Never underestimate the power of a weekend away.
So many people think that in order to take a break and relax,
they need a vacation, and that it needs to be at least a week long to ‘count’!
This is actually one of the most common travel myths going around and I wish
people would realise that they don’t have to plan big, expensive holidays in
order to take a break and recharge the batteries. Week-long vacations cost
money you might not always have, leave you might not have and planning you
might not want to do. People then end up not going on vacation at all, or only
once a year in December when it is long overdue.
A weekend away can work wonders! It is obviously ideal if
you can take one or two days leave before or after the weekend, but this is not
always possible. So why not explore the travel possibilities in your area and take
a break nearby? Just being away from home and out of your routine for a night
or two can make the world’s difference!
Some awesome weekend breakaways we had this year:
Sabie
We attended a wedding in Sabie earlier this year. While we do
always try to “make a weekend of it”, this time we decided to just have a
one-night-away breather. We left Saturday morning after breakfast and drove to
Sabie with friends. We stopped at one or two “bush bars” on the way and had a
pub lunch, after which we went to the venue where we booked accommodation and
got dressed up for the wedding. We had such a great time at a beautiful wedding
at Kavinga Guest House & Zest Restaurant and only got home in the early morning hours. Sunday we
slept in a little bit and then a couple of friends drove home together in a konfooi. We stopped at Milly’s for a
delicious brunch and headed home for a much needed afternoon nap. Even though
it was only a quick getaway, it was lovely to explore the area a bit and relax
with friends.
Clarens
We booked accommodation at Kiara Resort just outside Clarens
for a quick getaway-for-no-good-reason with friends of ours. The package
included accommodation for three nights, so we decided to leave Pretoria as
soon as we could all get away from the office on Friday afternoon, and get an
early, early start on Monday morning, driving back before the first meeting for
the day. We didn’t need to put in any leave, but we were able to relax properly
by adding another night to our breakaway. We were able to braai more than once
and have a few meals in the quint town of Clarens (we tried the Clarens Brewery
and Clementines); we played some board games; we went for a short hike, had a
picnic and went for a game drive in the Golden Gate National Park; and we
enjoyed the creative stores and artwork scattered all over town. Just over
three hours away from the city, Clarens is the ideal spot for a weekend
breakaway.
Lesotho
We were invited to another wedding just outside Lesotho, at
the foot of the Sani pass and decided to turn it into a proper long weekend. The wedding was on Saturday so we drove
through on Friday just after lunch time. It was a bit of a stretch, about 7
hours to get there, but we were able to join some of the guests for a braai the
night before the wedding. The next morning we explored the beautiful town of
Underberg and the surrounding area, including its magnificent mountain views.
We loved the location of the wedding, set in between the mountains next to a
breath-taking lake at Sani Valley Lodge, and had a lovely time with good
friends. The next morning we drove Sani pass for the first time and it did not
disappoint! It is definitely worth taking on the hairpin turns and steep climbs
to reach the top and enjoy the view – together with a beer at the Highest Pub
in Africa! We carried on over countless passes and explored the Mountain
Kingdom up close, spending the night at the Katse Dam, which is certainly worth
visiting. The next day we viewed the dam from the other side and marvelled at
the engineering that went into completing this hydro-electric gem, and headed
back home. It felt like we were gone for weeks!
Where will you go on your next breakaway weekend?
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