316 Best Hotels in South Africa

Tanda Tula has a well-deserved reputation as one of the best bush camps in Mpumalanga. When lions roar nearby, the noise sounds like it's coming from under the bed. The reason is simple: you sleep in a large safari tent with huge window flaps that roll up, leaving you gazing at the bush only through mosquito netting. Each comfortable thatch tent has electricity, a freestanding fan, a private bathroom with a Victorian-style tub and outdoor shower, and a private wooden deck overlooking the Nhlaralumi River. First-class rangers give you a very thorough understanding of the environment, local history, and animals without concentrating solely on the Big Five. True adventurers might enjoy getting a taste of safaris of a bygone time at Tanda Tula's non-permanent field camp (open April through to October); after bush walking or driving all day, you set up camp in the bush; there's no electricity and limited cell phone coverage, but you'll be wined and dined at the elegant mess tent.

Translated from Russian as "little hideaway," this delightful boutique lodge has eight huge, individually styled rooms, each offering a different sensory experience—its own specific body-product fragrance and mood CD—and the three rooms at the top have beautiful ocean views. Tea and coffee stations (with cappuccino machines and fresh biscotti) and two honesty bars are available. Delicious breakfasts are made to order, and, although this is the only meal offered, extra muffins are left out for guests during the day. Lunch or dinner can be ordered in from area eateries. No children under 10 ensures a peaceful atmosphere for adults on a break. Staff will gladly recommend and book restaurants and tours, and the on-site spa offers international skin care and body treatments.

Dramatically sited, this lovely beach lodge a stone's throw from the sea has air-conditioned, thatch suites decorated in chic Robinson Crusoe style with wooden floors, reed interior walls, cane and wooden furniture, gorgeous bathrooms with sea views, and personal decks looking out over rolling coastal dunes and the blue Indian Ocean. Opt for a deluxe ocean-view suite with a private plunge pool under the Milkwood trees, if you can. You'll dine outside on delicious creative food on wooden sea-facing decks or in the cozy restaurant, and you'll be amazed at just how hungry the sea air makes you. A guide will walk along the beach with you to Island Rock, where at low tide, you can float among the rock pools. If you've never snorkeled, then now is your chance. Go for sundowners to Lake Sibaya, South Africa's largest, freshwater lake, and spot slumbering hippos. Take a guided walk around the lodge, or go diving to the pristine reefs offshore.

This quaint little Victorian lodge is run by a safari- and mountain-guide couple who follow Fair Trade, sustainability, and social ethics, and also offer guided walks and activities. It lies in the lee of the infamous Spioenkop hill, site of one of the bitterest battles of the South African (Anglo-Boer) War. Choose a cozy en suite Victorian cottage overlooking a secret game-filled valley, set against a magnificent mountain backdrop, or one of three delightful self-catering lodges (Kiplings is particularly geared to littles with games and bunk beds). Check out the amazing original memorabilia throughout the lodge—there's even a copy of one of Winston Churchill's paintings of the area when he was a war correspondent here. Even if you're not into military history, a morning's visit to the top of Spioenkop and its mass grave with a knowledgeable guide, may well have you in tears. Reserve the new wine cellar for an intimate evening dinner and top-notch South African wine tasting. 

Visitors attracted to the Cape Peninsula for its natural grandeur will think they've died and gone to heaven when arriving at this discreetly luxurious boutique hotel. On the edge of the sea directly off Chapman's Peak Drive (a contender for world's most scenic road) and built around a wonderland of native fynbos and the few milkwood trees that survived a big 2015 fire, Tintswalo Atlantic is the only beachfront development in Table Mountain National Park. Themed after different islands, 11 roomy suites all offer breathtaking sea views and mountain views, comfy verandahs, wood-burning stoves, and divine bedding—all against the sound of breaking waves. Only 25 minutes from Cape Town, guests can enjoy the city but may rather opt to watch the whales playing in the bay. Five-course meals, an impressive wine cellar, in-room spa treatments, a fabulous pool deck (with the same amazing view), and excellent service complete the pampering at this exclusive and unique hideaway.  Decor in rooms varies significantly, so express your aesthetics to the booking agent.

The first Relais & Chateaux game lodge in the world, this gorgeous camp (think leopards, lanterns, leadwoods, and leopard orchids) is tucked into the riverbank overlooking indigenous forest. The lodge is themed in chocolate and white, with exquisite leopard photos on the walls, airy and stylish interiors, and elegant yet simple furnishings. Huge bedrooms, en suite bathrooms, and plunge pools continue the elegance, simplicity, and sophistication. From your spacious deck you look out onto a world of cool-green forest dominated by ancient African ebony and marula trees. Treat yourself to a bottle of bubbly from the Champagne Library and then dine with others while swapping bush stories or sip it alone in your private sala.

