Welcome to De Kruis
In the magnificent eastern highlands of the Tankwa Karoo, beneath a giant fold of the Great Escarpment, lies a 200-year old farmhouse of unusual charm and distinction, a guardian of the land it occupies. This is De Kruis – a house in the wilderness.
Self-catering accommodation for up to 8 guests
4 bedrooms, all en-suite
Extraordinary indoor and outdoor living spaces
Serviced daily
Evening meals by prior arrangement
Evening meals by prior arrangement
The De Kruis homestead is set at the centre of a beautiful 18,000 acre wilderness reserve. It is utterly secluded and wonderfully romantic. There is no other dwelling in sight, and the nearest town – Sutherland – is an hour’s drive away.
You and your companions will have exclusive use of the homestead
Experience the magic of the Tankwa Karoo
Allow 4 hours driving time from Cape Town
Here you will find, at journey’s end, a cool and comfortable home, carefully sheltered from its surroundings by thick stone walls, deeply shaded outside spaces and enchanting gardens that blend into the distant veld. A gorgeous farm kitchen beckons you in, and leads you through the house into a magical further living space, and then another, and another, each with vistas of the wilderness beyond.
Shadows and golden light play gently across quiet rooms. Four lovely bedrooms radiate from the centre, each with a distinct outside space inviting your gaze up to the Escarpment that surrounds you on three sides.
Quickly you will spread yourselves about the house, finding calm and solitude in a quiet corner, joining others around the kitchen table, or following the winter sun or summer shade to the perfect stoep. Hours slip by. Towards dusk, the fires will be lit, the AGA stoked, shutters closed, curtains drawn.
On cool winter evenings there is a gathering together in the heart of the house; in summer, perhaps a late afternoon walk into one of the surrounding kloofs, or babble and laughter from around the pool, echoing evening birdcall and the windmill’s motion in the breeze.
Drawing you out into the garden beyond the stoeps are further delights: a pergola terrace with distant views to the blue mountains of the Tankwa River valley, and beyond them the great peaks of the Cederberg Mountains; a small kitchen garden with the tinkle of a water trough; a Climax windmill, pumping lazily away in the half-distance; two superb barbecue fireplaces.
And then there is THAT pool – where the great South African garden designer Franchesca Watson worked her magic on De Kruis.
You may find yourselves whiling the afternoon away at the long dining table on the pergola terrace, or spending quality time poolside. Then, as the day draws to a close, gather together with your loved ones on one of the star decks to catch a special sunset, or look in wonder at the glorious starlit sky of the Karoo.