Vergelegen Estate

Willem Adriaan van der Stel, governor at the Cape and son of the man who founded Groot Constantia, laid out Vergelegen from 1700 on a scale that eventually destroyed him: free burghers complained to the Dutch East India Company that he was using official resources and labour for private gain, and in 1706 he was recalled and dismissed, with orders that the estate be broken up. Five camphor trees he planted survive in front of the homestead, declared national monuments, and are among the oldest cultivated trees in the country. The gardens are the estate's strength - seventeen distinct garden areas including an octagonal walled garden, a rose garden and a library garden, restored through the twentieth century. The homestead is a museum, there are two restaurants and a tasting room, and the wine is serious. A conservation programme has cleared alien vegetation across the wider farm.

What you actually see

• The 1700 camphor trees - five survivors from the original planting, now monuments.
• The seventeen gardens - octagonal walled garden, roses, and a library garden.
• The dismissal story - a governor recalled in 1706 for building this estate.
• The homestead museum - the restored manor with period interiors.

When to go

September to April for the gardens. Half a day.

Honest expectations

Entry is charged even to walk the gardens, and tastings and restaurants cost more on top. It is a polished, corporate-owned estate rather than a rustic farm. Winter strips the gardens. Booking is needed for the restaurants.

Nearby

Somerset West is close; Stellenbosch is a short drive north.