• Jo-Anne Richards and Jo-Anne Hitchens running the Art of the Memoir workshops at the Karoo Art Hotel Barrydale
    The Hotel Blog

How we found the Karoo Art Hotel, Barrydale

Posted on Thu October 21, 2021.

How a chance visit during an offroad motorbike trip lead to a life changing purchase made on a whim

I arrived on a motorbike. Six months ago. I was with a group of friends on adventure bikes out of Capetown . Our focus being the Cederburg and the Tankwa Karoo. But on the way home we’d booked into a hotel I hadn’t heard of in a village I’d never visited; The Karoo Art Hotel, Barrydale. It was a Friday afternoon. As we drew up to the hotel my attention was drawn by a banner on the wall; ‘Hotel auction Wednesday’.

We never attended the auction but called Derek the Chef after it was over to find out what had happened.

"Nothing happened, no body came, no one called" came back the reply. It wasn't long before Sue and I plus Charlie, Zoe and Derek were sitting in the breakfast room. One thing lead to another and we're now the owners of The Karoo Art Hotel, Barrydale

 

Further Reading

HERE'S TO A STORY DRIVEN YEAR AT THE KAROO ART HOTEL Wed December 10, 2025

A working AGA in the dining room = an A for authenticity Bartro’s Christmas pudding’s out of the AGA = an A+. A ++’s for story driven year ahead

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FINALLY, AFTER A YEAR OF OUTSTANDING SERVICE THE STAFF GOT TO LET THEIR HAIR DOWN. Tue December 9, 2025

It’s been a year of great reviews for the hotel and, bar none, the staff get a nod for their genuine pleasantness and goodwill.

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Christmas lunch 2025 Fri November 21, 2025

The festive season is a wonderful time to be curating an art hotel.

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