De Hoop Trail – Vlei to Whales Review: Hike this Scenic Slackpacking Trail on a Luxury Walking Holiday
The idea of a walking holiday — a long-distance journey on foot, during which you lodge overnight and carry just enough water, snacks, and warm clothing for each day’s stretch — has long been popular in South Africa. But, recently these pilgrimage-style walks have sprung up all over the world.
Being cooped up at home these last couple of years has given new meaning to the idea of embarking on an expedition. What may have once seemed like something nice to try, now feels like a necessity. Whether you’re hunting for new adventures, seeking a sense of purpose, or just want to know what you’re capable of, the walking holiday is now on almost everyone’s bucket list.
The rising popularity of long-trail holidays is evidence that today’s travellers are looking to get out into nature and connect with something more than just man-made monuments, poolside cocktails, and bustling cities. While taking a week off for a long walk might have felt like an indulgence before, trends show that more people are using travel as an opportunity to slow down and reflect. I’ve always been a fan of the slow travel philosophy, so witnessing this trend emerge is indeed exciting.
Even more exciting is the growing number of luxury slackpacking trail offerings in South Africa. Because being out in nature during the day is wonderful, but cosying up in luxury accommodations — with warm showers and whisper-soft bedding — after a long day on foot is even better. De Hoop Collection is at the forefront of the slackpacking trend, with an exciting new trail designed to satisfy your inner explorer whilst simultaneously indulging your desire for a luxury break.
De Hoop ‘Vlei to Whales’ Trail
De Hoop ‘Vlei to Whales’ slackpacking trail is to avid walkers what glamping is to campers who have matured out of the laborious task of fussing about with tent poles and setting up camp. Forget shared overnight huts with questionable strangers and tired mattresses leftover from the great flood. For De Hoop’s ‘Vlei to Whales’ guests, it’s nothing but the best in private accommodation designed to cater to your every whim.
There’s nothing wrong with indulging a little luxury to cap off a day’s 15km trek through the veld. Spend your days on foot exploring, and in the afternoon luxurious accommodation awaits. After freshening up, enjoy relaxed evenings with exquisite cuisine and wine amidst nature’s beauty. Trust me, after a long day on the trails, nothing beats arriving back to beautifully appointed private accommodation and the indulgence of an en-suite bathroom. It’s a trail experience with comfort and exploration at its heart, making it the ideal holiday for intrepid explorers with a taste for the finer things in life.
A choice of well-equipped accommodation options, crewed by friendly staff are included in all ‘Vlei to Whales’ trail packages. From the warmth and comfort of a newly-renovated modern villa to the luxury of a stately historic homestead. Whichever option you choose, you’ll be sure to feel thoroughly treated.
De Mond Villa
This off-the-grid, newly refurbished Villa sits on the vlei’s edge in the middle of the De Hoop Nature Reserve. A remote location, with fynbos-clad dunes stretching as far as the eye can see, De Mond has been expertly designed for introspection and ultimate privacy. With its cosy interiors and breathtaking vlei views, this villa is an ideal introduction to the scenic ‘Vlei to Whales’ trail. Guests at De Mond are invited to luxuriate in exquisite comfort as an ample reward for spending the day walking the trails. The new accommodation is also completely off the grid, thanks to a combination of solar and gas facilities.
An exclusive blend of authenticity, luxury and comfort, De Mond Villa offers five en-suite bedrooms with a lounge, dining area, and fully equipped kitchen. Outside you’ll find a private dining area with an adjacent braai and swimming pool. The villa overlooks the beautiful Ramsar Vlei with ample wildlife viewing opportunities on your doorstep. Here, spectacular birdlife awaits you as well as possible sightings of wild bush pigs, otters, rock dassies, herds of Eland and even leopard tracks.
When you’re not out traversing the trail, De Mond guests can look forward to catered meals and snacks including breakfast, afternoon tea, cake and snacks, and dinner. Lunches are catered for on the trail or served at your accommodation.
