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17 things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands

3/11/2017

18 Comments

 
17 things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
​By Roxanne Reid
[Updated June 2020] Jagged mountains and gnarled old oaks, the curve of a Cape Dutch gable, long rows of vineyards or fruit trees, a farm dam – these are the memories you’ll bring home from Tulbagh. In the Cape Winelands just a 90-minute drive from Cape Town, it’s a place to discover history and magnificent scenery, to explore 17 things to do in Tulbagh.

1. Walk Church Street 
Church Street, Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Building after building in Church Street is a national monument
Walk up and down Church Street to look at beautiful buildings that were restored after the earthquake of 1969. Each has a plaque in front telling what it used to be, how badly it was damaged and how it was restored. Every house in this street has been proclaimed a national monument – the biggest ever restoration project in South Africa. Thanks to the earthquake, it’s now both a tourist attraction and a fine example of cultural heritage.

2. Visit a museum 
Earthquake Museum, Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Tulbagh's Earthquake Museum
Tulbagh’s Church Street is rich in museums – four of them. At number 4 you’ll find the Earthquake Museum, where for a small fee you can get entrance to all four museums. This one documents the events of 1969 and paints a picture of the restoration of Church Street. A separate room tells the stories of three settlements that disappeared completely after the earthquake, the houses either demolished or their occupants moved.

​Quick tip: Tulbagh Tourism’s info centre is in the same building so it makes a good place to start. Pick up a map of the town and surrounding area and attractions. 
Oude Kerk Museum, Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Oude Kerk Museum
The Oude Kerk should be your second stop on the museum trail. It’s one of the last surviving cruciform churches in South Africa and was built in 1743 by the Dutch East India Company. The gable and ring-wall were added in 1795. Once another church was built, it fell into disuse but reopened as a museum in 1925.

At 14 Church Street is a Victorian Period House that depicts the lifestyle of the rural middle-class family at this time, with its dark velvet drapes, florid wallpaper and overstuffed chairs.

22 Church Street, built in 1803, was originally a postmaster’s house and is now the Pioneer House Museum. There’s a red-walled period kitchen with open hearth, a simple room with rietdak ceiling, a more formal voorkamer with wooden ceiling, and an eclectic collection of old kitchen implements, furniture and china.

3. Stay over 
Tulbagh accommodation, Cape Winelands
Farmstay, treehouse or historic lodge, Tulbagh has everything from budget to luxury accommodation
It would be a huge mistake to rush your visit to Tulbagh; as you can see in this post, there’s plenty to do and see in the area. Rather stay over for a couple of nights and savour the experience of slow travel. Whether you’re looking for a boutique hotel, B&B, self-catering cottage or farmstay experience, booking.com’s multiple Tulbagh accommodation listings have you covered – in all price ranges from budget to luxury. Stay in a restored building in historic Church Street, in town or in the country, and make the most of a few days away from the hurly-burly of the city.

4. Go wine-tasting 
Saronsberg wine estate, things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Saronsberg wine estate
With some 15 wine estates in this part of the Cape Winelands, you’re spoilt for choice. Most offer tastings for a fee of around R50 to R90, but this is swept away if you buy a few bottles afterwards. Saronsberg has some impressive sculptures in the gardens. Enjoy your tasting outside overlooking a dam or inside in the double-volume tasting room. Take your wine and wander the art gallery upstairs or sit in a ghost chair at the long tables downstairs.

At Lemberg, you’ll be greeted by rows of white roses if you visit in October as we did. The modern tasting room offers a chance to savour wines named after the estate’s dogs, like Lady, Spencer and Louis. Lemberg produces wine from the harsevelu cultivar, so unusual and sought-after that there was none left for tasting. They were particularly proud of the Tim Atkin (master of wine) score of 95 awarded to the Louis 2015 blend.
Montpellier wine estate, things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Montpellier's chapel in the vineyard
​Krone (Twee Jongezellen) is the place to go if you love your Méthode Cap Classique (MCC) wines. You get to taste six of them, from sweeter night harvest types to rosé and brut, including the classic Krone Borealis Cuvée Brut made from chardonnay and pinot noir. You’ll also be offered two MCCs that have been on the lees for 10 or more years – definitely more honeyed but very shy on the bubbles.

