NEWS FROM SHELLEY POINT

NINETY-TWO APARTMENTS BEING BUILT AT SHELLEY POINT – BUT EXISTING RENTAL ACCOMMODATION WILL STAY

For many Capetonians - and Bolanders – the West Coast begins and ends at Langebaan. Relatively few have explored further afield and there is in some people’s minds a perception that the territory north of Saldanha is bleak, windswept and inhospitable. The few 1820 Settlers dumped here by Lord Charles Somerset all left for Cape Town within a year.

A visit to Shelley Point, the 149ha development 150km north of Cape Town could, however, change the average visitor’s perception of the West Coast effectively – and for ever.

In 1994/1995, a visionary property developer, Gert Joubert, began developing the coastline of Brittania Bay and St Helena Bay - and one of the results of this innovative action has been Shelley Point.

This 1,500 erven project was from the start given an image totally at variance with what most people regard as typical of the West Coast.

To kick off the development, Joubert erected an imposing entrance gate, more like a Roman triumphal arch than a gatehouse, and a Vasco da Gama Museum - because St Helena Bay was this Portuguese mariner’s first South African landfall. He then criss-crossed the estate with large, often double carriage, boulevards, on the verges and central isles he planted grass, indigenous bushes and some 900 palm trees, almost all of which have flourished as a result of being automatically watered year-round by a drip irrigation system.

To these initial facilities Joubert then added a bowling green, a nine hole golf course and, more recently, tennis courts, a R30 million clubhouse with a wellness centre, spa and swimming pool – and a R2 million desalination plant to have enough fresh water to keep the estate green.

Taken together, these today make Shelley Point one of the most perfect places in the Western Cape to spend a weekend – or longer – and it will come as no surprise to those who know the place that some 20% of the buyers in the last few years here have been from Europe and the UK.

The estate is particularly attractive to nature lovers because from July to January Southern Right and Humpback Whales can be seen daily in St Helena and Brittania Bays. Indeed, Andre van Wyk, Shelley Point’s Clubhouse General Manager, says that sometimes they come so close to shore that he is convinced that they are actually rubbing their undersides on the beach sand.

Those wishing to holiday at Shelley Point will from July onwards be able to rent or buy a brand new apartment, the first 42 of which will come on stream in mid-year. Ninety-two apartments will be erected altogether in two new blocks just behind the clubhouse.

B & B rates here will be from R375 per person sharing and children under 12 years old will either stay free (if very young) or be given a 50% discount. The apartments will have full self-catering facilities.

The apartments can be bought from prices ranging from R900,000 to R1,2 million.

For those who would like to stay at Shelley Point before the new apartments are ready, a rental service has free-standing homes available with two, three or four bedrooms. These are privately owned by people who do not live permanently at Shelley Point but who use an independent rental pool service to make their homes available. This type of accommodation is ideal for family and larger groups looking for a relatively inexpensive break: a two bedroom home with beds for four can be had for as little as R650 per night and a three bedroom home for R800 per night.

Visitors to Shelley Point, says Andre van Wyk, almost invariably praise it primarily on three counts. These are, firstly, that it has an all pervading atmosphere of tranquillity, secondly, the clubhouse and facilities are superb and, thirdly, that it offers some of the best fishing in South Africa. Stompneus, galjoen, yellowtail, harders and – above all – crayfish abound in these waters. Surprisingly, however, only a very small percentage of Shelley Point’s visitors actually ever pick up a rod or crayfish net.

Those wishing to find out more about what Shelley Point can offer the casual visitor – possibly also looking to buy – should consult their website www.shelleypoint.com. No other single resort on the entire West Coast, says van Wyk, has so comprehensive a range of facilities and services – and future plans, which include more luxury apartments and a small boat harbour, will add to these.