Two lucky readers can sample the understated luxury of the five-star Coach House hotel at Agatha, near Tzaneen, courtesy of this, our first “great escape” competition.
The prize is two nights’ accommodation for two people sharing a premier double room, with a sumptuous English breakfast included.
As a bonus our prizewinners will be escorted by local tour guide James Ndhlovu on a half-day township and cultural tour, visiting the tribal areas in the Letaba district of Limpopo in their own vehicle.
The prize is valued at R3 742.
The Coach House is steeped in history, as is the area surrounding it.
Located on an old coach road a few kilometers outside Tzaneen the hotel stands near the site of an original staging post. Travellers of old would stop for the night on the main coach route from Pietersburg to Leydsdorp and the Lowveld.
Built in 1892, the old hotel was a rough and ready wayside inn comprising six rondavels, a dining room, stable and store. The guests’ bathroom was a hollowed out tree trunk filled with clean water.
The kitchen was open to the elements and most meals were cooked in a three-legged cast-iron pot.
A few years after being built, the hotel was moved to a neighbouring farm called New Agatha, renamed Cheviot in later years.
With the passing of the railway, which connected Tzaneen with Pietersburg in 1918, the coach route went into decline, as did the hotel, which closed its doors in 1928.
The new Coach House, built in 1983 on the foundations of its predecessor, was an attempt to rekindle the magic and romance of the late Victorian era. Its philosophy is to provide good food, comfortable accommodation and friendly service in an atmosphere of peace and tranquility.
Its double rooms are beautifully furnished, and all have open wood-burning fireplaces, satellite television and spacious en-suite bathrooms with a shower, bath and bidet. Hairdryers and mini-bars are provided to ensure the ultimate in comfort.
Guests at the Coach House can enjoy quiet country rambles on the estate surrounding the hotel, which makes up 560ha of beautiful land overlooking the spectacular northern Drakensberg.
And of course there is the fabulous Agatha Spa on the property, where body, mind and spirit are rejuvenated. Enjoy a Vichy shower, a deeply relaxing massage, or choose from an extensive range of body and beauty treatments that are guaranteed to put life back into your lifestyle.
The Spa Sensorium has his and hers saunas, steam rooms, a hydro-jet heated pool and a fully equipped gymnasium.
All in all it’s a fabulous getaway, and all within easy driving distance of Johannesburg.