Montpellier wine estate is a must if only to appreciate its gorgeous little chapel in the vineyards and its restful garden. Unlike Lemberg or Saronsberg, the tasting room here is in a historical old Cape Dutch gabled house, or you can sit in the garden to enjoy your tasting. Apart from Krone, where the tasting was free, this was the cheapest (though we bought six bottles so didn’t pay the tasting fee).

Quick tip: If you're a beer lover, there is also a craft brewery at Paddagang Restaurant.
​
5. Wine by Bike 
Wine by bike, things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Wine by Bike - photo courtesy of Vindoux Guest Farm & Spa
Vindoux Guest Farm lies very close to the wine estates of Saronsberg and Krone, and not too far away from Montpellier or Oakhurst Olives. Hire a bike at Vindoux for a slower ‘Wine by Bike’ way to explore the area’s estates and farm tracks. Choose half day or full day, and your fee includes helmets and water. Special wine carriers on the bikes help you transport your purchases. You can even venture further afield and explore Church Street (see point 1 above) by bike. Bookings, tel 023-2300635.

6. Do an olive oil tasting 
Oakhurst Olives, things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Oakhurst olive oil tasting
Oakhurst Olives lies at the end of a cul de sac just outside Tulbagh. Here the granite and sandstone soils and summer sunshine make for happy olive trees. The crop is hand-harvested from March to June. A tutored tasting in the gorgeous double-volume tasting room was one of our highlights in Tulbagh.

You get to taste plump kalamata olives, a delicious tapenade made with capers instead of anchovies (it’s less fishy and slightly less salty than usual, which I liked), as well as two cold-pressed extra virgin olive oils – delicate and intense. Oakhurst uses up to ten different varieties like leccino, frantoio and carotina in the oil blend for complexity. The delicate oil is very buttery but with a peppery bite in the back of the throat. The intense oil is stronger flavoured and also peppery on aftertaste.

We bought a litre of olive oil, a few jars of tapenade and a 250ml bottle of oil as a gift.

7. Enjoy a relaxing spa treatment 
Vindous Spa, things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Photo courtesy of Vindoux Guest Farm & Spa
Sore muscles after your bike ride or hike? Stressed from working too hard? Book a spa treatment at Vindoux Guest Farm & Spa, from a 30 min de-stress back massage to a one-hour full body deep tissue massage, from facials to hand and foot treatments. Bookings essential, tel 023-2301737 or 073-8748454. Closed Tuesdays.

8. Explore the art route 
Art galleries, things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Saronsberg art gallery
If you’re a lover of fine art, you’ll be happy to know there’s a number of art galleries and artists in and around Tulbagh. Treat yourself to some visual stimulation by visiting the Monbijou Fine Art Gallery & Olde Curiosity Shoppe or Christo Coetzee Art Gallery in Church Street, or take in the sculpture and paintings at Saronsberg wine estate (see point 4 above). You can also make an appointment to visit the area’s artists in their studios, where they sculpt, paint or do printmaking. For more information, drop in at Tulbagh Tourism’s information centre at 4 Church Street.

9. Indulge your chocolate passion 
Chocolate tasting, things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Moniki Chocolatier tasting with Amarula
If you love chocolate, you have to visit Moniki Chocolatier on Schoonderzicht Farm. Chocolatier Berry Horing uses 70% dark Belgian chocolate that’s very smooth and shiny thanks to the long tempering process. There’s also milk and white chocolate.

​You can book as a group to do a tasting/pairing with tea, coffee, Amarula, port or brandy. Some of the chocolate flavours we enjoyed were marzipan, Amarula, Dutch caramel, cappuccino, lime and eikeberry.

Given how charming and helpful Berry was and how delicious the quality chocolates, this was another highlight. The tot of Amarula didn’t hurt either.

