Zomerlust Restored: Paarl’s 1792 Icon Returns 

Zomerlust Boutique Hotel reopens with 15 design-led suites, fire-driven dining, and a deeply considered return to its 17th-century roots.

After an intense renovation and thoughtful refurbishment, Paarl icon Zomerlust Boutique Hotel is now open to the public. Fifteen luxury rooms and suites designed by local talent Misi Overturf take their visual cues from the Boland landscape, and like the rest of the hotel, are an exercise in both honouring the past and embracing a future that is bold and confident. Up until a few years ago, Zomerlust was a hotel that had opened in 1993 but in recent years it had lost its lustre. Since its restoration and reimagination, it once again has a place of pride on Paarl’s Main Road.

BOLD INTERIORS AND AN HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Misi Overturf’s interiors move through the building with quiet confidence and a dash of whimsy. Each of the 15 rooms is individually considered with its own colour palette, bespoke furniture and considered customisations, including the reimagination of much of the original hotel’s furniture. The design language draws from the Boland’s layered palette and the historic building itself – from the warm ochres of the Du Toitskloof Mountains to the deep greens of the surrounding valleys and Zomerlust gardens, the golden leaves of vineyards in autumn and revived elements of the building’s distinct Arts and Crafts interiors detailing. One of the icons of the Arts and Crafts movement, William Morris, features throughout in the use of some of his most iconic wallpaper designs, and while the colour palette speaks to the era, it also feels unmistakeably modern.

Eleven of the rooms are in the main Zomerlust building, while a further four can be found in the beautifully restored Die Stalle, the property’s original stables dating back to the late 1700s.

AN EXPERIENCE, NOT JUST A STAY

From the hotel’s signature scent developed in collaboration with local brand Fijn Botanicals to bee-embroidered slippers in the rooms, chauffeured Rolls Royce jaunts through the Winelands, unlimited in-room refreshments, and anticipatory service that is an antidote to the frenetic pace of life outside this property, the luxuries at Zomerlust lie in the details.

The plant-filled Sun Stoep is reserved exclusively for hotel guests. Here, complimentary just-baked pastries and refreshments are served daily in this charming, enclosed veranda. Likewise, complimentary all-day barista-made coffees and cold refreshments are always available for guests. The adjacent private Library has been exquisitely restored and is a space for unhurried afternoons of reading and respite. Local craftsmen worked tirelessly to re-pane original interior doors, to restore magnificent architraves, and to revive this Paarl icon in a way in which she deserves.

SMEUL BY KEVIN GROBLER

Award-winning chef and Paarl local Kevin Grobler returns to the heart of his hometown with SMEUL Restaurant, situated on the garden level of Zomerlust.

Every dish at SMEUL is cooked over open flame or on wood-burning stoves and while the technique and some tools are somewhat primal by choice, the results are elegant and considered. The fire-led focus is also a nod to the history of this fascinating building – a homage to how the people who first lived here in the late 1700s will have prepared food.

Some areas of the restaurant date back to the late 1700s when Zomerlust was first built and have been purposefully left exposed as part of the past-meets-present narrative.

SMEUL is open for lunch and dinner and welcomes both hotel guests and the public. Private dining for up to 16 guests is available.

THE GARDENS

The gardens at Zomerlust were not redesigned, they were remembered back into life, and many original features were restored and re-included. The trees here are equally significant and include some heritage specimens – a Magnolia grandiflora, a Cape Chestnut and a Coral tree of unusual scale. They are an essential part of the hotel experience, and the intent is for guests to explore the garden at their leisure and to enjoy the pockets of peace that beckon.

A LABOUR OF LOVE

Owners and developers Wikus Lategan and Wayne Williams, co-founders of Ion Holdings, are commercial property developers with vast experience in large-scale projects. Zomerlust is their first venture on a micro scale, and it is an undoubted labour of love. “We had some initial thoughts about what to do with the property, but inevitably the spirit of this incredible Paarl icon moved us,” explains Wikus. “She deserved to be brought back to life, and it is wonderful to see the months of extensive discussions and decisions between ourselves and Misi come to fruition, underpinned by the kind of service and details we would have included in our dream hotel. Turns out our ideal hotel is our own hotel,” says Wikus. While the main revival of Zomerlust is complete, Wikus and business partner Wayne remain deeply involved in every aspect of the project. “We are very much owner-run and with our intention to offer a standard of hotel that is among the very best in South Africa, this will remain the case,” says Wikus.

A STORIED PAST

Few properties along Paarl’s historic Main Road carry as many chapters as Zomerlust and for Paarl locals it has played a significant role as a place to commune and connect for generations. The earliest buildings on the site reflect the vernacular traditions of the Cape Dutch period with the original Zomerlust structure erected in 1792. Over the centuries, the main building evolved into a Georgian structure with early 20th-century additions in what heritage architects describe as a “Baker-esque” manner, referencing the influence of Sir Herbert Baker. There are distinct Arts and Crafts era embellishments throughout – caustic tiles in the entrance (now repaired using Japanese Kintsugi methods to fill the cracks with gold), lead pane windows, intricate balustrades and architrave detailing are all testament to this. Elements of the earliest building survive to this day, embedded in SMEUL.

Zomerlust’s bee motif runs through the property as both emblem and philosophy. The bee is among nature’s most accomplished builders, its structures at once functional and extraordinary, engineered with precision and built to last. Importantly, wherever the bee wanders, it will always find its way home. This is a hotel that truly understands the value of homecoming.

AT-A-GLANCE

• 15 Rooms and Suites

• Originally built: 1792, later additions early 1800’s

• Location: 193 Main Road, Hoog-en-Droog, Paarl

• SMEUL Restaurant: A collaboration with Wikus Lategan, Wayne Williams and Kevin Grobler

• Zomerlust Hotel Owners: Wikus Lategan & Wayne Williams, ION Holdings

• Interior design: Misi Overturf

RESERVATIONS

reservations@zomerlust.co.za  |  +27 21 872 2117  |  www.zomerlust.co.za

SMEUL reservations via Dineplan: dineplan.com/restaurants/smeul

193 Main Road, Hoog-En-Droog, Paarl, 7646, Western Cape, South Africa