Green thumbs up for Stellenbosch!
A nature-lover’s delight, Stellenbosch is home to some of the most beautifully curated botanical and other gardens in the Cape Winelands.
From bonsais to bamboo, these gardens in Stellenbosch are a celebration of green thumbs, the Cape Winelands’ fertile soil, and mother nature’s incorruptible splendour!
If you’re looking to enjoy a day out in some of the best Stellenbosch gardens, we recommend:
1. The Stellenbosch University Botanical Gardens
With it’s quaint and cozy Katjiepiering (Gardenia) Restaurant serving delicious meals and cakes under the trees, The Stellenbosch Botanical Gardens can be enjoyed by people of all ages!
Whether you’re a plant enthusiast, or a stressed-out mom looking for an activity for the kids to enjoy, this botanical garden has something for everyone.
From stepping stones in a pond which practically beg little feet to play, to a gorgeous access-controlled greenhouse full of rare and beautiful plants, a day spent at The Stellenbosch University Botanical Gardens is good for the mind, body and spirit!
Whether you want to bring your own picnic to enjoy on the lush, green lawns, or want to stop in at Katjiepiering for the cake of the day and a coffee in the shade of mighty oaks, the botanical gardens is a lovely place for a bite in Stellenbosch.
The gardens and Katjiepiering Restaurant are open daily from 08:00 to 17:00 and members of the public pay only R10 to enter the gardens.
Students and staff of Stellenbosch University and their guests enter free.
Visit The Botanical Gardens
2. Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden
If you’re a green thumb who loves the great outdoors, you cannot miss the Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden, which brings lush indigenous vegetation and gorgeous sculptural works together in a breathtaking celebration of the art of both mother nature and man.
Featuring over 60 of Dylan Lewis’ works, the sculpture garden is seven hectares and “is a place of expansive vistas, scents, and the sounds of nature, with tranquil groves, [and] hidden paths” just begging to be explored!
The Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden is open from Tuesday to Saturday from 08:30 to 17:30. Our last entry is at 16:00. The entry fee is R140 pp and R110 for students and pensioners. Children under 18, free entry when accompanied by an adult
Visit Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden
3. Old Nectar Gardens
Open to the public Monday to Friday from 09:00 until 17:00 the Old Nectar Gardens are situated on the historic Old Nectar grounds, which feature a variety of trees including the majestic oak, for which Stellenbosch is so well-known.
These trees, including but not limited to redwoods, maple, camellia and prunus trees, were all planted by Una van der Spuy, whose family has owned Old Nectar since the early 1940s, over the course of more than 70 years!
The trees are, however, not the only natural beauties to marvel at at Old Nectar!
Una van der Spuy spent her life at Old Nectar cultivating a series of beautiful gardens with tender love and meticulous care.
See the magnificent rose garden, the waterfall garden that’s naturally fed by a mountain stream, the magnolia walk and more!
Did you know, Una even had a new rose cultivar named after her before she passed away in 2012, only 4 days before what would have been her one hundredth birthday.
Old Nectar recommends parking at a distance from the manor house and gardens and enjoying a leisurely stroll on your way up as there is just so much to see and enjoy on their grounds!
Entrance costs are R120pp for adults, while children under sixteen years of age enter free.
Garden groups and pensioners qualify for a discounted rate of R100pp.
Visit Old Nectar Gardens
Now you have a list of the best Stellenbosch Gardens you can visit when you are in town again.
For more information on the specifics of wining, dining, playing, exploring, spending and convening with nature in sunny Stellenbosch, be sure to check back soon for part six in this, our Things To Do In Stellenbosch series.
Next, we will bring you a list of insider insights into the very best nature reserves the Cape Winelands have to offer!
Bring your family and your four-legged friends and make a day of exploring Stellenbosch in its natural habitat!
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