10. Go hiking 
17 things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Photo courtesy of Tulbagh Tourism
Put on your hiking boots and explore the mountains around Tulbagh to enjoy scenic views and mountain fynbos. A popular walk is the Waterval Trail (15-30 min) to a waterfall and pool. There’s a small fee for a permit, which you can get – together with a map – ​at the Tulbagh Tourism info centre at 4 Church Street.

11. Go horse-riding 
Horse riding, things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Photo courtesy Tulbagh Tourism
Saddle up and go horse-riding in the foothills of the Winterhoek and Witzenberg mountains, through orchards and vineyards on a working farm. Both novices and experienced riders are welcome, just book ahead with Tulbagh Horse Trails, tel 023-2300615.

12. Eat out 
Reader's Restaurant, Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Reader's Restaurant
Don’t expect Franschhoek-style gourmet food in Tulbagh, but do try out some of the eateries. Paddagang serves traditional South African, Cape Malay and Dutch-style dishes. The atmosphere is cosy too. We enjoyed a very nice lentil bobotie at Reader’s Restaurant in Church Street, where the décor is mostly on the theme of cats. The old building dating back to late 1700s used to be the sick comforter’s house (he read the bible to sick people – hence the name).
Things I Love, Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Things I Love
Another place worth a stop is Things I Love, which has a nice terrace, or you can sit inside among the décor and bric-a-brac. The butternut and beetroot salad was nice, the gourmet burger more of a normal cheese burger than a gourmet one.

The Olive Terrace at the Tulbagh Hotel on Van der Stel Street is a very popular venue so you might need to book ahead on the weekend. The prize seats here are definitely on the pretty terrace, but you can sit inside if the weather doesn’t co-operate. Our hake-and-chips and pork belly filled our tummies but the crackling was like leather.

13. Go on a tractor ride 
Oudekloof tractor rides, things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Tractor rides at Oudekloof wine estate
Go on a scenic tractor ride up the historic Oudekloof Pass to enjoy the mountains and views out over Tulbagh. The trip at Oudekloof Wine Estate takes about two hours and includes a picnic at the top. You’ll learn a bit about the history of the area too, and imagine what it must have been like for the Voortrekkers and their oxwagons when they came through here. Book ahead, tel 082-4409459.

Further afield
​
14.
Zipline the cobwebs away 
Ceres zipline, things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Ceres zipline, photo courtesy of Tulbagh Tourism
Just 20 minutes away from Tulbagh is Ceres, where you’ll find a zipline adventure among the rock formations of the Schurweberg. Kit up with special harness, helmet and gloves and get an adrenalin rush on eight slides, from 100 to 290m long. Total distance is 1.4km. Great fun for the whole family (ages 3 and older) but small children will need to do tandem slides.

15. See a Boer War blockhouse
Anglo Boer War blockhouse, things to do near Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Anglo Boer War blockhouse
On the R43 near Wolseley you can see a well-preserved Anglo Boer War blockhouse guarding the railway line and bridge over a river. Back in 1899-1902, the British Army depended for supplies and troops on the railway line from Cape Town to the Boer Republics in the north, so the Boers began to attack railway lines and bridges. The Brits countered by building blockhouses like this. There were water tanks on the ground floor, living quarters housing up to 20 men on the first floor, and a lookout post on the top floor. Not a single bridge protected by a blockhouse was blown up.

16. Visit Bosjes chapel and gardens ​
Bosjes chapel, things to do near Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Bosjes chapel
Take a detour past Bosjes wine estate in the Breede River Valley, between Wolseley and Ceres, to see a wedding chapel inspired by a bird in flight. As unusual as it is beautiful, it opened in March 2017. Take a walk around the indigenous gardens, through the sculptural water fountain and stop for tea/coffee and cake in the tea garden.

17. Drive Bains Kloof Pass 
Bains Klood Pass, things to do near Tulbagh, Cape Winelands
Bains Kloof Pass is a national monument
If you’re travelling from Cape Town/Paarl/ Wellington to Tulbagh, don’t miss driving over the historic Bains Kloof Pass. Built by the masterful Andrew Geddes Bain from 1849-1853, this 18km engineering masterpiece on the R301 is now a national monument. As the official ‘gateway to the north’, Bains Kloof Pass would have seen many oxwagons and horse-drawn carts in the 19th century. Today, it’s a snaking tarred pass through indigenous vegetation to a height of 594m, with the river running like a ribbon at the bottom of the deep kloof.

