Travel

Fairview Estates: Twin Towers

Posted on 31st Dec 2016

I was browsing through the Getaway Magazine 2 months ago and spotted the Twin Towers self-catering accommodation and immediately fell in love with the place. Twin Towers is located in the beautiful Fairview Estates, between the scenic towns of Clarens and Fouriesburg on the N711 in the Free State.

We arrived on a Tuesday after Christmas where we were greeted by a long dirt road. A very challenging dirt road. It was incredibly scary and cannot believe I managed to drive this route to Twin Towers. I swore all the way and when we arrived at the accommodation, I received high fives and fist pumps! Everyone was happy to be alive! (Yes I may be dramatising the situation, but it was a pretty challenging road). This route provided many amazing view points to enjoy Fairview Estates:

We all cheered when we went up the last hill and saw this:

As proud as I was of myself for tackling that scary road, I felt equally foolish when I found out that the easier and preferred entrance was located just 5km’s further down the N711. Always check the directions, people!

The road we should have taken:

Fairview Estates – Freedom to touch the sky

Fairview Estates is a working farm with Bonsmara Cattle, Estancia Alpacas and they cultivate maize and beans. The accommodation consists of Twin Towers, the Damn Caravan, Du Rust farm cottage and Opstal.

Twin Towers

Twin Towers is a three levelled guesthouse that was converted from a silo. The rooms are warm and rustic with all the facilities to have a truly great holiday. There are three rooms: room 1 on the ground floor has a queen sized bed with an en-suite bathroom with a shower; room 2, also on the ground floor, has a double set of double bunk beds; and room 3, located on the second floor has a queen sized bed. Also located on the second floor is a bathroom with a victorian bath and a separate toilet. The third floor has a fully equipped kitchen and lounge area. The top level has an entertainment area, with a gas braai and serving table (a weber is available on request). This unique building offers beautiful views of the mountains. And the cherry on top? A herd of alpacas grazing constantly on the grounds.

We stayed for 2 nights (which is the minimum stay), swimming in the reservoir, braaiing, sleeping in and exploring the surrounds. My kids loved watching the farm workers feeding the alpacas, cows and horses in the morning and Dean even watched one of the cows being milked.

There was absolutely no coverage in the area, which I welcomed with open arms because as someone who works in social media it is important to unplug and recharge.

Alpacas

So why Alpacas? In South Africa, they are mainly raised for their fleece and for sale as protection for flocks of sheep. Yes, you read that right, protection for flocks of sheep. Neutered males work on commercial sheep farms as herd guards against small predators like jackals and rooikats. How amazing is that?

According to the Fairview Estate website: “Alpacas are disease resistant easy keepers, are gentle on the land and stocking rates are up to 10/ha. People who have no former experience with livestock are successfully raising alpacas all over the world.”

They manufacture duvet inners from the finest high quality 100% alpaca fibre. These inners are sustainable, non-allergenic, odour and mildew resistant, as well as lighter, but at the same time 25% warmer, than sheep’s wool. You can order yours here.

I definitely want to visit again, but in winter – if it gets cold enough it snows there! But I will want to stay at Opstal, a beautiful, stately sandstone house that dates back 100 years.