This villa felt like such a treat to come home to after a day exploring the reserve on foot. After a hot shower, our party of six would commence the daily afternoon ritual of collective unwinding in the lounge. Every day, like clockwork you would find us here, sitting by the fire on plump sofas with a glass of wine in one hand and a good book in the other.
Melkkamer Homestead
This remote old stone Manor House comprises four magnificently appointed bedrooms with en suite bathrooms. The majestic house has a beautiful spacious dine-in kitchen, cosy lounge and dining room, each equipped with a fireplace for cosy winter socialising, while summer nights can be spent frequenting the outside braai area under the milkwood trees. The Melkkamer Manor House is the perfect destination for discerning guests who seek the privacy of sole-use villa accommodation.
The off-grid home has no electricity and uses gas-powered appliances and geysers, with candlelight and lanterns adding to the romance and charm of this unique area. This beautiful historic home offers trail guests the opportunity to escape to a bygone era of peace and tranquillity. The rooms are furnished with exquisite antiques and en-suite bathrooms are decorated to match with period-appropriate fittings, including Victorian ball and claw baths. A stay at Melkamer Manor is a treat for history buffs and those looking for an excuse to get off the grid.
Guests staying at Melkamer can look forward to catered meals and snacks including breakfast, afternoon tea, cake and snacks, and dinner. Lunches are catered for on the trail or served at your accommodation.
What to expect
De Hoop Nature Reserve is one of the Western Cape’s most diverse landscapes. In this protected reserve, nature dominates, offering visitors a glimpse into how the area was centuries ago. For this unique travel experience, De Hoop Collection combines a guided walking holiday on the scenic ‘Vlei to Whales’ Trail through a diverse nature reserve with luxurious accommodations and gourmet cuisine. This fully-guided luxury walking holiday blends harmoniously with nature.
The four-day trail is relatively easy-going, with most reasonably fit walkers being well equipped to tackle the roughly 39km total trek. The pace is steady, with an average of 8 kilometres per day. Some of the trails are occasionally steep, particularly on day 3 along the coast and inland mountain trails.
Over the four days in De Hoop, knowledgeable guides share the secrets of trails forged by early settlers and first people over thousands of years while eavesdropping birdlife peer listlessly from nearby branches. The group’s daily trail itinerary is put together by the trail guide to ensure guests have the best experience possible during their 3-night, 4-day stay. While our itinerary will serve as a good example of what to expect, each group’s itinerary is weather-dependent and can be adjusted to suit the group’s needs and weather conditions.
A 4-day itinerary packed with adventure
Day 1 of the trail starts immediately upon your arrival at the De Hoop Nature Reserve gates. Guests are requested to arrive promptly at 2pm for the start of the excursion. It is here where you will meet your guide, complete registration and ready your day packs before setting off on a 6km downhill trek through a fynbos paradise called Flatrock. The area is rich with fynbos and offers gorgeous views of the vlei and the reserve area. It’s the perfect introduction to the trail, allowing you to get a bird’s eye view of the reserve you’ll be exploring over the next few days.
On day 2, we had an early start and prepared for our longest day of walking (approximately 15km). Our group set off from De Mond Villa for an 8km hike to Melkkamer. Due to weather conditions and a very full vlei, our path to Melkkamer was substantially obstructed by water, so our expert guides adjusted the day’s trail to ensure we had ample time and space to explore the vlei landscape on foot. For a few kilometres, we followed the lively vlei edge, lined with water-soaked trees bristling with birdsong, revelling in the opportunity to watch flamingos swoop overhead while observing the stillness and quiet beauty of the water’s ecosystem.
Our arrival at the Melkkamer Manor House later that morning was a memorable one thanks to the showstopping brunch spread that greeted us on the homestead’s patio. The indulgent brunch of freshly baked pastries, homemade muesli with fresh fruit and yoghurt, generous salads, and moreish quiche fueled us for the next 7km stretch exploring the Opstal area.