Did you enjoy the article? Pin this image!
17 things to do in Tulbagh, Cape Winelands, South Africa #Tulbagh #CapeWinelands #SouthAfrica #CapeTown
Visiting Tulbagh in the Cape Winelands, South Africa and looking for things to do? Here are some choices, from Tulbagh restaurants and museums to tractor rides, horse-riding, hiking and wine-tasting as well as art, olives and chocolate. #Tulbagh #CapeWinelands #SouthAfrica #CapeTown
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Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
18 Comments
Chandrima link
11/11/2017 09:25:45 am

I always thought Tulbagh was just about wine and vineyards. Thanks for sharing this amazing post!

Reply
Roxanne
11/11/2017 10:34:49 am

Wine tasting is a big part of Tulbagh's appeal, Chandrima, but for me perhaps the most amazing thing is the heritage architecture. And the fresh country air.

Reply
Clive
20/3/2018 10:17:40 pm

Interesting reading. I did not realize there was so much to do in the town. Thanks.

Reply
Roxanne
21/3/2018 11:36:55 am

Thanks, Clive. If, like me, you love history, food and wine, you're definitely spoiled for choice! Not too shabby on the outdoor activities either.

Reply
Din
26/8/2018 01:53:24 pm

Hello can you advice us about the wine tour on bikes ? Where can we book it ? I see vindoux guest House provides it, but we stay in another accommodation.
Thanks !
Din

Reply
Roxanne
26/8/2018 04:51:54 pm

To book, phone them on the telephone number I gave in point 5 of the blog post above. You don't have to be staying at Vindoux to do Wine by Bike, as far as I know, but you will pick up your bikes from there.

Reply
Taryn
24/9/2018 12:52:36 am

There is no other page under the search "things to do in Tulbagh" as informative or as interesting to read as this page. Thank you for your time and effort!

Reply
Roxanne Reid
25/9/2018 07:01:33 pm

Thank you for taking the time to pay such a lovely compliment, Taryn. I work hard to make my posts useful so it's great to know when it hits the spot.

Reply
Harlley
12/7/2019 01:29:20 pm

I also enjoyed these all fabulous fun things in my these tours and have a joyful time with my buddies.

Reply
Roxanne
12/7/2019 04:21:40 pm

Good to know, Harlley. Tulbagh is definitely a fun place to visit.

Reply
Kiki Allan
10/9/2019 10:38:48 am

Wow, I am going to Tulbagh at the end of this month and your page has seriously excited me! Thank you so much for the in depth and varied information. You are clearly passionate about your posts!

Reply
Roxanne
10/9/2019 11:24:30 am

Ah, Kiki, thanks so much for taking time to comment. I do try my best to add value to my posts so it's great to know that is appreciated.

Reply
Tarryn
18/1/2020 06:12:30 pm

Can you recommend a budget friendly self catering cottage for an anniversary weekend?

Reply
Roxanne Reid
18/1/2020 08:08:17 pm

Try Eikelaan Farm Cottages, Tarryn. we loved it. You can read more here https://www.roxannereid.co.za/blog/farmstay-near-tulbagh-eikelaan-farm-cottages

Reply
NOMAPHELO VOYI link
16/9/2020 08:19:45 pm

HAI CAN U PLEASE ADVISE US ON HOW TO BOOK FOR ZIPLINE IN TOLBAGH

Reply
Roxanne
16/9/2020 08:55:58 pm

It's actually in Ceres, not Tulbagh, and you'd need to contact them directly through https://ceresadventures.co.za or tel 078 063 5134.

Reply
Madelein Oosthuizen
30/10/2020 10:14:38 am

Thank you! We are in Tulbagh and finding your blog so useful!!

Reply
Roxanne Reid
30/10/2020 03:07:36 pm

Thanks for telling me, Madelein. I'm glad to hear that.

Reply

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