A few decades ago, the annual holiday run to the coast did not head to Cape Town, Umhlanga or Ballito. Families headed to the KwaZulu-Natal south coast – to Port Edward, Shelley Beach, San Lameer (if you had bucks) and St Michaels. There’s also Uvongo, Margate, Ramsgate, and for the budget conscious the TO Strand in Leisure Bay offers something for everyone.
With more blue flag beaches than the Grinch has fingers, the south coast is still as beautiful, gorgeous and hospitable as it was when it was considered the go-to destination. At the centre of it all there’s Pumula Beach Hotel , a family run boutique hotel in Hibberdene that’s less than a minute’s walk to a beach that attracts every cliché in the book: stunning, pristine, beautiful and so on. You’d need a thesaurus and an appetite for hyperbole when staying at the place, because it’s that, well, lekker.
Pumula Beach Hotel – It’s all about family Here, it is all about family. The way it should be. Though if you are a singleton or a couple looking for a place where you don’t have to lift a finger, and where chilling becomes a temporary occupation between boardrooms, this is the place.
Food with a view Importantly, it’s a full board resort where you only pay for your drinks. The food is already included, and here Pumula Beach Hotel does not skimp. When it’s a bit quieter, out of season, the set menu offers three courses and a salad.
And it’s not a cheeseburger and battered hake kind of menu. There.