South African Hotels

Swartland Tourism Information

Quick Facts: Swartland

  • The Swartland region lies between the Paardeberg and the Berg River
  • The region is famous for the wine and olive farms found here
  • Many annual festivals take place in the region which are popular with locals
  • Swartland is easily reachable from Cape Town (+-1 hours drive)

Introducing Swartland

Swartland in the Western Cape begins just north of Cape Town and continues inwards. The region encompasses the famous towns of Malmesbury, Darling and Riebeek Kasteel. The name Swartland comes from the Afrikaans phrase "Het Zwarte Land" (the Black Land) - named by Jan van Riebeeck because of Renosterbos on the mountains that looks almost black.

Swartland is famous for the myriad of wine farms found in the area and the annual Swartland Revolution festival is highly popular with locals. Swartland also houses the oldest colonial hotel in all of South Africa which can be found in the quaint town of Riebeek Kasteel. The area is potted with golden wheat fields, fruit orchards, azure dams, vineyards, fynbos plants and working farms.

This quiet yet charming area is easily reached from Cape Town and offers a delicious selection of locally prepared produce and award-winning wines for visitors to enjoy. The Swartland Wine and Olive Route also abounds with small owner/chef-run restaurants and coffee shops that offer a range of dining options with many dishes made to old family recipes. A number of farmers' markets can also be found in the area where visitors can purchase homegrown veggies, free-range eggs, poultry, homemade cakes, freshly baked bread, olives, oils, pickles, spreads and tapanades.

Apart from food and wine the region also offers a number of activities for visitors including walking and hiking trails, 4X4 trails, hang-gliding, quad biking, paragliding, fishing, canoeing, clay-pigeon shooting and horse-riding.