La Fontaine Guest House

The location makes it easy to walk into the centre in about five minutes, and the area felt safe. Our honeymoon room was enormous, with a huge comfortable bed and a very large bathroom. The guest house has an old-fashioned charm and lovely sea views. Breakfast on the covered porch was delicious, and Natasha was a helpful, friendly host. Well worth visiting even after whale season.

Natasha made us feel welcome and was kind enough to help us book trips and restaurants, as well as share her local knowledge. The breakfasts were delicious. The rooms are beautifully appointed and have excellent views, and it’s a quiet, idyllic spot near the centre of Hermanus. Cliff-top walks and the centre are both easy to reach.

Natasha greeted us so warmly and gave us great advice. We had comfortable bedrooms with all the amenities, and breakfast was delicious, especially the homemade granola and fresh eggs Benedict. The guest house is charming and has free secure parking. It’s right by the shore, convenient for the cliff path, and just a five-minute walk from the restaurants and harbour.

For a 4-star lodge, the room service was the biggest letdown. My daughter had already told me they skipped it in her room one day, so I asked at check-in for it every day. Still, on the second day they asked whether we wanted room service. The price was around 50% more than two lovely, more luxurious lodges and hotels we’d stayed in before. The breakfast tables were folding tables, only practical to sit at from two sides. Sitting along the long side meant the folding mechanism got in the way, which was very uncomfortable. The two women looking after guests were polite, but not especially warm. The blonde woman barely said two words to us in three days, and the darker-haired woman repeated more or less the same thing each time. We had an upstairs room facing the bay. It might have been nice, but all the heavy furniture made it feel rather small, and nobody explained how to use the TV. The place looked classy at first, but looking back, too much about it wasn’t right. Three-star service at a five-star price.