First tick every item on your South Africa travel itinerary. Then recover in this six-room villa

“Hello, family!” Nuzaan Lackay greets me with such warmth that for a minute I forget where I’m standing. I’m miles across the Indian Ocean in a country I’ve never visited before, lounging under a green canopy near a chequered pool that opens to the views of a vineyard and the Franschhoek Valley Mountains.

South Africa inspires a zest for exploration. Horizons dotted with ostriches, national parks teeming with lions, violent waves that dare you to surf them, and food, design, and art so loaded with history, you can spend days, even months, exploring. On a 10-day trip through the country, we did it all without a pause, from eating the famous Bunny Chow in Durban to trailing the Table Mountain in Cape Town and spotting the Big Five at Kruger National Park. But this villa in Franschhoek, a quaint town in the Cape Winelands, is where we finally slow down.

Lackay is the duty manager at La Residence, the 11-key hotel that now has a new extension—Franschhoek House. While La Residence has been a traveller’s base for exploration for almost two decades now, Franschhoek House is designed to be a home away from home. And just the perfect place to wind up our holiday.

It’s somewhere between a hotel and an Airbnb, but with all the services you might expect from a luxury resort and all the comforts you rely on at home. “We believe in unreasonable hospitality, where it’s the small details that can touch a person’s life. Because when you walk out of here, it’s only going to be about how I made you feel. So, the main thing we believe is: give your guests lots of love,” Lackay tells me. That’s what I love: this mix of homely hospitality with intuitive luxury.

La Residence opened doors in 2008 as part of The Royal Portfolio, the brand started in 1999 by Liz and Phil Biden when they turned their holiday home in Kruger National Park into the bush lodge, Royal Malewane. Now, 26 years later, each property still stands as a labour of love, decorated by Liz herself and furnished with the couple’s collection of art and tchotchkes from around the world. 

Franschhoek House opened earlier this year as a secluded retreat on the premises; you can book it as a whole for a family reunion or a group of friends. Staying at the villa is like living out your White Lotus-vacation (sans the drama). Here, every room feels like a private gallery, one that celebrates French heritage with a hat-tip to African art and Indian details, and pieces by Zimbabwean artists such as Franklyn Dzingai, Tafadzwa Tega, Chokuwamba, and Grace Nyahanga are scattered throughout the property.

The six suites across two floors can comfortably accommodate 12 guests, with only two suites in each wing for privacy. Each suite is a unique sanctuary in a palette of yellow, sea green or other vibrant hues layered with antiques and plush linen. The dressing rooms feature daybeds that double as sleeping space for kids, and the bathrooms come with chequered floor tiles set against windows with canopy views. It is every maximalist’s dream, but these spaces never feel overwhelming.

The kitchen, a cheery canary space equipped with everything from KitchenAid to copper utensils, is where you can follow chef Cheslin Cornelissen around as he rustles up delicacies with expertise gathered over years at various Royal properties.

Heated flooring runs through the house—temperatures can hit single digits in the winter months from May to October, when fireside evenings and local cultural festivals are on the calendar. The summer months, which fall between November and April, are peak tourist season.

Every space is dotted with unique pieces that carry their own stories, which you’ll be privy to if you ask for a tour of the property. “The chandelier in the Long Room is from Cape Town City Hall,” shares Liz Biden. The 18th-century tapestry in the lounge by Flemish Baroque painter David Teniers II was restored by Manufacture Saint-Jean in France. All curtains and upholstery are in hand-embroidered silk from India, handpicked by Liz on her travels.

The result is an imposing kaleidoscope of design, but the high ceilings and long windows ensure that you never feel starved for a sense of space. Out in the verandah, you can watch the sun dip into a vine-lined horizon, casting an orange glow over the villa’s infinity pool. With a Rosemary Jane Rosé in hand from the vineyard in front, you can understand the appeal that Lackay is talking about. “Many guests stay with us for long periods, so we don’t want them feeling monotonous with the same activities,” she shares.

Around the property are corners built for deep reflection as well as ample distractions, if you feel the need. Besides a billiard table and a variety of options for board-game nights with family, they also offer round-the-clock staff who can arrange burger-making sessions, cultural experiences, and tours of the 30-acre estate. 

Each meal is planned as per the guests’ liking. There’s no pre-planned menu and everything is made to order: think wagyu tagliata and pastas for summer lunches, and ostrich carpaccio and Cape Malay curries popular across South Africa for dining at home.

Franschhoek House is meant to be a place where one can lounge like a local and take a breath from exploring all that the Western Cape has to offer. After a week of high-fashion shopping, gallery hopping, golfing and microlighting in Cape Town (just an hour away from the property), horse riding and fine dining across Franschhoek is how tourists come to drain off the adrenaline. It’s the kind of place you want to settle in after an itinerary-packed whirlwind holiday, to realise what a holiday should really feel like. 

That’s what hits me when we finally wind down after a day of vineyard hopping on Franschhoek’s wine tram (which has a station right opposite our stay). The locomotive, the only one of its kind in all of South Africa, offers a hop-on-hop-off access to over 40 estates in town—all steeped in generational history and unique wine varieties. Most visitors spend at least a couple of days deboarding at their favourite wineries, with one question breaking the ice among tourists, locals, and tram staff alike: “How many estates did you cover today?”

A chat with the art concierge, Michael Jacobs, reveals that there’s much to see in art as well. Cape Town has been home to Indian-origin artists such as Talia Ramkilawan, Akshar Maganbeharie, and the late Githan Coopoo, which is a treat to see for anyone from the Indian subcontinent. There’s also Africa’s largest contemporary art museum built inside a converted grain silo, Zeitz MOCAA; exhibits at Stevenson; Norval Foundation; and WHATIFTHEWORLD, a young, edgy space supporting emerging contemporary artists.

Closer to our boutique hotel, there’s the Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden set against wild gardens in Stellenbosch; Everard Read Franschhoek presenting works by major South African artists; and Elgin Railway Market, a family-friendly spot in a converted warehouse for local food, crafts, and design.

And even if you’d rather not step out, Franschhoek House feels like a picturesque snapshot of the entire landscape. There’s nothing more you’d want as you amble around this newfound paradise—at once connected with the land and removed from its demands. Isn’t that what home is, after all?

Franschhoek House at La Residence is about an hour’s drive out from Cape Town. Car and chopper transfers are available on request, while transfers into Franschhoek town are complimentary during the stay. 

Rooms start at R1,73,000 (₹8,32,150) for up to eight guests at Franschhoek House and R16,000 (₹76,960) for two guests per room at La Residence during peak season. For bookings, click here.