Paternoster reminds me of a little Greek town. With its
white houses and rugged coastline this seaside fishing village in the Western Cape
should be on your bucket list, especially if you are South African! Imagine
wide beaches with big boulders and wildflowers dotting the coastline. There are
small waves gently lapping against the shore, the sun is warm on your skin
and the sea breeze softly touches your bronzing body. You see the fishing boats
leave the shores at sunrise and by the afternoon the daily catch is being sold
by locals in town and served on your plate for dinner. For the few days you are here, you get to trade in the sound
of traffic for the distant sound of seabirds and for those brief moments all is
right with your soul. This is Paternoster.
WHEN TO GO
Ideally go between February and March as most of the
tourists have left but it’s still hot and feels like summer. However, if you had the opportunity to stay
here over New Year’s I would recommend doing that too. This would be a the most
perfect place to have a more chilled New Year’s with a bunch of your closest
friends or family.
WHERE TO STAY
If you are going as a couple or on your own out of season,
stay in a hotel. I only say this because when we stayed at the Dune Ridge self-catering cottage in February this year, I was home alone and had the very unfortunate
incident of being harassed by a man selling fish. He approached me while I was
sunbathing. I politely declined and said I didn’t want to buy fish but he kept insisting
and became rather angry and aggressive. He had dropped his bag of fish and
picked up a rock by this stage. I could see he was on drugs, his mouth was
twitching and he didn’t seem “normal”. I was absolutely petrified. I ran inside
and locked the door but he had made it to the porch and banged on the sliding door trying to get me to open up. I managed
to call my husband who rushed home but by this time he arrived back this guy had run off with the
beach towel I had left outside. It breaks my heart to write this as Paternoster
is one of my favourite places but there is an undeniable drug problem and not much security
around so you need to be aware of this and not go there with a false sense of
reality.
HOWEVER if you took your dog with you or you stayed together
as a couple the whole time the Dune Ridge Cottage is INCREDIBLE! It is isolated
as it’s the last house at the edge of town so you have a lot of privacy, you go
to sleep and wake up to the most incredible views of the rugged coastline and
the cottage itself is beautifully designed and furnished. When stayed in the studio
cottage and I could have moved in. It is hands down the most gorgeous self-catering
cottage I have ever stayed at! And even after this ordeal I woudl return in a heartbeat, I would just take our little dog Benji with us.
If you are looking for an extra special hotel for a truly romantic
getaway then stay at the Strandloper Ocean Boutique Hotel. We stayed here the first time we went to Paternoster. It is pricey
(although they do sometimes have last minute sales!) but worth every penny. The
Leeto Restaurant was phenomenal and they sure know how to serve
breakfast here! The restaurant also has beautiful views of the sea and the service is exceptional. Otherwise if you are looking for a hotel in between prices the Dunes Boutique Guest House is also lovely.
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| Dune RidgeSelf Cattering Cottage |
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| Dune Ridge Self Catering Cottage |
DOG FRIENDLY
There were so many dogs on holiday with their family and it
makes sense, it is so laid back and there is tons of open space and beaches to
stroll along. If it’s not too far to drive with your pooch, definitely take your dog with! We were coming from Durban and I don't think Benji would survive flying unless he was in the cabin with us.
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| One of the local stores in Paternoster |
WHAT TO DO
You won’t be doing much in Paternoster itself accept eating
and sunbathing so relax as much as you can and take full advantage of soaking
up the simple life. There aren’t any shops in town that I would say you have to
stop at. But if you want to drive somewhere nearby or stop at the following
places you could always make these stops part of your road trip to or from
Paternoster
Darling Olives – stop here for olive tasting and
stock up on these locally made olive jams, pastes, rubs, chocolate, extra
virgin olive oil, flavoured olive oils and olive soaps. I bought two
different olive oils and the soaps as they are beautifully packaged so make a
great souvenir or gift.
Spend a few hours at Tietiesbaai.
Translated this means “Boobs Bay” but it’s not a nudie beach! It’s
actually a beautiful nature reserve. Usually there is a R25 – R30 entrance
charge but when we went the boom was open and no one was there so we just drove
through. However, it would be worth the entrance fee if someone is there. You can
visit the lighthouse, go on long walks or take a picnic and spend the day
between the huge boulders. The views are surreal, it feels like you in another part
of the world. You can take you dog here
too which is odd for a nature reserve but I’m not complaining!
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| Darling Olives |
WHERE TO EAT & DRINK
Everyone will tell you to go to Voorstrandt.
But don’t. The location is incredible, but the service is so slow and
everything else is mediocre. We have been a few times and it’s always been
average. I would suggest rather going to Leeto Restaurant, even if you are not
staying at the hotel.
Wolfgat - Make sure you are hungry and go here
for a long, lazy lunch as they have a 7 course tasting menu with the option of
doing a wine paring too which I highly recommend doing! Again, you will need to
book in advance. Now that it won best restaurant in the world for 2019 the waiting
list is 3 months to get in.
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| Left - The Noist Oyster, Right - Wolfgat |
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| The chef at Wolfgat and their gorgeous kitchen |
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| Wolfgat, currently voted best resturant in the world |
TOP TIP
Take a good book with you. This was the first holiday I have
been on where I actually had time to finish a book!
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| One of the local residents in Paternoster |
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