The Red Wine Cottage

The bathroom was a bright spot: a large shower with good hot and cold water pressure, plus toiletries, and the bed in the separate bedroom had a comfortable mattress. Antoinette also left the bread and white wine mentioned in the Airbnb ad. We got two towels each, but couldn’t get more, and started out with just one small pot. Asking for a larger one felt like too much. We stayed for four weeks as the first long-term guests, and getting things arranged for a stay that long took effort. The flat is a small converted garage in de Boord, a leafy, mostly quiet neighbourhood with colourful flowers and well-built houses. It’s about 2 km from central Stellenbosch and roughly 1 km from a supermarket and pharmacy. Antoinette and Louis live across the street and keep an eye on the rental and its outdoor furniture. The chairs were already rusty, and the cushions, which apparently shouldn’t be left in the sun, had mould on the back. Communication was difficult. A drawn-out discussion about our wanting to take the keys on a multi-day trip was exhausting and took a lot of energy. At times we felt treated like children travelling for the first time, even though we were there to work, travel and do sports, have travelled for ages, and had visited South Africa several times. We’ve always been overwhelmed by the hospitality there, so this felt especially disappointing. The apartment may be fine for a few days, but I wouldn’t recommend it for a longer stay. The hosts were very difficult and kept complaining. Honestly, I’ve never experienced that, and I travel worldwide very often.