato dauphinoise and ratatouille. The best place to sit to watch village life go by is on the stoep with its cane chairs and white tablecloths, reminiscent of a French pavement café.
At Café Felix, a 150-year-old oak tree provides shade in the entrance courtyard and there’s seating inside or in the garden at the back. I remember a yummy slow-roasted lamb shank here a while back, but they also do everything from sandwiches and salads, to steaks, curries, pasta, burgers, and pizzas.
The Barn on Kerk Street in Riebeek Kasteel is owned by the same folks as Beans about Coffee. The best thing here is to sit on the terrace outside and enjoy the view out over the village and to the mountains lying blue-grey along the horizon. We enjoyed a lunch of slow-roasted lamb neck which was good, served with mashed potato. Other menu items include steaks, burgers, linefish, pasta, and salads.
Visit Kringe Inni Bos at Kloovenburg for self-help light meals in the forest. Collect your food and drink from a kiosk and relax at one of the picnic tables under shady trees. There’s a playground for kids too. They do breakfast, toasties, salads, burgers, and sirloin. We thoroughly enjoyed our fresh-tasting grilled chicken wraps with crisp lettuce, tomato, cucumber, red onion and garlic mayo. The relaxed outdoor setting was a bonus, especially on a quiet Friday before weekenders descended on the valley. The open-air restaurant is only open on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and pu...
Adventure & TravelsDiscover the Heart of the Western Cape - Riebeek Kasteel Awaits!
Popular articles:
tags: #Africa
