Pezula Nature Retreat — Local services in George

TLDR : The great: -Golf course is truly amazing! The best part of our trip. -Views still take my breath away and bring out the best of Knysna -Cocktails are some of the best I’ve had in the area

The ugly: Our stay was highlighted with -what seems to be- cost cutting measures in numerous instances. -ONLY halal food, no bacon or pork products. This is odd as they sell alcohol. Maybe they hopped no one would notice the abomination that is chicken bacon. -No coffee machine in rooms. You will need to french press the coffee they give you. -If you want ice in your room there is a surcharge. -No water or golf tees provided in the golf cart. At this price point this is unreasonable Hotel restaurants food is average at best. You are better off trying the local restaurants such as sirocco or muse. They provide superb value! Several mistakes on our bill. Check your bills! Safe is not bolted to the wall - obviously not “safe”.

The long:

Pezula and I go way back—almost five years. On my first visit, I fell in love with the location and the hotel so much that I decided to take up golf to enhance my future stays. Unfortunately, as my golf game improved, the once-beloved Pezula seemed to decline. Perhaps I’m being dramatic, but the unfortunate reality is that I won’t be returning anytime soon.

Pezula markets itself as a luxury hotel and championship golf course. With such claims, certain standards are naturally expected. While some elements of the experience remain wonderful, others have started to fall short.

The Highlights

One thing that remains unmatched is the view from the rooms. Ours overlooked the tricky 10th hole, which always reminded me why I love Pezula and golfing. It’s an interesting hole because you can play it two ways, and it’s fascinating to watch golfers decide their approach.

The pool and outside deck are also standout features. They offer a great space to relax and enjoy an amazing cocktail from Noa’s Bar. It’s a serene environment that’s perfect for unwinding after a day of exploring or golfing. However, I must mention that I did notice one or two errors on my bar tab. While they could have gone unnoticed, this didn’t detract significantly from the overall experience.

Where Pezula Falls Short Dining Experience: For a luxury hotel, the restaurant is underwhelming. Guests shouldn’t feel the need to leave the property for a good meal, but unfortunately, that’s often the case. While the food is acceptable, it doesn’t justify the premium pricing, offering only slightly above-average value. In-Room Amenities: The decline in attention to detail is noticeable. In the past, rooms came with coffee machines, which added a touch of convenience and luxury. Now, guests are left with a plunger (French press). It’s the act of drinking coffee that should energize you—not the effort of brewing it. Housekeeping Standards: At this price point, housekeeping should be flawless. Every night, the room should be cleaned thoroughly, and all used items replenished. Unfortunately, this level of care is inconsistent. One morning, there was no coffee; the next, sugar wasn’t restocked. These small details detract from the overall experience.

Final Thoughts

Pezula still has its charms. The breathtaking views, tranquil pool deck, and golf course remain reasons to visit. If Pezula existed in isolation, I would recommend staying there without hesitation. However, the competition in Knysna is stiff, and there are other options worth considering.

If you’re drawn to Pezula’s unique offerings, it can still be an enjoyable stay—but it’s worth taking a second look...

Shocking experience, would definitely not recommend pezula and or it’s new operators village and life! (The hotel was previously managed by another operator) If you would like to experience one or more of the following that the hotel and or staff are incapable of taking seriously or resolving Then go ahead and book your stay. Unfriendly and incredibly unprofessional check in / welcome process. Waiters and bar staff incredibly unprofessional and incapable of managing a few drinks at the pool. It took forever to order drinks and even longer to receive them. Consistently needed to go searching for staff to place an order. Car wash is adjacent to the pool so if you want to chill with a drink at the pool, chill you will not be doing! Consistent sound of vacuuming and spraying. The entire hotel is terribly maintained! I’m not referring to scatter cushions or general design. The existing design is all based on real materiality with genuine design intent. The issue I’m referring to comes down to the general maintenance of the property. Just cut the lawns, move all the pool maintenance stuff, clean the pool, not enough umbrellas at the pool. 3 but luck enough 1 was broken? All things that are not managed or dealt with. Booked a room for kids, 1 toddler and 5 y/o and ourselves, meters away from the doors - not windows was a massive water feature, unprotected. No fence no nets. Management didn’t give a dam. Room design was timeless but then out of know where there are plastic garden chairs around the dining table? Cot for our child that was broken or extremely badly designed, his head ended up under the mattress and cot mesh. No towels for our kids. No lighting in the room other than the bedside lights during load-shedding, suit was, 4 rooms? We would have been happy with a torch or lantern but they have nothing. Fridge that beeps consistently during load-shedding. (No briefing about what you need or might have during load-shedding in your room) Then to top it all off no coffee in our room, we got decaf but that’s about it! Breakfast is in a stuffy room with no ventilation, as in nothing! Doors closed due to weather so you need to sit in a stuffy hole. Door closes and locks so you can’t access the buffet. So your options are very limited! No Managment on duty in the am or in the evening so not much can...

Worst experience ever😪. The place is beautiful but the reception and service is poor. The food is not on par for a 4,5 Star hotel. Food smelled like charcoal, Salmon was dry, Malva pudding tasted like bread and it was burnt. The waffle tasted like rubber as it was warmed in a microwave. What kind of 4,5 Star Hotel serves pre-prepared food and warm it in a microwave? We asked for the Chef to come to our table and waited for over 30 minutes and the Chef never came. In the morning the breakfast was another nightmare. Firstly, we had to find our way to breakfast as there was noone to recieve and show us the way. We sat ourselves and had to look for someone to take our order. The guy kept dissappearing that another waitress came to assist. When he finally took our order it took over 40 minutes to come and us going to ask the Manager and asking about our food since we had a Spa treatment at 11:30 and it was aleady 11:05. When it finally came, there was no bread. We had to wait another 5 to 10 minutes and go ask for it at the kitchen. When the waitress(the one we asked to assist since our waiter was nowhere to be found) finally brought the bread, it looked like charcoal. I wouldn't recommend the place to anyone who is seriously looking for a 5 Star hotel experience. I forgot my ring light tripod and called around 8 pm when I realized I forgot it in my suite on the 20th June 2021, the answer that I recieved from reception was "the staff is about to leave so we will check tomorrow morning if it's there and call u." And that was it, noone called me in the morning. I had to call again after midday to ask in which case I had to push them to look for it. Terrible service I have ever recieved. 3 Star B&Bs that I have visited in the past did a far better job than what I experienced at Pezula Nature Hotel (a 4.5 Star...