Wedding Venue 5: Canelands Beach Club

The final stop on our venue escapade was Canelands Beach Club in the heart of Salt Rock.

Canelands is an elegant beach club situated a stone's-throw away from the beach, with a unique homely atmosphere, brought about by open-plan kitchen and bar areas.

The ceremony is also held on the beach, with the option to move it indoors should it be required. With the venue being situated right on the beach, it lends itself to a wonderfully casual environment, while still making guests feel like they are being treated to the very best.

The venue can only accommodate 20 persons, however, being situated in the heart of Salt Rock, accommodation is not lacking. The rooms are fresh, and exude an atmosphere of a seaside haven.

 A beautifully simplistic venue, with views that take your breath away! 



Wedding Venue 4: Palm Dune Beach Lodge

After The Caledon we made our way to our first beach venue, hidden along the coastline of Blythedale - Palm Dune Beach Lodge, where we met a very entertaining Indian manager :)

The venue invites you into a Bali-inspired haven hidden amongst the tropical lushness of the Dolphin Coast.

The advantage of this venue is that there are a variety options for the service and the reception respectively.

The first option is for the service to be held on the beach, but should the weather be less than favourable the service can be moved to the deck / restaurant / top level patio. After-service drinks are served down on the beach, and with views of the sea it will most certainly keep your guests occupied while photos are being taken.

The reception can also be held at any of the top venues, but I have to say that I'm more than a little biased to the deck which is situated just off the beach but is sheltered by a thicket of natural foliage.

 

The accommodation is tastefully decorated, and is more than sufficient to accommodate all guests.

 



All around a full-packaged offer!

Wedding Venue 3: The Caledon Hotel

Venue 3 takes us away from the Midlands and down to the North Coast.

The Caledon Hotel is a 4-star boutique hotel which is situated in Umhlali.

Sally took us around the venue, and was extremely helpful and efficient - thank you! 
The ceremony would be held in the garden, with guests having welcome drinks on the pool deck. Should the weather not hold up, there is an alternative option of having the service in part of their restaurant.

Even though the ceremony areas are beautiful, I do feel that this venue lends itself more to hosting the reception only, and it would be more suitable to conduct the service at a nearby chapel.

The reception room is a fresh, simple area, which will lend itself to any decor theme. The room also opens up onto the gardens through stunning seamless glass doors.

The rooms define seamless sophistication, and are inviting to any seasoned traveller. 





 A chic venue, with a real focus on design!

Wedding Venue 2: The Windmills

Venue 2 is situated just down the road from The Bend, in Currys Post.

The Windmills is a newly renovated boutique hotel, previously known as Stonehaven.

The venue has combined the rustic nature of the reserve it's situated on with the contemporary design of a modern hotel, which ties together with a beautiful sublety.
 
The main feature of this venue is their cutting-edge chapel, which overlooks their dam, and is just breathtaking!

The chapel boasts under-floor heating and a fireplace.

The reception is held in their dining hall, which is a short walk away from the chapel.

The reception area includes another fireplace, and beautiful wooden floors.

Thanks to the GM at The Windmills, we were treated to a free night's stay, which allowed us to taste the food, and I can say it was scrumptious.

A unique venue with very welcoming staff!

Wedding Venue 1: The Bend Country House

The first stop on our venue sightseeing voyage was The Bend Country House situated outside Nottingham Rd on a 1400 hectare nature estate.

This style of venue is a bit out of our normal taste, but I figured it would be important to look at an array of venues, as you never know what might grab your heart!

We were definitely pleasantly surprised, as the setting was just gorgeous.

The wedding ceremony can be held in 2 areas, a traditional chapel set just behind the main house, or an outside ceremony alongside the river.

The reception is held next to the indoor chapel, and overlooks the estate:



The accommodation has a colonial feel to it, and your guests are able to enjoy the entire estate for themselves, as the venue do not allow outside bookings on the night of your wedding.

 A true country experience!

Weddings and stuff...

So next year is the year of reckoning...our wedding! :)

Now I'm not exactly a girlie-girl, so I haven't been planning my BIG Day since I was 5, and I have to admit I am rather out of my comfort zone.

First step obviously is to set a date, which we have finally (through a practical process of elimination...I know no other way) managed to unofficially settle on one.

Next is the venue...eek...one thing we did know was that we didn't want to get married on the Muldersdrift Mile - given there are some amazing venues there, but we felt the need to find somewhere different and special to us. Kwa-Zulu Natal was our obvious choice, as we have spent many amazing holidays on the North Coast, and shared suitcases of memories there!

So, why I am I blogging about all this...well I thought it would be interesting to hear all your throughts on the venues we visited, on a trip to Natal last weekend.

Each venue will be presented in a seperate blog, so please join me on this journey, and I look forward to your thoughts!

Fly Fishing and G&T's

Is there anything better than a surprise birthday weekend away? I can't think of too many things...thanks to Derrick's mom we were treated to a wonderful weekend at Doornkop Fish & Wildlife Reserve!




20-odd km's outside of Dullstroom, Doornkop is set in the heart of the Komati Valley, and as cold as it is, the setting is just gorgeous!

Other than the game heads on the wall...the accommodation was great - and the underfloor heating was a welcome addition.

The weekend was a great family break, with fly-fishing being on top of the list of to-do's...well for the boys anyway - the lesson was at 6am, so I opted for the comfort of my bed for a little longer :) I did, however, decide to go for an early morning walk...my lungs took a bit of strain, both because it was freezing, but also because I am seriously unfit...as you can see I went prepared!

The GM of the resort agreed to show his skills to the boys - obviously a good teacher because before they knew it the fish were biting. 

 As proud as I am of the boys fishing achievements, I think that there is one last aspect required in order to fully qualify as an expert fly-fishermen...as one would say 'It's all in the Outfit'... :)

So after all the fresh air and activities, there was no better end to the day than fresh trout and gin & tonics - CHEERS!

Even though the reserve is designed around the fishing, there are walking trails, horse-riding, a tennis court, game drive routes, mountain biking...and more, so being only 2 hours out of Joburg, it's a great weekend break for all!