Tutwa is far flung but far from ordinary, a slice of luxury amid both Kalahari wilderness and Orange River oasis—you can head off on a game drive and return for a paddle on the river, potentially spotting more animals from your canoe. The game-viewing is spare but high-quality, featuring giraffe, wildebeest, eland, ostrich, and oryx by day and aardvark, jackal, aardwolf, and even leopard at night. What's most extraordinary, though, is the rocky terrain, comprised of basalt with rose-quartz shards measuring as much as a meter (3 feet) in both length and width. The lodge also offers opportunities to fly-fish and to learn more about San culture and history. The downstairs verandah suites and the four Annex suites upstairs—with their views—are the most desirable. Babysitting services and three self-catering cottages are also available.

If you fancy taking a helicopter to the airport or lazing in a bubble bath while looking out floor-to-ceiling windows at breathtaking sea and mountain views, then this award-winning, luxurious hotel and spa that is the only such property within Table Mountain National Park may be for you. With enormous indigenous gardens that meld into the National Park in its backyard and the Atlantic Ocean a stone's throw from the bar, this hotel, which is the only man-made structure between Camps Bay and Llandudno, has got location in spades. Light and airy rooms are styled with a classic elegance, and most have either mountain or sea views (the "classic" rooms have unfortunately close views of the garden). Constantly changing events like "dinner and a movie" night in the 16-seat cinema or special-occasion high teas and wine tastings are the norm, and the spa is considered one of Cape Town's best. The well-regarded on-site restaurant Azure also has stunning sea views, a fantastic breakfast, and wonderful à la carte menu.

This boutique hotel offers stupendous views of the seemingly endless beach from floor-to-ceiling windows and private verandahs. The decor is a distinct blend of beach house and designer chic, with shades of turquoise, cream, and blue accented by glass and chrome. Open baths allow you to enjoy a soak in the tub with a sea view (louvered shutters can be closed for privacy, if you prefer). 

Made of thatch, teak, and glass, with a distinctly Asian feel, your suite, tucked into the shade of a sand forest overlooking a marshland on the edge of an inviting woodland, is so private you'll find it hard to believe there are other guests. The bedrooms and romantic bathrooms are huge, and each has a private plunge pool and outdoor deck. Keep an eye open for game roaming close to your room. The lounge-living area of the lodge has a dining area, and a large terrace under a canopy of trees, where breakfast is served. The bush braai, with its splendid food and fairy-tale setting, is a memorable occasion after an evening game drive.

This is an exclusive yet unpretentious genuine health hydro, set in one of the province's prettiest locations, only an hour's drive from Durban, and five hours from Johannesburg. A haven of tranquility, you'll stay in one of 17 rooms or 5 suites clustered round tree- and bird-filled courtyards, relax on the wraparound decks that overlook the indigenous forest, pamper your body with all sorts of treatments, float around in two large pools (outdoor and indoor) and eat healthy, delicious food—this is definitely not a one-lettuce-leaf place. Amazingly, however, even with the great food, guests do lose weight as they de-stress. Attend interesting lectures, go for lovely early morning forest walks, or go shopping on the Midlands Meander.

Most of the visitors to 54 on Bath are international business travelers and foreign tourists drawn to the modern yet intimate elegance behind the towering brick facade and Doric columns, though the Champagne bar is popular with locals. It's also in the center of Rosebank and linked to the nearby mall and Rosebank Art and Craft Market by a second-floor sky bridge. The upmarket restaurant, Level Four, has established itself as one of Johannesburg's culinary centers. Travelers rave about the breakfast and dinner (an à la carte menu including dishes like rib-eye steak, duck, and salmon). One of the hotel's finest features is the rooftop garden and pool area, which has sweeping views of the northern suburbs' greenery.

This boutique hotel set in gorgeous gardens balances a muted color scheme and bold paintings adorning the walls. There's a hot tub on the rooftop deck, a garden courtyard, and a heated swimming pool. The restaurant is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily. There's also a small spa. The four-person villas are five minutes from the main property and come with private pools and ocean views.

