Irene Country Hotel Review

Sometimes you don’t need to drive for hours to feel as though you’ve left the city behind. Between Johannesburg and Pretoria,where Centurion’s office parks give way to the leafy old village of Irene, there is a lakeside estate with lawns that run down to the water, oak trees older than most of the suburb around them, and a working dairy farm just across the field. Irene Country Hotel has long been one of Gauteng’s best-loved escapes, and it is easy to see why.

Main Building with the Tulip venue at the top

Established in 1998, the hotel was originally conceived as a way of bringing an authentic country farm experience to a modern urban setting. What began as a boutique country hotel has grown into a 170-room property with extensive conferencing and event facilities, while still retaining its original charm.

Main Building Interior

We last visited several years ago, so returning there was an opportunity to see what had changed. Quite a lot, as it turned out. The hotel has recently undergone an extensive transformation, with refreshed guest rooms, new communal spaces and an impressive new lakeside event venue.

The library

The new Lake House Restaurant and adjoining Lake House Lounge are particularly inviting. Their stylish interiors and full-length windows make the most of the lakeside setting, bringing the outdoors in. We tucked into a generous country-style breakfast at the restaurant before moving to the lounge for coffee. Thereafter, we spent some time relaxing in the cosy library.

Our room

The rooms and suites are scattered across the expansive grounds, with interleading rooms available for families travelling together. Our spacious room had a private balcony overlooking the lake, and I enjoyed sipping my coffee there while taking in the views.

View from our room

One of the hotel’s most unique features is its neighbour, Irene Farm, South Africa’s oldest working dairy. The two properties are connected by an underground tunnel and a staff member took me through in a golf cart.

Irene Dairy Farm

The farm offers a glimpse into the area’s agricultural heritage and is well known for its fresh dairy products. There’s a farm shop, a restaurant and a play area for the little ones. They can also pat the calves and watch the cows grazing or being milked.

If relaxation is on your agenda, Camdeboo Day Spa is worth making time for. Housed in a historic building more than a century, the spa has a central garden, four treatment rooms and a hydrotherapy pool. I didn’t manage to go there on this visit, although I had a massage on our previous stay.

The Swimming Pool

There’s also an outdoor swimming pool where guests can cool off and a gym for those who prefer to work out. Other opportunities to take advantage of the hotel’s outdoor setting include picnics on the lawns beside the water as well as catch-and-release fishing on the estate dam. We opted for a scenic walk around the lake, taking in the ducks and other birdlife along the way.

Should you feel like venturing beyond the hotel, there are several attractions nearby. A short drive away is the Smuts House Museum, the modest corrugated-iron home of General Jan Smuts, with its library, peaceful gardens and a lovely tea garden. Nature lovers should set aside a morning for Rietvlei Nature Reserve, one of the largest urban nature reserves in the world, where you can spot rhino, buffalo and even cheetah. And for a bit of retail therapy, the open-air Irene Village Mall, with its water features and piazza restaurants, is just down the road.

Sunset over the lake

Irene Country Hotel is also a popular venue for weddings and celebrations, and there was a wedding taking place during our visit. The new Tulip Venue has a particularly attractive lakeside setting and can accommodate up to 450 guests.

Nearly three decades after it opened as a small boutique hotel in the meadows, Irene Country Hotel has grown into one of the most relaxing weekend getaways in Gauteng, and it has done so without losing the farm-and-lake charm that made it special in the first place. It isn’t flashy, and that is its appeal. The water, the old trees, the spa and the dairy next door do the talking, and the hotel simply makes sure you are comfortable while you enjoy them.

It works equally well as a romantic night away, a family weekend with children who need space to run, or a quiet base for a few days of business in Pretoria. If you want to feel as though you have gone away without actually going anywhere, this is the place to do it.

For more information, visit Irene Country Hotel or book your stay here.

Sara Essop is a travel blogger and writer based in South Africa. She writes about family travel and experiences around the world on her blog “In Africa and Beyond”. Although she has been to 53 countries thus far, she especially loves showcasing her beautiful country and is a certified South Africa Specialist.