Farmhouse in Gardens

Urban Green Retreat

A classic Cape Town structure, this lush garden property has been transformed from traditional farmhouse to modern green retreat. Color filled and eclectically furnished, the colonial-styled home’s garden is showstopping, dense with vegetation, with an assortment of pretty patios to choose from, and an elegant pool holding court at its center.

A farmhouse at its origins, this vacation home rental in Cape Town hides a standout tropical garden within its walls, with twisting cobbled pathways, a pretty, dark-bottomed pool, and classic, colonial-styled columned patios defined by color block paint on the walls and floors, and cushy seating and dining zones. The home’s interior, revamped by Visual Arthouse, a studio specializing in “contemporary nostalgia,” is a blend of the prim and tidy and the cool and eclectic. Skin rugs, framed art, and furnishings with a mid-century modern bent offset classic wood and tile floors, built-in libraries and more formal fireside seating. Colorful textiles create a cheery kaleidoscope. A lean, galley cook’s quality kitchen opens to the lush outdoor space. And a wooden deck elevated above the lush, enclosed garden gives views out onto the neighboring mountain, under the cover of wisteria.

AROUND

Set in downtown's leafy, trendy Gardens neighborhood, this vacation home rental in Cape Town stands in the shadow of Table Mountain, South Africa’s most-photographed landmark that’s also been characterized as one of the New Seven Wonders of Nature. The flat-topped outcropping can be hiked or summited via cable car. The surrounding neighborhood offers dozens of chic restaurants, cool cafes, coffee shops, artisan boutiques, and loft ateliers. Home of a young creative class, the southern suburb’s main draw is Kloof Street, where galleries and theaters create a buzz, joining more traditional pursuits such as the luxurious afternoon high tea at the landmark Mount Nelson Hotel. 

Houses in the area have a classic residential appeal, many of them showcasing colonial styling, others veritable mansions. Company Gardens, the oldest South African garden dating from 1652, is in the neighborhood, and Long Street joins Kloof as a destination avenue, lined with bistros and boutiques for browsing. The Atlantic beaches and the V&A Waterfront, one of Cape Town’s biggest attractions, are easily accessible from the home, too, and further afield (a 20- to 30-minute drive from the home) there are vineyards with tasting rooms, golf courses, Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens and access to Table Mountain National Park.

LOCATION

Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa. Nearest airport: Cape Town (20 minutes)

BEST TIME TO VISIT: Shoulder season, March to May and September to November