Montagu Caravan Park in the town of Montagu is a well-maintained, neat caravan park and this was our destination in May 2024.
The park has 82 camping sites, ample ablutions, and is within walking distance from the CBD – if you like walking.
The camp is laid out on two levels with campsites and chalets on both. Where you want to camp depends on your preferences, but the park should have a caravan or tent site for you as it is stretched out along the access road with hot and cold swimming pools on the top and bottom terraces.
The smaller hot pool is on the top terrace next to the main outside swimming pool and only people over 20 are allowed to use it.
The larger heated pool at the bottom level are for use of all guests. This pool was cooler than the smaller pool while we camped there.
The caravan park has an electric fence and automatic gate but is in a quiet part on the side of the town with no crime.
This pool looks different as it is painted dark, not blue.
Ablutions
There are ample ablutions spread out through the caravan park. They are cleaned daily and were always spotless when we used it.
The only exception would be the toilet inside the small heated pool building which, due to its construction, were mostly wet from the condensation in the hot building. It is usually used as a changing room because the toilet was always wet and unusable for its purpose. The pool is, however about 10 metres from an ablution block, so this was not a deal breaker.
All ablutions are unisex facilities so they are used by all campers.
Ablution buildings are of different ages, so some facilities are older than others although the standard and cleanliness are the same.
Paper can be bought at the office.
We camped on stand 46 at the top of the ramp to the top level as this was one of the stands suggested by a camper at another campsite a few months back. When I see him again I will buy him a hot beer!
This stand is right at the top of the ramp that gives access to the top level, the main swimming pool, small heated pool, and the store room or workshop of the park.
Greeting all the campers passing by all day was fun as this is part of long-term camping, but next time I will choose a campsite further away, and more out of the main flow of employees who fetch all kinds of machinery to do their work.
I did not walk the park as I usually do, as one can see most of what is available from the entrance
Water and power points
I need to mention the distribution of taps and power points.
These are spread out differently.
If you camp where we camped on site 46 there is a tap and power point within about 15 metres. If you camp on 48 the power point and tap may need a longer cable and hosepipe.
Opposite the main pool are stands 62 to 66. One needs about a 20m cable when you camp on stand 63 as your cable must go around the neighbour’s site. One midweek camper in a tent had trouble on stand 63 as they had only a 15 metre cable and had to borrow an extension from the resort. There are no taps on these stands.
Most campers are well-equipped and won’t have difficulties, but it is good to inspect your campsite and sort out your setup before you erect your tent.
The Montagu Caravan Park culture
Montagu Caravan Park is a well-maintained caravan park which should satisfy most campers.
It apparently has a kind of “reputation” among Cape campers for being run excessively tight. The previous month when we camped at Jongensfontein, a camper told me that Montagu’s management is extremely tight with their rules. “You kind of have to stand on attention when you speak to the office staff!” he joked.
Another camper called it “very disciplined”.
We found nothing out of the ordinary when we camped at Montagu. The rules are the standard rules found at all well-managed camping grounds.
All resorts have their own culture that is largely based on the personalities of the owners. I suspect that owner personality and the people who camp at a campground, together creates a culture typical of any venue.
Montagu may have a more formal or reserved culture than other campsites, but it isn’t the first and only such venue we have camped at.
We were treated well and with respect and I never felt like “standing to attention” when speaking to any of the staff. The cleaning ladies were my favourites because I enjoy people who are not only friendly, but also have a sense of humour.
The “culture” differences between caravan parks provide interesting material for someone like me who are interested in human interaction, behaviour and perceptions.
I think the family who owns and runs Montagu Caravan Park work very hard to keep it successful and on a high standard, and they succeed.
Muscovy ducks, Geese, Ducks and Bantams
If you camp at Montagu you should take note of the poultry in the campground.
Muscovy Ducks or Muscovies, geese, ducks and Bantams (Kapokhoenders) walk freely in the campground.
It depends on how you camp but we learned quickly to keep the Muscovies off the paving as they messed quite actively while looking for something to eat.
All the poultry play a role in keeping vegetation and pests in check.
The geese are the best guards and alerts one to anything out of the ordinary in the surroundings. Muscovies are extremely effective controllers of snails and other pests.
I always believed that Muscovies were cross-bred from geese and ducks, and that the meat should not be eaten, but I learned that they are actually wild North American water birds who are kept for their effective pest control as well as the demand for their meat.
I am relieved that I learned this, and that I will not one day leave this earth completely ignorant of the truth about Muscovies!
They are intelligent birds and we had many light moments watching weekend campers feeding them, only to have to put up tables and cooler boxes to keep the muscovies and geese out of their tents!
Keep in mind that it does not help to walk away from your campsite and feed the geese and ducks at your neighbour’s campsite. They observe where you come from and just follow you back to ask for more!
Our next stop would be Kleine Paradys near Piketberg and it started with car hiccups and much rain. But that is a story for next month.
Things to do in Montagu
Montagu is a typical Western Cape town with architectural history, museums and restaurants. Route 62, the tourist route, runs through Montagu.
We could not do everything but there are a few things we are glad we did.
We made the mistake of buying dried fruit to send to the children in Gauteng just after we arrived. We learned that you must first scout a place.
I would suggest that you don’t buy your dried fruit at the farmstall on the Cogmanskloof side of the town. We paid more than we should have. To make things worse, we saw the advertising sign of Locarno Dried Fruit in the caravan park. We bought mixed dried fruit at their outlet in town, but I suspect that fruit was dried before I was born.
