Wine | Eat |Stay |Ride | Walk | Run | Safari
The sleepy town of Wellington in South Africa is already firmly established on the international wine tourism stage. The region produces a multitude of award-winning red wines from a handful of boutique wineries in the surrounding valleys and it is safe to say that wine tasting takes top spot in terms of current tourist activities.
While Wellington residents delight in the growth of wine tourism in the valley, the team at Dunstone would like to remind you that there is a lot more to Wellington than great food and wine. Next time you visit us, please don’t just come for the day. Take time to get to know Wellington. Wake up early and experience the serenity of sunrise on horseback. Enjoy a few sensational sunsets against the backdrop of our dramatic mountain landscape.
Here are a few suggestions for your next visit to #heartWellington from the Dunstone team.
Game Drives at Bontebok Ridge Reserve
The pristine Bontebok Ridge Reserve consists of over 400ha of fynbos vegetation and forms part of the Renosterveld Conservancy, an area developed to protect the Cape’s highly threatened indigenous Renosterveld.
Surrounded by the blue-hued Limietberg mountain range, guests are taken on a 2-hour guided game drive in an open 4×4 vehicle. The drive offers plenty of opportunity to view a host of antelope species, including eland, blue wildebeest, springbok, grey rhebuck, sables, bontebok as well as the revived Quagga. The reserve is part of The Quagga Project, which successfully recreated the previously extinct quagga – a subspecies of the plains zebra.
It is with pride that Dunstone sources our wild boar and venison meats from Bontebok Ridge Reserve, pasture reared animals that have never seen a tarred road, providing our customers with free range in its truest sense.
For more info on game drives, click here.
Horse Riding in the Bovlei Valley
Pony Joy Rides is a small, family run business that offers outrides on horseback in the tranquil Bovlei Valley near Dunstone Country Estate. Suitable for riders of all experience levels, a 1-3 hour morning ride will take you across vineyards and forested farmland, offering a unique perspective of the area.
For more info, click here.
Free timed run at Wellington parkrun
Every Saturday, a free 5km timed run takes place at Imbuko Wines in Wellington. Part of a global phenomenon that began in the UK in 2004, parkrun really taken off in South Africa. Wellington parkrun is a scenic farm run that winds through vineyards, forested areas and past farm watering holes and dams. If you haven’t registered for parkrun, you can sign up online and print out your barcode before arrival.
For more info, click here.
Mountain Biking in the Bovlei Valley
Wellington has gained international recognition in recent years within mountain biking circles due to the inclusion of some of its trails in the renowned ABSA Cape Epic Stage Race, attracting professional mountain bike riders from around the world. In 2018, the existing trails got a facelift with the birth of Wild Boar Trails. The area now boasts six routes of varying technical difficulty, which cater to a range of skill levels and offer flowing single track sections and wider gravel road surfaces.
For more info, click here.
Wellington Wine Walk
Finally, an activity that incorporates wine drinking with exercise and the great outdoors! The Wellington Wine Walk is a short, guided walking holiday of between 3-4 days that takes hikers through 70km of vineyards, olive groves, fruit orchards and fynbos veld, stopping over at a variety of wine estates en route to taste wines and/or stay overnight. The walk is set at an easy pace, giving guests a true escape from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
For more info, click here.