Included in Time Magazine ‘World’s 100 Greatest Places of 2019’

2022 Award South Africa Top 10 Boutique Hotel

• Watch the whales. De Hoop Nature Reserve is known as one of the world’s best locations for land-based whale watching. Peak whale season runs from July to November.
• Spend your days exploring the inter-tidal ecosystem on interpretive marine walks led by expert guides or delve deep into the endemic fynbos vegetation that carpets the coastal dunes.
• Discover the rich archaeological heritage of the this coastline with evidence emerging that the area was crucial in human evolution.
• The reserve is a hotspot for birding with more than 260 species of bird have been identified in the De Hoop Nature Reserve. Excursions to view the Cape Vulture colony on Potberg Mountain can be arranged on a request basis for guests staying 3 nights or more (at an additional cost).
• Enjoy a romantic sundowner or private beach picnic.

De Hoop Reserve

Often referred to as the ‘jewel’ of South Africa’s beautiful Western Cape province, De Hoop Nature Reserve is a coastal reserve world-famous for its rich biodiversity.  Set in the heart of the Cape Floristic Region – the smallest, but most diverse of the planet’s six floral kingdoms – De Hoop’s 34 000 hectares under conservation offer an array of land and marine activities. And with Lekkerwater enjoying an exclusive concession in the remote eastern reaches of the reserve, guests are guaranteed to have this biodiversity hotspot all to themselves.

A designated UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2004, the Cape Floristic Region’s rich ecological diversity makes for an engaging wilderness experience unique in southern Africa. Here nature walks in the company of expert guides delve deep into the biodiversity of the Cape’s endemic ‘fynbos’ vegetation, with the chance to spot a range of species on foot, from Cape Mountain zebra to bontebok and eland. De Hoop also contains some of Africa’s best-preserved examples of coastal Stone Age archaeology, with evidence emerging that the area was crucial in human evolution.

De Hoop’s marine reserve, which extends 5km out to sea, is one of the largest marine protected areas in Africa. This area is at the confluence of the warm Agulhas and nutrient rich cold Benguela currents and offers good land based whale watching, particularly during the southern right whale breeding season.

Observe rare & endangered species

Whilst a visit to the De Hoop Reserve is not a wildlife experience, it is home to over 86 mammal species. These include the rare bontebok and Cape mountain zebra, eland, grey rhebok, chacma baboon, yellow mongoose and caracal. Leopard, although rare, are also found in the reserve

More than 260 bird species have been recorded in the reserve – including the Western Cape’s only remaining breeding colony of the endangered Cape Vulture – making it a prime destination for bird watchers. De Hoop supports a large number of resident and migratory bird species. Several water birds breed in the reserve. You can expect to see Caspian terns, lesser and greater flamingos, pelicans, cardinal woodpeckers, African fish eagles, endangered African black oystercatchers and many waterfowl species.

This remarkable coastal reserve is particularly famous for offering some of the world’s best land-based whale watching. During winter and spring (July to November) southern right whales migrate here from Antarctica to calve in the warm seas offshore. Since 1985 these waters have been designated as a Marine Protected Area, and sea life has flourished. While whales are the stars of the show, guests may also look forward to sighting dolphins, seals and myriad sea birds

Lekkerwater is a year-round destination, its gentle charms shifting with the changing seasons.

During the southern hemisphere’s summer (November-March) the days are perfect for long walks, coastal explorations, swimming in the tidal pools and private beach picnics.

In autumn (April-May) and spring (September-October) the fynbos comes to life, and the sunsets are glorious.

Winter (July and August) is when the Southern Right whales arrive, congregating offshore to calve, mate and generally cavort in the warm seas. The first Southern Right whales usually arrive in May or June but the best months for whale watching are August to October, when the bay in front of the lodge can be home to hundreds of whales at any one time.

While each month offers its own attraction, all Lekkerwater activities are offered year-round, weather and tide permitting.

For important PRE-DEPARTURE INFORMATION & DRIVING INSTRUCTIONS, please click here.

While Lekkerwater  is all about contemporary coastal charm, this stretch of the De Hoop coastline also boasts a rich and ancient history.

A short distance east of the lodge lies Klipdrift Cave. Renowned for its paleontological significance, the cave shows evidence of human habitation dating back 64 000 years. This predates similar discoveries in Europe and North America by more than 20 000 years. In essence, some of our earliest ancestors walked the shoreline and dunes that surround Lekkerwater. Further evidence shows that the indigenous Khoi Khoi pastoralists lived in these hills long before the first European explorers sailed around the southern tip of Africa to begin centuries of settlement and colonisation.

But we have one Bill Green to thank for the dramatic location of Lekkerwater. It was Green who built his family’s holiday home on this site in 1939. In later years it was appropriated by the state for a military test range, then later set aside for the modern-day De Hoop Nature Reserve.

More recently, between 1990 and 1994, Lekkerwater became the coastal escape – South Africa’s ‘Camp David’, if you will – for the former South African President, FW de Klerk. It was here that he contemplated how to move South Africa from apartheid to democracy, no doubt finding inspiration in the solitude and beauty of this remarkable coastline.

We trust visitors to Lekkerwater will find similar inspiration here, soaking up the natural beauty and remarkable history of this unique corner of southern Africa.