ACTIVITIES

 

AT THE MANOR GUESTHOUSE

Excelsior Estate offers a wide range of outdoor activities includes fishing (rods are available), scenic walks,mountain biking and bird watching.
Soak up the surroundings during a leisurely stroll around the dam or through the vineyards. For the more adventurous explore the farm and scenic view points by mountain bike or golf cart.

Cellar tours provide insight into our wine making process and we welcome guest participation during harvest. Our full range of Excelsior’s award winning wines are available for tasting in the wooden beamed tasting facility, which hosts a deck extending over the dam. (Subject to Availability)

Wine blending allows guests and visitors to take up the tradition of blending our red varietals, bottle, cork and label your wine and return home with your very own creation that combines generations of skill and flair with your own style.

Summer days can be spent beside the deep blue Swimming Pool which is situated on an elevated, yet secluded wooden deck on the southern face of the house. With breathtakingly panoramic views of the vineyards and the Langeberg Mountain ranges.

A Dinner paired with Excelsior wines in the opulent dining room is the perfect way to end the day.
Attractions in the area include:

  • Lazy river cruise down the Breede River

  • Tractor ride up the Langeberg Mountain

  • River rafting

  • Nature hikes in Dassieshoek Nature Reserve,

  • Game drives at Klaasvoogds Game Reserve

  • Robertson Golf Course

  • Robertson Art Gallery

  • The Robertson Museum

  • Wine Tours

  • Marbrin Olive Farm

  • Owls Rest Lavender Farm

  • Horseriding

  • Sheilam Cactus Garden

  • Saggy Stone Brewing Company

  • Eseltjiesrus Donkey Sanctuary

All activities can be booked and arranged through Excelsior Manor Guesthouse at:
guesthouse@excelsior.co.za

 

CONFERENCING AT THE STABLES

Excelsior is in the heart of the beautiful Robertson Wine Valley, just under 2 hours from Cape Town International.
Excelsior’s conference centre offers opportunities for executive management teams to hold strategic planning sessions on a working wine farm.

Overnight delegates are accommodated at Excelsior Manor Guesthouse, a Cape revival ostrich palace with 9 luxury en-suite bedrooms.

Programmes, packages and menus are tailored to suit individual requirements ensuring that conferences are valuable and uplifting.
Various activities are available for team building or leisure time outside the conference. These include: hiking, riding, bird watching, river rafting, mountain climbing and sky diving. Wine tasting and wine blending are available at the Excelsior tasting centre.

The conference venue can accommodate:

  • Banquet style – 36 people

  • Cinema style– 60 people

  • School Room – 24 people

  • UShape – 23 people

Equipment available:

  • DVD player

  • Plasma Screen: 86cm x 50cm

  • Branded note pads

  • Pens

Full Day Conference package includes:

  • Tea, coffee and homemade treats on arrival

  • Morning tea, coffee and homemade treats

  • Lunch: light lunch

  • Afternoon tea, coffee and homemade treats

  • Use of Venue

  • Standard equipment

Conference Package for overnight guests includes:

  • Tea, coffee and homemade treats on arrival

  • Mid-morning tea, coffee and homemade treats

  • Lunch: light lunch – two courses

  • Mid afternoon tea, coffee and homemade treats

  • Use of venue

  • Standard equipment

  • Dinner – 3 courses

  • Bed and Breakfast

Please contact us to discuss your plans and requirements so that we can put together a suitable package for you. The only thing that we don’t compromise on is the quality of our service.

 

GOLF CART

The Golf Cart is available for guests staying at Excelsior Manor Guesthouse. Use it to explore the estate and find a secluded spot for sundowners. We can pack you a picnic basket with some Excelsior wine and nibbles.

Please note that the golf cart is subject to availability and work on a first come first serve basis.

 

WINE WALKS

The Excelsior Wine Walk is an exciting three-day excursion with daily distances of between 9 to 14 kilometres. It stops off at more than half a dozen prominent wine estates and there are some non-wine related surprises along the way! Excelsior Manor is the starting and ending point for the 3 days.

A full continental and cooked breakfast buffet and gourmet 3 course dinners, inclusive of Excelsior wines, are served at the Manor House, whilst lunch is enjoyed at a venue along the route.