Walking alongside Cape Mountain Zebra, Ostriches, Bontebok, Eland, and all manner of other indigenous bokkies was a magical experience and a personal highlight of the trail. This stretch is relatively flat and allows you to immerse yourself in a completely different landscape, with memories of abundant early morning bird sightings still fresh in your mind.
Day 3 was another highlight, but it brought with it the most physically challenging day. For this coast-to-vultures day, we were transported to Koppie Aleen for a taste of the last 7kms of the famous Whale Trail. For this stretch of the trail, guests are guided along the 70km stretch of marine-protected coastline for a hike towards Wyoming. This is followed by a steep 2km hike inland at Potberg to view the endangered Cape Vultures, the Western Cape’s last surviving colony of these amazing birds.
Book your trail experience
The De Hoop Collection, a member of Cape Country Routes, opened in De Hoop Nature Reserve in 2007. Located in the Overberg region, the reserve is a short three-hour drive from Cape Town. De Hoop, a World Heritage site, offers world-class whale-watching and is a paradise for bird enthusiasts with its more than 260 species of birds including the endangered Cape Vultures.
De Hoop Collection offers a wide range of accommodation options, designed to suit all budgets, within the reserve. The latest offering is De Hoop Collections’ new Trail experience the De Hoop Trail – Vlei to Whales. The trail can be booked at a rate of R12,900 per person (minimum of 4 people) for South African guests or R14,950 per person (minimum of 4 people) for international guests.
Prices are valid until 30 September 2024. This includes Three nights’ accommodation at De Mond Villa or Melkkamer, as well as all meals and snacks (breakfasts, brunches, lunches, picnic, snacks and dinners), plus local House wines, spirits, beers and soft drinks. A R40 per person Cape Nature Gate Entrance & Conservation Fee is also payable on arrival at the gate.
To book your De Hoop Trail experience visit the De Hoop Collection website and enquire now.
What to pack
At the start of the trail, De Hoop Collection transports all your overnight bags to your accommodation for you. This slackpacking experience enables you to enjoy pack-free wildlife spotting along the trails and avoid having to leave home with a few extra creature comforts in your luggage. While the trail is a relatively easy one with little gear necessary, I would recommend a few essentials to make your days spent in the great outdoors even more comfortable.
Insect repellant is a definite must-have to combat the abundant horseflies. They’re sneaky little buggers with a serious bite. They’ll nip you right through long sleeve t-shirts and full-length trousers so be sure to pack a spray-on or roll-on insect repellent that can keep them at bay. Try your best to wear loose-fighting, light-coloured clothing as horseflies are attracted to dark colours and can easily bite through even full-length tights.
A good quality, comfortable daypack is another must-have. I recommend opting for a lightweight pack that can fit your water for the day, a foldable windbreaker or rain jacket, and your essentials for the day on the trail.
I found Thule’s latest AllTrail backpack was the ideal companion. The Thule 10-litre AllTrail is the ideal size for a daypack on this type of trail, where you don’t need to carry much with you. But the larger 18-litre will also be lightweight enough if, like me, you tend to be a serial over-packer who likes to be prepared for any eventuality.
The Thule AllTrail range offers 10, 15, 18, or 25L options (with the latter two falling under the AllTrail Daypack range) with a sleek design that doesn’t have protruding or bulky compartments and areas. The AllTrail is very much designed as a bag you can carry with ease, that won’t intrude on your walk or run, yet still houses more than enough space for anything you need.
The range comes with Thule’s AllTrail Hydration Pack, an innovative hydration system ideal for trails. The 10L pack has an internal and removable 2.5L drinking pack with Thule’s incredible ReTrakt hydration system. This system sees the inclusion of a magnetic strip along the drinking hose itself and on the shoulder strap of the back, so you can have a sip of water, and simply snap the hose back into place on your strap, preventing it from getting in the way or snagging. As someone who struggles to remember to drink water while walking this proved to be invaluable for me. Taking sips of water on the trail was so easy and convenient and there was no need to stop to retrieve my water bottle from my pack whenever I felt parched.