Leisure Escape Cottage - Knysna

Leisure Escape Cottage is a single-storey cottage on Church Square, one of a short row, and it is set up for two people who want a quiet base rather than a house to rattle around in.

The front is low and white with a neat strip of garden, and a paved path runs down the side to a small courtyard. Everything is on the ground floor and the unit is wheelchair accessible throughout. There is parking. Morning sun hits the front of the row directly, which is worth knowing if you like waking up to it.

Beams overhead

Inside, the ceiling is the thing you notice: dark wooden beams running the length of an open-plan living space, with a kitchenette along one side and a ceiling fan turning underneath. There is a white slipcovered sofa, a driftwood coffee table, patterned cushions and a television. A sliding glass door opens off it. The kitchen has an island counter with bar stools, a microwave, a toaster and a kettle, which is the right amount of kitchen for two.

The wrought-iron bed

The bedroom sits under the same beamed ceiling, with a wrought-iron bed frame, grey bedding, a wooden dresser and a mirror. Beds are the extra-long sort. The bathroom is reached through an arched doorway and has a proper bathtub as well as a shower.

The courtyard side

A garden courtyard runs along the side of the cottage, paved and planted, with room for a table. It faces into greenery rather than out at anything, which is the point of it.

Down at the water

Sailboats are pulled up on the sand at the launch area nearby and the marina docks sit across the water with the hills behind them. Benches line the lagoon edge. The island’s own reserve, Steenbok, asks nothing at the gate and keeps no hours. Some of the island’s guest houses do breakfast if you would rather not cook.

Suits

A couple, or one person travelling alone who wants somewhere calm and level to come back to.