The Groot Karoo Rooms

The Baines room

The room features high end art prints of Thomas Baine's the Victorian artist who travelled with David Livingstone. Plus a mural by Mandy Brockbank. The Baines's room is a roomy space , it has a super large bathroom with a shower and victorian ball and claw bath off a small hallway that leads out to an expansive corner balcony with a view over vineyards an olive grove and the mountains beyond.

The Magnolia room

Right outside of this beautiful early morning room is a Magnolia tree. The Russian born South African artist Vladimir Tretchikoff (1913-2006) did a painting depicting a magnolia tree called 'the Zulu girl'. Seeking the rights to use 'the Zulu girl' for wallpaper we made the surprise discovery that the person who holds the rights to the reproduction of the world famous artists work his his grand daughter who lives in our nearby village of Suurbraak .

The Prynnsberg Room

The Prynnsberg Estate burns bright in the recent past of Karoo Art owners Rick and Sue Melvill. Rick and Sue bought Prynnsberg in 2000 as a restoration project. It has a fascinating history dating back to its creation in 1881 by the flamboyant Kimberly diamond magnate Charles Newberry who's passion was to create an English style country estate in the shadows of the Maluti mountains. Rick and Sue owned Prynnsberg for 20 years during which time they restored it to its former glory before selling out and moving to the Cape in 1999.

The Peacock room

The stripes in this room are hand painted by Barrydale Artist and colour specialist Shaun Daniel. . The peacock itself was done by Barrydale mural artist Quinton Faro. Durban based mural artist Mandy Brockbank did the work in the loo. The room has a balcony with a view of vineyards and the olive grove where the Barrydale peacocks roam free

The Ostrich room

The brightest bedroom in the building is named after the bird that by myth hides its head in the sand to create the illusion of darkness . The stripe work in this room was beautifully executed by Barrydale artist and color expert Sean Daniel while murals were done by Barrydale mural artist Quinton Faro. Along with a shower this super large room also has a victorian ball and claw bath.

The Barrydale room

The Barrydale room has Sean Daniels wonderful freehand work with the stripes; No rulers, no guidelines of any sort, just a great eye and a fantastically steady hand. The street scene is by Barrydale mural artist Quinton Faro. We asked him to do the mountain across the valley but he did the street. That's an artist for you. Then the beautiful paintings are by Barrydale artist Emily Fellows.

The Melvill & Moon room.

Melvill & Moon is a high end retro Safari based Melvill family owned brand that was founded by karoo Art owners Rick and Sue Melvill in 1998. Melvill & Moon produces canvas seat covers for the 4x4 industry plus high end canvas and leather luggage and Safari accessories plus campaign furniture . The Roorkhee campaign chairs that grace the front balcony are Melvill & Moon products , as are the luggage racks and daybeds plus also the Transvaal chairs in the dining room. There's a Melvill & Moon Safari Bar in the moviehouse and every morning 'Birrydale 364' the early morning swim club sets off with a Melvill & Moon coffee set. The motto of Melvill & Moon is 'Laudator Temporis Acti' (the romance of an age gone by). The pictures and general style of this room are designed to reflect that mood.

GVW's Room

GVW are the initials of a certain Graham Warsop. Many years ago when Rick started the award winning production house The Blue Moon Company Graham founded a small advertising agency just down the road on Oxford road , Johannesburg, by the name of The Jupiter Drawing Room. The two were introduced on a project for a mutual client, South African Airways, and it would be the start of a lifelong friendship. The Blue Moon Company did ok - in particular after Sue joined and introduced South African business to a new medium called Industrial Theatre - and Jupiters would go on to become one of South Africa's most celebrated ad agencies. Fittingly it was GVW who designed the logo for Rick and Sue's fledgling idea of a retro Safari company called Melvill & Moon. A number of the antiques dotted around the hotel were ferreted out of GVW's warehouse.

The Garden Suite (dog friendly)

The Garden Suite or 'honeymoon suite' is the room in the hotel that required the least work and delivered the least surprises in the renovation process. Very different from any of the other more old style rooms in the hotel the Garden suite boasts has its own lounge and working fireplace plus a private courtyard garden and gazebo. The Garden Suite is dog friendly.

The Dog Box (dog friendly)

Set out in the garden just off the ballroom is the beautiful Dog Box. It has its own kitchenette for self catering if need be. A feature of the room are a pair of historic teak windows which once served as office windows in Johannesburg's first 'proper' building The Corner House. There were in fact three Corner Houses , each giving way to the next during Johannesburg's early explosive growth phase subsequent to the discovery of Gold. These and other similar windows on the property came from the 2nd Corner House. The Dog Box has it's own secluded patio that is separated from the hotel back gardens by a low latt fence.

The Art of joy is alive and well in the Groot Karoo