Cape Dried Fruit Tractor Trip
We then learned of Cape Dried Fruit whose orchards and packing facility is in Bath street in the industrial area, where you miss it when you just drive through.
We bought the best quality dried fruit at much better prices and went on their free tractor drive through the facility and up a hill to an old war blockhouse.
May is not in-season, so we missed out on seeing the drying of fruit in the sun. We will return in future when the orchards bloom in September and October and when the fruit are on the trees and harvested to be dried from mid-December to April.
That is a trip for next year or the year after.
at the restaurant of Cape Dried Fruit!
Montagu Nature Garden
This is a must if you want to do a light hike, experience the variety of vegetation on the mountain and see the town from the hill.
Donations but no entrance fee.
The variety and colour differences of the Fynbos everywhere was a revelation. I enjoyed that very much!
Tour the Montagu area
We travelled to Robertson to have our annual medical checkups, but it ended in a full day drive to Swellendam.
En-route to Robertson you have to stop at the Pampoen Padstal with its impressive selection of pumpkins.
Here I also found a jar of Canola honey which is quite scarce because of the short canola season. I wrote about canola honey on my honey website.
On the R317 route from Robertson to Bonnievale and then Swellendam and back via the R60 to Ashton, you will find farmstalls and impressive orchards.
We are not wine tourists, so we did not visit all the wine farms in the area. I think that would in any case take much more than a day to do!
Robertson Winery
We did visit the Robertson Winery in Robertson because we drink their wines at home, and we met Yvonne who will tell you everything you want to know about their products. We bought a Robertson Chardonnay for The Wife and a Robertson Port for me.
The Cheese Shop at Swellendam
Just 2km before Swellendam, we saw prominent signs of a cheese shop.
Here we met retired dominee Martyn, who runs his farmstall specialising in cheese. His wife has the Wildebraam Berry Estate near the farmstall.
Martyn was a minister in Polokwane where we lived, and although we never met each other before, we had a most enjoyable conversation.
The Wife bought a nice collection of fresh cheeses.
On the way back from Swellendam to Ashton we passed a number of farmstalls.
It was on this route that I realised that every farmstall needs at least one product that distinguishes it from all others, otherwise it is just another farmstall. I will probably observe and think, and share my thoughts in a future blog post.
Further on the R60 we dropped in on Spanspek se Plek Farmstall near Bonnievale.
Then it was back to Montagu Caravan Park through the spectacular Cogmanskloof.
Rambling Rose Restaurant Montagu
As our readers know by now, I am always on the lookout for the small businesses wherever we travel or camp.
We found an impressive place right in the main street of Montagu. The Rambling Rose Restaurant is owned and run by Sergio and Cay.
We bought top class seed bread and mouth-watering pies and tarts from the talkative Sergio.
They have a restaurant on the premises and a shop with variety of products for tourists. This is a place I will always stop at when I travel through Montagu.
Rambling Rose is closed on Tuesdays, and in 2024 it will also be closed for two weeks at the end of June for Sergio, Cay and the kids’ first holiday in nine years.
Protea Farm Tours
Protea Farm or Montagu Tractor Tours is a must-do when you camp in Montagu.
Although the farm is actually a fruit farm, the wide variety of proteas offer a good opportunity for the farm to share their special place with visitors.
Tractor-drawn trailers are used to ferry sightseers up 1500m high onto the mountain where they turn around at the hikers’ hut. Table Mountain is 1086m.
Right at the top one looks down on the Koo Valley on the one side and the Robertson Valley on the other.
Here you are 1550m high.
The tractor trip is followed by a potjiekos lunch with such a variety of breads, jams and potjies that you will go home with the firm intention to never eat again!
We paid R800 for the tractor ride and potjiekos for two people, less R40 for 2 pensioners, but you can do only the ride. The tour is R200 per person and the potjiekos also R200 per person without pensioner’s discount.
You can contact them at 023 614 3012 or email at info@proteafarm.co.za.
Poesiehoek
While exploring Montagu town we came across a blue double-storey house around the corner from Montagu Caravan Park.
Poesiehoek is a term which refined people shy away from, but luckily the present owners decided to keep the name.
During the Spanish Flu of 1918 it was used as a hospital. Later it was a convenience store and at one stage a brothel run by twin sisters who offered the services the name refers to. Today it is a private residence, still proudly displaying its name.
It may sound distasteful to some but it reminds us of a small piece of the history of a town.
Montagu Caravan Park offers:
Safety: Safe. Security fencing.
Wi-Fi: No
Private ablutions: No
Standard of ablutions: Excellent. Cleaned every day. Showers. Provide own toilet paper as only one roll is provided per day.
Wheelchair accessible: Yes.
Plugs in bathrooms: No.
Laundry: Yes token pay washing machines
Condition of access roads: Good tar streets with the last 300m gravel.
Nr of stands: 82
Paved stands: Yes.
Unpaved stands: Yes.
Shade: Yes partly.
Shop on-site: No. Camp is in town.
Nearest town: Montagu.
Pet Friendly: Yes. Arrange before. Daily fee payable.
Load shedding: Yes.
Hot and cold swimming pools: Yes.
Pensioners rates: Yes
Long-term camping rates: Yes.
Facilities:
- Grassed sites
- Trampolines
- Pool table
- Private fishing
- Ironing facilities
- Birding
- Electric razor outlet
- Boating
- Cellphone reception
- Cold swimming pools
- Heated swimming pools
- Pool slide
- Self-catering chalets.
Location:
4 Middel St,
Montagu,
Western Cape
Map
Contact
Cell: 082 920 7863
Email: montagucp@gmail.com
Website