Need to know
Rooms
80, including 12 suites.
Check–Out
11am, and check-in is at 2pm. Both are flexible, on request and subject to availability.
More details
Rates include a buffet and à la carte breakfast, welcome drink, minibar, self-guided art, nature and history walks, and a daily selection of hosted wine, art and food garden experiences.
Also
Two of the Luxury Garden Rooms have been adapted with step-free access and a wheelchair-friendly bathroom, and there are plenty of connecting room options. The hotel’s restaurants and bars are all accessible, and there are reserved parking spots for placard holders. However, it’s worth noting that the spa and pool haven’t been especially adapted and the estate’s more rural areas might be challenging to navigate.
At the hotel
650-hectare estate with rewilded and food gardens, art installations, heritage buildings, a working farm and winery. There’s also a yoga and breathwork pavilion, fitness studio, free-to-borrow bikes, an events space, charged laundry service and free WiFi throughout. In rooms: smart TV, USB and USB-C ports, air-conditioning, ceiling fan, free minibar, Nespresso coffee machine, tea-making kit, free bottled water, bathrobes and bespoke bath products.
Our favourite rooms
There’s really no bad choice when it comes to rooms here — even the smallest set-ups come with convivial sitting areas, working fireplaces and sweeping views over the estate. The one-off suites (History, Yellowwood, Water Lily and Cape Chestnut) showcase the talent of Spier’s designers, with custom themes
and appealing additions such as farm-style kitchenettes and separate living spaces. Villas are standalone, sleep six and come with their own private swimming pools and chefs, should you fancy even more ensconcing extras.
Poolside
The outdoor heated saltwater pool (open 6am to 6.30pm) stretches 20 metres and is laced with plush sunloungers, scalloped parasols and encroaching flora from the wild surrounding gardens. There’s a second smaller pool outdoors at the spa, and a network of child-friendly splash pools weaved around the Elemental Garden.
Spa
Spier’s Spa is as immersed in nature as the land itself. Talented masseurs combine homemade herbal remedies and ancient practices with more modern methods across 10 treatment rooms, while an infrared sauna, cold therapy room, two steam rooms, relaxation lounge and mani-pedi salon extend the repertoire of this apothecary-style space.
You’ll find Caren (the spa’s resident phytotherapist) in her consultation room, should you want a more in-depth understanding of your body’s needs, and there’s a Mindful Movement Studio for guided breathwork and yoga sessions. But this healing spot’s star is its Cape Herbal Bath House — an intimate two-person room that hosts three-hour private bathing rituals, starting with a full-body exfoliation and herbal immersion before a stone and shea butter massage.
Packing tips
Green fingers — getting stuck in and learning about the land with Spier's resident experts is encouraged around this nurturing estate.
Also
Step inside the Soil Room and you’ll see there’s more to this space than its name suggests. Plants from the hotel's nursery have been positioned against a backdrop of custom, botanical artwork by Chris van Nierkerk to create a living gallery.
Pet‐friendly
Only registered service animals are allowed at Spier Wine Farm. See more pet-friendly hotels in Stellenbosch.
Children
All ages are welcome at Spier Wine Farm; over-16s are charged as adults. Access to the kids' club is included in rates and there’s a multitude of sleeping options for families.
Best for
All are accommodated for, but over-threes will be happiest here.
Recommended rooms
All rooms can connect via a shared entrance (subject to availability) to sleep up to four, and the standalone Riverside and Garden Villas both sleep six across three bedrooms.
Crèche
The hotel’s Buzz Kids’ Club welcomes three- to 12-year-olds from 8am until 5pm for free. It offers a range of seasonal, hands-on activities that teach children about farm life through collage making, flower threading, bug spotting, leaf pressing and charcoal drawing.
Activities
Spier’s 650-hectare estate is rich with opportunities to explore, but the Elemental Garden is a great place to start for families, with its network of tunnels, rope bridges, slides and winding splash pools.
Swimming pool
The hotel’s main outdoor swimming pool is child-friendly, but there’s no lifeguard so all under-16s must be supervised by an adult.
Meals
Vadas and the Garden Room cook up child-approved classics throughout the day; Veld is more grown-up in its offerings and ambience.
Babysitting
A three-hour slot (for up to five children) can be booked for ZAR1,150 with advance notice. If you need a sitter for longer, it’s an additional ZAR400 an hour.
Sustainability efforts
Spier Wine Farm has been a staunch advocate for sustainability since its opening in 1993, backed by their impressive Growing for Good scheme which has benefitted over 40,000 local people through through art, entrepreneurship, regenerative farming and restoration programmes. Within each pillar, there's a host of additional initiatives: the Living Soils Community Programme, say, which started in 2019 to train young farmers and supply food to underprivileged communities; the Spier Nursery has planted over 102,957 species across the estate, and there’s a dedicated team of ‘tree-preneurs’ who have nurtured nearly two million indigenous trees since 2009. Mosaic installations that adorn the estate were designed by students and graduates of Spier’s three-year artisan apprenticeship and the artworks inside are all custom commissions from South Africa’s emerging artists. Their Living Arts Foundation also offers psychosocial support for children through a host of creative and active camps.
On a more micro — but equally essential — level, all water is sourced from recycled greywater, 100 per cent of organic waste is repurposed into fertiliser, and the restaurant gets all produce from Stellenbosch’s Fair For Life-certified suppliers, and the on-site gardens and farm, which also hosts educational tours and workshops.
