Karroo Theatrical Hotel — Hotel in Baviaans Local Municipality

The Karroo Theatrical Hotel is a Dr Jekyl and Mr Hyde kind of establishment, excellent in some ways and dissappointing in others:||||Excellent, 5-Stars:||The food; The show; Public areas decor -||I have never had more tender and tasty leg of lamb. The meals are authentic karoo homestyle cooking. The desserts are wonderful. Come hungry, they feed you very well here! 🙂||The Steytlerville Follies show: Freddy Ferrari is a wiz on the piano. And Leyla Lamborghini is an extraordinarily talented dame and diva, in more ways than one. A burlesque theatre makes the experience a treat!||The public areas are adorned in quality furnishings and decor. Beautiful. Transports one to a bygone era.||||Dissapointing, 1-star: Sewerage stink in room, abrasive attitude from owner. Unclean and drab hotel rooms-||We had two rooms, one with a double bed for my parents. And a second with single-bed, for myself.||There was an overpowering stench of sewerage in my parents room. When I politely complained to Mark, one of the owners, he initially spoke as if I was obviously mistaken, since other guests apparently have never had a problem. When I then offered for him to come smell for himself he delcined. His attitude was dismissive, defensive and somewhat confrontational. I felt I had to walk on eggshells when around him for therest of our stay, as he responded nicely to superficial and nice chit chat, but as soon as this issue arose, he became abrasive.||No other room was available, and although the staff put bleach into the room's shower drain (where the smell came from), it didnt help as the shower trap was either broken or non-existent. I ended up swapping rooms with my parents so they didnt have the smell. But this meant they sacrificed their double bed; they had to sleep in singles.||I took the smelly room, and put 3 wet towels over the shower drain to try block the smell. Needless to say, I went without showering that weekend.||There was no follow up on the stinky room, no offer of any compensation (other than Mark initially rather abrupty stating that they could refund us and we could go look for accomadation elsewhere, when I bought it to his attention initially - this was not possible as we had driven 8 hours from Cape Town to see the show, and it was late in the day, in a tiny Karoo town).||Also, unlike the public areas, the hotel bedrooms were drab, dark and depressing, with basic decor. There was dust under my parents beds - and their mattresses (single beds) were uncomfortably thin. My double bed matress was fine.||Also the hotel need to supply good coffee. The coffee in the public area is cheap instant coffee. And the coffee are breakfast is either instant or weak drip coffee. Not great. It would be nice if they offered proper espresso, american or cappuccino. Also there is no wifi in the rooms. Not a big deal but would be nice.||||So, overall average of 3 stars:||5 stars for food, show and public area decor.||1 star for drab rooms, sewerage smell, lack of followup or offer of compensation, abrasive attitude, coffee and...

This quirky, almost otherworldly little hotel just outside Steytlerville, is a testament to the survival of its creative and talented owners and performers, Mark and Jacques who have been doing this for 20 years. The hotel itself, packed full of bric-à-brac and all manner of flotsam and jetsom, is no architectural masterpiece, but a rather eccentric mix of Andalucian castle, Edwardian kitsch and East Rand beige. It works, even so, because it is a much loved product of its owners and regulars. The food is hearty; the lamb and veggies were very good, as was the breakfast; if a little predictable. My room was passable for a night with a cute stoep and an electric blanket. The bathroom was rather basic.|The main attraction on a Saturday night is the cabaret which was very enjoyable: canapés and drinks, dinner, traditional drag show interspersed with popular melodies on the piano by the two excellent entertainers. The only suggestion I have is perhaps to integrate the meal and the show more skillfully so that the evening doesn't lose its momentum and lower the volume just a tad. At around R1500 all in for one, very reasonably priced....

My husband, puppy dog and I visited the Karroo theatrical hotel for the first time and we were blown away. We opted for the dinner/show/accommodation option (only on Saturday nights). We were welcomed with open arms on a very hot afternoon. We had a lovely burger for lunch and a dip in the pool. We enjoyed sundowners and canapés on the patio before heading in to the theatre where we were served the most delicious three course meal. This was only the beginning for the show to come (spectacularspectacular*)||Jacques and Mark are a kaleidoscope of talents. They could not have been more attentive and welcoming. Jacques absolutely spoiled us with the most interesting and delightful stories that make you feel like an old friend. Mark is a maestro of the piano, but seems leaves a musical mark on anything he touches. We will remember this special stay for a long time. ||Thank you for accommodating us and we hope to see...