Sonnekus Boutique Hotel & Bistro

Lovely building and rooms close to Kalk Bay , great sleep:

No key for the safe (I did ask) No tv channels unless you had an account with a streaming service . There was youtube for music but no information as to how to adjust the volume . So not ideal for overseas guests .

Cosy place by the sea side.

The road in front gets pretty busy

Location, bedding, and decor

The bath’s water runs very slow

Great location and an exceptional sea view room. The B&B is tastefully decorated and has good beach access.

The room was severely let down by a dated dingy bathroom with deteriorated fittings and paint.

Room without a window

Very well located for exploring Kalk Bay. Is situated on the main road but that was no issue for us. Fabulous room - bed, linen, bathroom. Helpful, friendly staff. Good breakfast.

This is our 3rd and last visit to Sonnekus. Unfortunately they have made some changes and it has lost its appeal. Really disappointed!

Rooms were missing the usual Snacks available to purchase, there were no usual complimentary Rusks or Biscuits with your Coffee or Tea, The kettle was broken, Towels were not the same large bath towel but small hand towels.

It was old fashioned and quaint

No Matress protectors, no blankets. Room was cold and bathroom was awful

Boutique layout, our 4 poster bedroom, with a fireplace, was lovely. Especially for the price ! Aside of that the service was very friendly and welcoming. And the breakfast area, also with a Fireplace, was very relaxing.

The room and hotel was quite cold. There was no alcohol. And our children’s room upstairs was much more basic than ours.

Great break fast, a little variety like fruit would be nice

Location was great - on the road and next to train so its not super quiet but i didnt find it intrusive.

Nothing

Loved the comfortable yet beautiful decor as well as the wonderful location and super friendly and helpful staff.

n/a

Overall good experience, location is excellent and literally next to the ocean. Staff was great, even lit a fire for me in the evenings in the room which was awesome! Will definitely be my stop for Kalk Bay moving forward.

Great location & view of St James beach!

The shower was VERY slippery...not for old people.

Had a great sleep, old building turned into boutique hotel. Open fire in lounge room was nice to come home too.

Roadside parking

tired and in need of maintenance. needs a good clean

Cute little property. Well styled and great details.

Given its proximity to the main road, it was very noisy with traffic.

Lovely location and very comfy bed!

A porter to carry luggage would have been good.

Juan-Claude was very accommodating and a pleasure to have as a host. When we arrived back in the evening, he seated us comfortably at the open fire and made sure we had everything we needed. Thanks very Much. Made our stay.

The breakfast was a bit disappointing. There was no fruit or yoghurt on the Breakfast table. When we asked about it, the lady wasn't very accommodating. A while later, she put one bowl of yoghurt on our table and said there was now fruit on the Breakfast table. This included whole oranges and apples, and all she did was add bananas. No cut-up fruit.

Location close to the sea

N/A

Everything!! It was amazing

Nothing

Comfortable room in a lovely old house. Loved the home baked cookies available! Situated on the main road, but really not noisy at all.

Perfect location, walking distance to Kalk Bay restaurants, view of the sea, friendly staff, beautiful decor. This was our second stay and we wouldn't stay anywhere else!

Our bathroom could do with an update - it doesn't match the standard of the rest of the room.

Breakfast was good. And location was scenic and beautiful.

The shower had no door and the wooden flooring in the bathroom always got wet.

Staff are all lovely, friendly and attentive. Breakfast was delicious. Location is in walking distance of restaurants, shops, beach, Dale Brook Tidal pool.

Great hotel with a very comfortable room

The decor and warm welcoming feeling of the house. Was if we were home away from home- Enjoyed the Cape South African feel to the architecture. Jean-Claude , our host was outstanding and Breakfast was fantastic. The sound of the sea at night was the best!

There is just nothing to improve!

Location was amazing , We had a room with a mountain view which was perfect , away from the traffic noise.

The hot water took a long time to heat up and the taps on the basin appeared to be loose

We have stayed here several times. Beautiful boutique experience, love the decor, location, safety, and service. 1920’s ambiance and glamour is still here in the 2020’s. Highly recommend. Many thoughtful touches wherever your eye falls. This place is a delight.

The view from the room was incredible of the ocean. Room was spacious.

Unfortunately we were there during an unplanned power cut (not loadshedding) which meant the power was off for 80% of our stay. The communication/offering around this could have been better as we actually had to ask for a candle ourselves to avoid the pitch black. In the check-in whatsapp there was a note about damaged or stolen property - which I understand, but we then were faced with ink stained sheets and took photos incase this was challenged when we checked out.

Did not stay for breakfast

Sonnekus is advertised as a Boutique Hotel and Bistro with four stars, and a thumbs up recommendation from Booking.com. This is absolute false advertising as the hotel is neither stylish nor upmarket, as a boutique hotel should be. It is advertised as "a luxurious retreat offering an unparalleled level of comfort and elegance with 10 exquisitely appointed guest rooms, each boasting inspiring mountain or ocean views and sumptuously furnished." This was the far from the truth. We would personally rate your venue as two star. It was filthy and tatty. We requested on site parking and there was no such thing. The general cleanliness was definitely not up to standard, and the furnishings were paltry. The lock on the bedroom door was faulty and the bathroom medieval, tiny, dirty, old and dark. The toilet seat was a home-made hinged wooden design, unhygienic and from a bygone era. The standard of furniture was poor . . . . . chairs were metal with vinyl upholstery. You will note that there are no photos of the bathrooms which were shockingly substandard. Your manager was aware that we did not stay as the room. We left the hotel shortly after viewing the room on Friday 14 March and told him that he could re-let the room, as we were not coming back. We were charged anyway and the booking reflects that we checked out the next morning Sat 15 March, which is not true. This venue is a rip off. We suspect that the earlier good reviews are still from an era when an elderly couple owned the establishment, and ran a superb show. It is now run by Ideas Cartel and it appears that the good reviews from the previous owners are being used to up their ratings. We have requested that Booking.com seek recompense for us in the amount of R1841.78. As long standing customers of booking.com, we do not expect misrepresentation of this sort.

Quaint boutique hotel