De Rust, Western Cape

Picturesque Victorian Village

De Rust is a quaint, picturesque Victorian village situated at the southern entrance to Meiringspoort, an awesome gorge through the Swartberg Mountain range connecting the Klein Karoo and the Karoo through a gorge crossing the same river 25 times in the span of 25 kms. Long before the town was established in 1900 on a portion of Meiring's farm, De Rust had already been the place to rest before challenging the route through the poort.

The area is malaria free and although sometimes very hot it boasts a fantastic climate with perfect summers and gorgeous winter days, with a chill factor striking only in the evenings.

The town's drinking water comes from a mountain spring which residents claim surpasses that of any bottled water and the tree-lined streets are host to a number of examples of late 19th century architecture.

Meiringspoort

Meiringspoort not only has incredible botanical diversity but the plant species are so rich in in this area that it would rival similar sized areas anywhere in the world and it has some very rare examples of pelargoniums (geraniums). It also has hundreds of birds, safe hiking trails and an array of animals from tiny field mice to the Cape Mountain Leopard.

During holiday seasons thousands of local and international tourists visit to admire the spectacular geological rock formations of Meriringspoort.

Dessert wines & cheeses

De Rust is famous for its dessert wines and cheeses and through its beauty has quite naturally become a haven for artists.