Primarily catering to business travelers, this ultramodern hotel is within the Melrose Arch shopping, dining, and residential enclave. The eclectic decor mixes modern and traditional African influences with high-tech, colored lighting throughout and sculptures, baskets, and furnishings all highlighting the African locale. Even the elevators reflect this mix, with one representing the African day and the other, almost completely dark, suggesting the night. Wi-Fi is free in both rooms and in the public areas, including the warm, mahogany-clad library bar. The rooms are well equipped, and each has a view of the pool and garden or overlooks a square. The pool area highlights the eccentric and modern taste that is echoed throughout the hotel, with trees planted in larger-than-life steel buckets, and tables and chairs set out in a few inches of water. Sip a cocktail here while soaking your feet in the heated pool, which has music piped underwater. African-inspired meals are offered at the stylish and modern restaurant, March.

One of South Africa's largest hotel spas is located at this peaceful retreat near Magaliesburg. The award-winning spa is a destination in and of itself (open 7 days a week) with a number of rock plunge pools, steam rooms, as well as therapy baths and it, offers a range of services, including couples' treatment rooms and hydrotherapy. The expansive, thatched hotel sits in the midst of beautiful gardens with drop-dead gorgeous views of the Magaliesberg Mountains from the restaurant's lookout deck. Golf carts are available to take guests across the property's facilities if needs be. The rooms feature contemporary decor with a splash of color, and most have a private terrace overlooking the landscaped grounds, while the suites have their own heated pool that's necklaced by a wooden deck. The Rambling Vine restaurant specializes in farm-to-table dishes made with fresh local ingredients. 

The tents at this bush camp—which is a short drive, partially along an easy dirt road, north of Garies and is open in and out of Namaqualand's world-renowned wildflower season—are on raised wooden decks and have basic bathrooms, gas heat, and spacious decks but no electricity (although you can charge phones in the dining tent). Activities include cozying up by a fire in the kookskerm (boma), going for drives and hikes, or enjoying a sundowner while taking in breathtaking views.

On Jubilee Square, part of the Simon's Town Waterfront, this hotel is right in the action and has wonderful views over Simon's Town Bay, the harbor, and the yacht club. Almost all rooms have sea views, and all are light and airy, combining lime-washed wood with white walls and pale-blue finishes. Room service can be arranged from the adjacent restaurants.

Situated on 11 acres of gardens in leafy Constantia, this glamorous and avant-garde boutique hotel was originally an 18th-century Cape Dutch manor house and working farm. Luxurious rooms are in two buildings, all decorated in a bold style that marries the voluptuous excess of velvet and gilt with elegant historical decorum to fantastic effect. Rooms are spacious and bright, and overlook the gardens and a pleasant walking trail. The hotel is conveniently located for those exploring Constantia's renowned wine estates. On-site dining options are very good between Blanko, the Italian restaurant in the old manor house, the casual La Belle Bistro & Bakery, which serves excellent lighter fare all day long, and the outdoor Rose Bar Lounge, which enjoys a fantastic garden location to enjoy cocktails and sushi.

Remote in location, 30 minutes from Springbok, this is the real deal if you want comfort and solitude with big skies in a desertlike location. Although there's an abandoned open-pit mine in the background, it oddly enough fits in with the sparse landscape—even the pool looks as though it's been carved out of the rocky substrate. The guesthouse is owner Annie Vonk-Apollis’s tribute to her family in the form of a B&B on the farmland where she was raised. The house—decorated with family photographs, Annie's grandmother's loving restored furniture, and memorabilia celebrating the Apollis clan—has three, large, en-suite bedrooms, a lounge-cum-dining room area, a kitchen, a garden, and braai area at the back. With a well for water and solar panels for electricity, it's something of a self-sufficient oasis in an otherwise barren desert. But all the surrounding emptiness is quite something to behold, especially at night when you cast your eyes up to the star-studded sky. You can also order dinners, picnics baskets, and cheese platters.

The setting, a crescent of white dunes, has a lot to do with the Arniston Spa Hotel's appeal, so request a sea-facing room and enjoy the ever-changing colors of the horizon and the grandstand view of the whales swimming by between June and November. The beachfront hotel also strikes a fine balance between elegance and comfort. The restaurant’s à la carte menu offers substantial variety, with a strong focus on seafood. There is a kids' activity program and plenty to keep youngsters busy and happy.

At this lovely lodging, the contemporary rooms are classically decorated in muted shades of cream, beige, and gray and have balconies overlooking the vineyards or hotel courtyard. It might not have the most breathtaking setting that the Winelands has to offer, but what it lacks in location it more than makes up for in luxurious touches and attention to detail. There are two restaurants and a deli to choose from, and the estate also produces excellent wines, so you don't have to travel if you don't feel like it. 

Built with care and attention to detail, this lovely guesthouse is a winner. The understated decor makes the most of natural materials: reed ceilings in the rooms, stone tiles in the bathrooms, and lots of woodwork everywhere, including some charming old wooden doors. All rooms have king-size beds, huge showers, and either direct access to the lovely gardens or spacious balconies with mountain views. It's right in the village, so it's close to all the adventure activities on offer in Storms River Village. Hostess Bev Coetzee is a treasure trove of information about the local area.

