Wednesday, May 01, 2019

Elgin Cool Wine Festival - Overnight at Trail's End


Our overnight accommodation was at Trail’s End in Grabouw, an entirely new concept. It is a Bikers’ Hotel. Needless to say, we did not bring our bikes (! us bike?) as the accommodation is also suitable for travellers in the valley. It is also popular with trail runners. It was kindly arranged for us by the Elgin and Grabouw Tourist office. Thank you very much to Trail’s End for hosting us.
The concept is very clever and they have all sorts of other fun and important things available like a wellness centre, a mud washing area - we assume for both you and your bike after a muddy or dusty ride. There is a swimming pool and this climbing wall - just in case biking has not tired you out entirely. And a fire pit for the evening. We hear a gym is planned. Check out the facilities on their web pages
And lots of places to park your bikes in front. We saw whole families with small children enjoying biking that weekend - see the tiny trike in the front. (Lynne says she would be delighted to bike if she could find a big trike, she has zero balance on two wheels and falls off a lot)
Inside there is a coffee bar with lots of snacks - sweet and savoury - to order or take with you
Of course it is called the Handle Bar.... What else?
A nice open space to sit and chat, with more comfortable areas to sit by the fire and by the television
This is where one may breakfast in the morning. They have a conference centre
Our room was on the first floor
This is the view down from the top of the stairs, and you can see the reception desk at the entrance
Coffee and tea making facilities are outside the rooms
Our room had a very spacious king sized bed and a single. The rooms are spotlessly clean and the bed linen is of a very good quality. The thick duvets and pillows are stuffed with feathers, which might be a challenge if you have allergies. We took hay fever pills. The weather was cold, at night but the room was warm without any added heating. You can put your luggage on the shelves above the beds. There is WiFi in the rooms and plugs for charging media are supplied. There are also dormitory rooms
We had our own bathroom with a spacious shower
Breakfast the next morning was heavily carb laden. Lots of cereals, bread, butter, jam, peanut butter, marmite and there was some fruit. This is the standard breakfast included in the room rate. We did see a couple having what looked like a good cooked breakfast but that has to be ordered and paid for separately
All content ©  John & Lynne Ford, Adamastor & Bacchus

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