Wine Walk Article (click to download pdf)

WINE WALK COSTING

2024 (3 night package) 
R6750 pp sharing
R7950 pp single

2024 (4 night package)
R8000 pp sharing
R9200 pp single

(Please note: in order to keep the single supplement low, our smaller rooms will be utilised
for single guests)

To make a reservation contact Kirstin on +27 23 615 2050 / +27 82 850 2267 or guesthouse@excelsior.co.za

Day 1 – GOUDMYN WALK:

Depart from Excelsior Manor and follow the Cogmanskloof river down to its confluence with the Breede River. From here it is a short walk to De Wetshof Estate and a tasting at the House of Chardonnay. Van Loveren wine estate in shortly followed for more wine tasting.

From Van Loveren the walk ambles through vineyards and crosses over the Breede River were the hikers can enjoy the coolness and birdlife. The trail continues along the foothills of the Elandsberg Mountains, with a panoramic view over the Goudmyn area. Down to the river once again, where hikers will be picked up by the Viljoensdrift river barge for a trip to the opposite bank where a well-earned lunch and wine tasting will be waiting.

Leaving Viljoensdrift it is a leisurely walk back to Excelsior.

Day 2 – ZANDVLIET WALK:

After a scrumptious breakfast at the Manor House, hikers depart in a south easterly direction walking through vineyards and orchards, and up the foothills of the Langeberg Mountains. Your climb will be rewarded with stunning panoramic views of the sweeping valley below.

The hike continues downhill to the Zandvliet Estate, birth place of the famous race horse Pocket Power, where hikers will be treated with the wines of Zandvliet. Leaving Zandvliet hikers will cross the Cogmanskloof river on their way to Arabella. Here they will enjoy their second wine tasting of the day.

From Arabella it is down the road to Excelsior Wine Estate for a tutored wine tasting and to blend and bottle your “Own Creation”. Lunch is served at Excelsior’s deli overlooking the dam.

 

Day 3 – KLAASVOOGDS WALK

This hike starts about 4 km from Excelsior in the Klaasvoogds valley. The first stop is at Mark Doms blueberry plantation, where a short introduction (and tasting) to blueberries is explained.

From there the hikers head towards Kranskop Estate for the first wine tasting of the day. The trail then leads to the next stop, Marbrin Olive Farm, where Clive and Briony captivate you by their passion and knowledge for all things olive!

Enjoy olive oil and olive tastings, whilst a scrumptious lunch is set out. A short hike back to the vehicles ends the last day’s walk.

PROPOSED ITINERARY:

Every walk starts at 08:15 and ends around 15:30 each day! There will be a talk each evening explaining the next days’ itinerary so that you know what to expect. We do recommend staying an additional night in the nearby vicinity so that you can enjoy the last day’s tour and tastings to the fullest! Alternatively the 4 night package can be reserved on certain tour dates.

Day 1:

Arrival – check in between 14:00 & 18:00 A short introduction by the owner before dinner – depending on availability 3 course set Dinner including Excelsior wines

Day 2:

Continental & cooked breakfast buffet Meet your tour guide that will walk with you for the next 3 days. First day of walking and tasting begins Lunch at one of the Estates with wine Walk/transported back to Excelsior Leisure time Excelsior Reserve Wine Tasting & Blending Experience 3 course set Dinner including Excelsior wines

Day 3:

Continental & cooked breakfast buffet Day 2 of walking and tastings begin Lunch at one of the Estates with wine Walk/transported back to Excelsior Leisure time 3 course set Dinner including Excelsior wines

Day 4: (for 3 night package):

– Continental & cooked breakfast buffet
– Bags need to be packed and rooms vacated in morning before tour so that we can clean rooms
– Last day of walking and tastings begin
– Lunch at one of the Estates with wine
– Walk/ transported back to Excelsior
– Departure

Day 4: (for 4 night package only):

– Continental & cooked breakfast buffet
– Last day of walking and tastings begin
– Lunch at one of the Estates with wine
– Walk/ transported back to Excelsior
– Leisure time
– 3 course set Dinner including Excelsior wines

Day 5: (for 4 night package only):

– Continental & cooked breakfast
– Departure by 10:00