If you want to be in the center of the village, this stylish guesthouse puts you a stone's throw from the famous whale-watching cliffs. There's a tree-shaded garden and a pretty pool in the courtyard. The rooms are comfortably decorated in French provincial style. Larger rooms with sleeper sofas are great for families or friends traveling together. Ask for a room with a balcony overlooking the bay or a suite that opens onto the pool.

South African National Parks (SANParks) offers clean, self-catering, brick-faced chalets that can sleep two people or a small family and are near the visitor center and the main falls viewing areas. Although they don't take advantage of the setting and aren't aesthetically pleasing, the chalets are functional, with braai (barbecue) areas and fully-equipped kitchens; some have TVs and a few have views from a sit-out area in front. The nearest town with decent shops is Kakamas, 40 km (25 miles) away, and you should definitely stock up on groceries before arriving because the on-site restaurant is only adequate, and the camp's overpriced shop sells more junk food than items with which to prepare decent meals. There are a couple of pools to refresh in, and the camp affords immediate access to hiking routes. Forty campsites are also available.

This elegant Cape Dutch homestead, established in 1802, now serves as a comfortable retreat on 3½ acres of fynbos. The charming house still has original reed and mud ceilings, yellowwood shutters, and authentic metalwork. The interiors are contemporary and vibrant, and rooms are well appointed with antique furnishings and works by local artists. Enjoy a country-style cooked breakfast or baked goods made in-house.  

Abutting Pilanesberg, this lodge sits at the head of a long valley with terrific views of a hippo pool that forms the lodge's central attraction—it's not unusual to have hippos grazing 100 feet from the terrace restaurant. Despite this, the lodge never really succeeds in creating a bush feel, perhaps because it's such a big convention and family destination. Its brick buildings feel vaguely institutional. Nevertheless, the guest rooms, particularly the executive studios, are very pleasant, thanks to light pine furniture, colorful African bedspreads, and super views of the valley. The lodge conducts game drives in open-air vehicles, as well as ranger-guided walks. A shuttle bus (R110 round-trip, booking required) runs to Sun City, 10 km (6 miles) away.

The only large hotel in glitzy Camps Bay, this luxurious yet beachy property—vintage motorcycles and surfboards serve as decor—sits directly across the street from a famously beautiful stretch of white sand and is backed by the towering cliffs of the Twelve Apostles. The hotel's raised pool deck (aka the Sandy B Private Beach Club) enjoys an excellent vantage over the sea, sand, and Camps Bay's main drag, where the beautiful people and their followers congregate. Rooms are contemporary, clean, and bright, incorporating a sophisticated range of neutral shades. Several pleasant restaurants and lounge spots means you'll never lack for a place to see and be seen. Three night minimum for bookings. 

If you're yearning for the atmosphere afforded by canvas in the bush but still prefer unbridled luxury, then these air-conditioned safari "blended canvas" suites under thatch roofs are ideal. The ultra-comfortable "tented" accommodations have private decks with plunge pools and beautiful loungers overlooking the Buffalo River. They're huge, too, with pale wooden floors, fireplaces, and a sense of restrained style that allows you to focus your attention on the enfolding wilderness. Certainly, being able to watch animals down at the river from your private deck is a huge treat. Mealtimes are a treat, too, with creative food coming out of the kitchen—and off the fires.

Comprising some of the oldest houses in town, some dating from 1855, and made up of three rooms in the main house and a handful of self-catering cottages, Bedrock is delightful, with interiors decorated with Africana and antiques that give it the atmosphere of an old-fashioned inn. Some rooms look out onto the street and offer sheltered areas with a pool to cool off in during summer (October through April). The cottages have fully-equipped kitchens (restaurants, shops, and bank are within walking distance), braai areas, internet, and TVs. Since they were built across the road from the beach more than 100 years ago in the old wood-and-iron mode, each of the houses has its own individual style and history. Meals can be arranged on request.

There are lovely views of the lagoon at this attractive restored 1849 Cape Georgian manor house. You'll stay in one of the airy cottages that face each other across a lawn sloping down to a jetty. Choose from one- and two-bedroom units, all with sitting rooms with fireplaces and fully equipped kitchens. There's a restaurant with a small but tasty menu, and in summer breakfast is served on the verandah overlooking the water. Be sure to ask for a Lagoon Room, as the Garden Rooms don't have views. Knysna is 6½ km (4 miles) away.