Top 5 Wedding Venues in the Cape Winelands

Tuesday, 11 April, 2017
Lucie Osman
Like good wine, marriage gets better with age, once you learn to keep a cork in it’ - Gene Perret

The sweaty days of summer and the height of the Cape Winelands’ wedding season may have peaked, but if you are someone to whom that question has recently been ‘popped’, there is no time to waste in securing your perfect venue to get hitched.

Certain people may think that one winelands venue is just like the next: luscious green vines against a smoky visual of vast mountain range and the serene silence of rural farm living. Now, how average does that sound, really? On a global scale, while most wedding couples would jump at the chance of a classic vineyard wedding, South Africans are a bit spoilt for choice. So if you are searching for a location that will offer you and your guests an occasion like no other, look no further than our latest list of extra-ordinary wedding venues, catering for all budgets in and around the Cape Winelands.

1. Cavalli - Enchanted Garden Wedding $$$$$

Our first and perhaps most exclusive venue is situated on the outskirts of Stellenbosch on the R44. With a variety of areas to choose from for your special day, the landscaped sunken garden with an elevated ceremonial stage is perhaps the most romantic of venues to tie the knot outdoors and can cater for up to 350 people cinema-style and 400 standing. With a rosy-hued backdrop of the Helderberg, your wedding party will feel enveloped by the greenery of meticulously manicured fynbos gardens and trimmed hedges. To follow, a banquet reception in the stylish modern function venue with four metre high ceilings and floor to ceiling sliding glass doors provides generous ventilation and plenty of natural light, not to mention spectacular views of the Cape Winelands. Catering is exclusively in-house and an accredited wedding co-ordinator will be required. An added bonus is the lack of sound restrictions at Cavalli, which means that the wedding party can celebrate way past midnight until the bar closes at 2am.

Contact: Chelsea Warren Stone  |  +27.726103076  |  www.cavallistud.com

Photo courtesy of John Armstrong Photography

 

2. The Maze @ Weltevreden -  Labyrinth Wedding $$

A Stellenbosch homestead that dates as far back as 1692, Weltevreden was first awarded heritage status in 1975. The H-shaped Cape Dutch manor house is said to have been built by Voortrekker leader Piet Retief for his sister, Deborah, and her husband in 1812 and and boasts six beautiful, intricate gables. For the wedding ceremony, Weltevreden offers the use of its rustic Waenhuis as a dedicated onsite chapel. Thereafter, guests walk across the homestead to the manicured back garden of the Manor House for pre-reception drinks before navigating the mystical pathways of the Maze to a private and enchanted covered courtyard. Catering is strictly in-house, although corkage is allowed for your preferred wine and champagne.

Contact: +27.218896588  |  www.weltevredenestate.com

Radinovic Photography http://www.radinovic-photography.com/

 

3. The Nightjar at De Uijlenes - Forest Festival Wedding $$$

Located in the Uilkraal Valley on the outskirts of the Elim Wine Route, De Uiljenes is a working farm that takes bespoke wedding planning to the next level, providing the scenery, the tools and the freedom to create a unique weekend escape for you and your closest friends and family. The Nightjar venue offers an earthy setting for the exchange of vows in an old, open air koffieklip chapel next to a waterfall, overlooking a dam and mountains. The reception takes place in a rustic and romantic log cabin, where guests can dance ‘til dawn, hang out by the blazing open fires and/or cool off in the adjacent dam. Included in the venue hire is two-night’s accommodation for all guests in the simple farm homestead and stable buildings (maximum 50 people). Catering is provided in-house however your preferred wine and champagne can be be brought in separately in exchange for a corkage fee. The Nightjar venue provides the ultimate ‘back to nature’, barefoot experience and is suitable for those looking for a festival-type celebration.

Contact: +27.283880551  |  www.deuijlenes.co.za

Photo courtesy of www.mariskamuller.co.za 

 

4. Bosjes - Spiritual Wedding $$$$

If you see yourself as a trendsetter, this spanking new wedding venue that has just opened in the heart of the Breede River Valley will be right up your street. Walk over water and into the modern, white winged chapel built by Steyn Studio and inspired by Psalm 36 verse 7, that reads: ‘How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.’

A working farm that produces grapes for wine as well as proteas and olives, the wedding package includes two nights’ accommodation in the old barn that has been stylishly renovated into luxury suites. Once the wedding celebrations are over, guests may make the most of their weekend and explore one of two gentle hiking trails in the Bergkamp, offering the chance of sighting zebra, ostrich and bontebok and a wealth of birdlife.

Contact: +27.230040496  |  www.bosjes.co.za 

 

5. The Quarry - Island Wedding $$$

A backdrop of sheer rock face sets the scene for a wedding at the historic, restored Quarry, a dedicated function venue at Hillcrest Wine and Olive Estate in Durbanville. Catering for a maximum of 200 guests, the 7,000 square metres of rolling green lawn lead to an elevated grassy island that overlooks the Quarry dam and provides a dramatic platform against the backdrop of cascading cliffs upon which to say ‘I do’. Catering is exclusively in-house and the venue offers discounted rates for winter weddings between June and September.

Contact: +27.219764959  |  www.thequarry.co.za

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Cavalli - Enchanted Garden Wedding
Cavalli - Enchanted Garden Wedding

Cavalli - Enchanted Garden Wedding
Cavalli - Enchanted Garden Wedding

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