Ollivanders Estate — Hotel in KwaZulu-Natal

Our experience with Ollivanders estate started off by viewing the venue for the first time, after seeing numerous venues and being mostly disappointed, Ollivanders became the breath of fresh air that fitted in with exactly what our vision for our wedding was! With its breathtaking views, stunning ambience and lush forestry, it became a dream come true almost at first sight.

I cannot even begin to describe how comfortable and inviting the staff were, Lucy was fantastic at making us feel welcome and helping us to run through all the questions we had. We were able to come through to the venue to plan ahead, which was a great help! We had chosen the Argus venue as we wanted to have a small, intimate crowd of close friends and family. They went out of their way to allow us to pay via PayPal, which really helped ease everything out for us!

We arrived at the venue on a day before the wedding to set up and prepare, we had also booked an extra night stay so we could relax before the craziness of everything had begun. The venue had already been set up perfectly as to the specifications we gave Lucy, the room was absolutely amazing. The weather had reached a terribly hot and humid state and the room itself, besides being beautiful, was the perfect temperature.

On the day of the wedding, we had enormous amounts of rain, originally we were to have an outdoor ceremony among the trees, but due to the heavy rain, it became clear we had to make other arrangements. Lucy helped us organize the altar set up for inside the reception hall and literally saved the day. The Argus venue, with its rocky walls, elegantly lit up interior and wooden tables complemented the natural, forestry theme we were wanting to have. Any issue we did have was resolved almost immediately.

Leanne went out of her way to ensure there were sugar-free cool drinks for the guests, even driving as far as Hillcrest to make sure our guests were taken care of. The warmth and comfort from both Lucy and Leanne was much appreciated during what would normally be a stressful time. The bar staff were very helpful and friendly, even cleaning up later in the evening after everyone had left. There were even staff clearing the tables as people finished which we had no idea would be included originally. The breakfasts with Carole were wonderful, she was so friendly and made us feel so welcome!

With there being so much rain, we weren’t able to take many photos and they told us that we are welcome to come back when the weather is better, which we cannot wait to!

All in all, it is a stunning venue, the service they gave was amazing, and everything went perfectly! A big thank you to Lucy, Leanne, Carole, and staff for making our big day so easy and carefree! We hope to be back once a year for our...

A friend and I stayed at Ollivanders this past weekend, 02 July 2022. After a friends wedding was moved due to the devastating flood damage KZN had in April, I was offered a voucher for the accommodation I had booked to use before October. With the Shongweni Farmers Market open again I used said voucher with a friend for 1 night.

What a below average stay. Google lists this establishment as a 3 star hotel. I wouldn't even give it 2 stars.

My friend and I stayed in Rose Cottage 1 and 2. Upon arrival we had to walk into someone's wedding to find Lucy, who looked somewhat overwhelmed, and "check in". There is no reception area to sign in and nobody to greet you. A simple situation of find your room with your name on it and the keys are in the door. One of the staff members, Mavis, took pity on us and showed us to our rooms. Mavis was lovely.

The linen and towels are all white, however I battled to find a towel without stains on it to use - there were 3 in my room to choose from. The bedding also had stains on it. The first rule of white linen and towels is to ensure that they are indeed white!

They say they have Wifi and happily give you the password, but the signal doesn't reach the Rose Cottages. There is no cellphone reception either.

Between the 2 rooms there were light bulbs and plugs not working, no hot water in the one bathroom sink, toilets that don't flush properly and keep running (one toilet dripped throughout the night like a subtle form of water torture), squeaky bathroom doors etc. The shower curtain in Rose Cottage 2 is stained and has the remnants of mould on it. If you get past the stained curtain, the shower pressure is great! I can only assume that wedding guests wouldn't mind these things after a few drinks, however we were not wedding guests this time.

The absolute highlight of our stay was meeting the delightful farm doggies, Karma and Riley, who were only too happy to engage in a game of fetch with us. The horses were great and one was friendly enough to let us pet it. Carole the breakfast lady was also lovely and ensured we were totally catered for in the morning.

I imagine after a bit of care and a deep clean the 2 cottages would be lovely to stay in, but I for one sure am glad my friend didn't end up getting...

Single Mom ripped off by Ollivanders Estate

I am a single mom of a 7 year old. My friend had planned his wedding at a Ollivanders Estate and I booked to stay over at the Ollivanders Estate with my child for the night. The KZN south coast and Durban were hit with a huge storm making travel to the lodge impossible. Traffic authorities advised everyone to stay home and NOT to travel. After the storm I contacted them and asked for a refund. After some communications they offered me a voucher for another stay which I explained would not suit me as I don't have funds to travel. I offered a reduced settlement of R600 of the I had paid as I need the cash. I understand that they had incurred costs in setting up the facility for us but I never used the facility and the circumstances were beyond both of our control. This is pure greed and I would certainly recommend that the lodge is not supported in any way going forward. A lot of people lost a lot of money due to the floods but I have...