.: Belvidere Manor Hotel, Knysna

We arrived in Knysna on Tuesday morning and went straight to Belvidere Manor where owners Sue and Mike Mills had invited us to stay. We had a lovely well decorated and comfortable house, with a lounge with a log fire, two bedrooms and two bathrooms. The kitchen is fully equipped and we were delighted to discover that we had heated blankets on the beds as the night temperatures here have fallen as low as 1 degree C. There was also a heater. Not only a place for high summer, as exploring this wonderful area year round can be a delight. Cycling and walking are very popular. Fishing, canoeing, boating, all from their own jetty too. We had a lovely lunch from their pub, The Bell sitting on the terrace outside the historic Manor house which dates back to 1834. We also had two marvellous breakfasts and the staff are terrific, especially tall, amusing Jeffrey, who acted as a tour guide around the estate as well. He has been on the estate longer than the Mills’

Belvidere Manor House, c. 1834, is now the reception, breakfast area kitchen and offices and still has some beautiful original ceilings and floors

The gardens are magnificent and here you can see down to the lagoon. We had one of the cottages on the left

These are the two bedroom cottages

Ours from the back, with the undercover parking

Large fully fitted and equipped kitchen

Nicely decorated and very comfortable lounge with a large TV with some satellite channels, and an open fire. Lots of wood is supplied. Some cottages have gas fires

From the other side you have a better view of the layout

Our double bedroom has views of the lagoon

It has an en suite bathroom

The second bedroom has twin beds and it also has an en suite with a shower

The view of the Pergola, swimming pool and the Manor House from the cottages. They hold a lot of weddings here and there is plenty of accommodation for guests

A lovely place for breakfast or lunch in good weather

Great views of Knysna across the lagoon

Mike Mills invited us for lunch on the terrace

Crisp fresh fish and chips from The Bell

Sue Mills and Lynne had the Crab cakes with a sweet chilli dip and salad

A good hamburger with chips for John and Mike

Their son Tom Mills, who was down to represent Avondale wine farm (where he is the Western Cape Sales Executive) at the Oyster Festival, joined us for a long and fun lunch in the sunshine

Down on the hotel’s jetty

Lovely afternoon light on the cottages

The side view of the manor house

There are also double storey houses with more space

They are grouped together

behind the manor house

The Conference Centre

The Bell pub

Chatting to Mike Mills at breakfast

A buffet breakfast is laid out in one of the front rooms. If the weather is bad, breakfast is held inside

It is a very good selection including cold meats, cheeses scones, muffins, warm pain au chocolate and juices

Fruit, yoghurt, cereals, even hot porridge

There is also a menu of cooked breakfasts. This is the open omelette with cheese, bacon, spinach and optional mushrooms

Lynne chose the Eggs Benedict and they were probably the best she has ever had. Really fresh eggs, perfectly poached, set on ham, spinach and crisp blinis rather than muffins, and the hollandaise sauce was thick and creamy without being sour