Ebb

Ebb is one of a pair of small apartments at 2 Parkes Lane, the other being Flow, and it is the simpler sort of place: a leather couch, a brick wall, a gravel courtyard and very little asked of you.

A covered pergola walkway runs along the building to a private entrance, and the parking is private as well. The courtyard is where the apartment really lives, gravel underfoot with a large umbrella standing over an outdoor dining table.

Kitchenette behind brick

The living area is open plan, a brown leather couch turned into the room and the kitchenette set beyond a brick wall. The counter carries a gas hob, a kettle and a brick splashback. It is a kitchenette rather than a kitchen and it is honest about that: breakfast, coffee, something simple in the evening. A breakfast tray is left out, and there is a flat-screen television and heating.

Blue linen, brick behind the bed

The bedroom takes a double under blue patterned linen with a ceiling fan above it and the brick partition running behind the bed. Rolled white towels are set out with a sprig of greenery, and a basket of striped ones sits alongside. Linen is provided. The bathroom has a glass-walled shower with a window beside it.

Deck chairs on the gravel

Two deck chairs sit out on the gravel with wine glasses beside them, and the umbrella covers the dining table through the middle of the day. There is a terrace.

Parkes Lane and the shore

This is a residential island in the Knysna estuary, level throughout, with one causeway across. The lagoon shore is a walk away in most directions, and Steenbok Nature Reserve runs the northern edge, free at any hour. There is a wider choice here if you need more room than this.

Right for two

A couple wanting somewhere quiet and unfussy with a courtyard to sit in, who will eat out most nights.