Matkovich fairways along the Bot River Lagoon, ninety minutes from Cape Town.
Arabella sits on the R44 outside Kleinmond, about 90 minutes’ drive from central Cape Town, in the Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve. Peter Matkovich routed it around the edge of the Bot River Lagoon, with the Kogelberg mountains and their cover of fynbos on the other side. The course belongs to the Arabella Hotel, Golf & Spa, run by Southern Sun, and the hotel promotes it as number five in Golf Digest’s South Africa ranking. It is the obvious golf stop if you are heading east along the coast towards Hermanus and its whale-watching cliffs.
Visitors book through the online tee sheet on the Arabella golf page, choosing 9 or 18 holes, the number of players and either a non-affiliated or a SAGA-affiliated player type. The visitor player types on that sheet show times only a few weeks ahead (the system is set to 30 days). Southern Sun’s terms allow bookings up to a year ahead through the golf office, but anything made more than two weeks out is treated as tentative and becomes confirmed 14 days before the date; the club may offer another time before then. Full prepayment secures the booking. If you cancel within 48 hours of the confirmed date, or simply do not turn up, you pay the full amount. The golf team answers on +27 28 284 0000, and a separate form pairs a hotel room with a tee time.
Non-affiliated visitor, 18 holes, the same on weekday and Saturday dates in the club’s online booking for November 2026. SAGA-affiliated golfers pay R1,650. A shared cart adds R375 per player. Paid in full when you book.
| Non-affiliated visitor, 18 holes | R2,365 |
|---|---|
| Non-affiliated visitor, 9 holes | R1,350 |
| SAGA-affiliated visitor, 18 holes | R1,650 |
| Shared cart, per player (18 holes) | R375 |
Matkovich built Arabella on stony farmland in the late 1990s, and it hosted the Nelson Mandela Invitational from 2000 to 2006. It is a par 72 that Top 100 Golf Courses lists at 6,381 metres. Matkovich told Top 100 Golf Courses that you could not even walk beside the lagoon before invasive trees were felled, and the blue crane on the club’s emblem is one of the birds the wetland draws. The club and reviewers single out the holes on the water. The 8th is a par five whose green appears to be cut into the lagoon itself. The 17th and 18th run beside it on the way home, and the closing hole carries a long ribbon of bunker down the lagoon side; Top 100 Golf Courses notes that it is there to protect the lagoon’s ecosystem. Southern Sun describes the 18th as fabled and points to sand and water hazards throughout.
Every golfer must register at the pro shop before playing, and the club’s June 2026 guest notice recommends arriving at least 30 minutes before your time. Arabella plays in all weather unless the club closes the course, and its notice is blunt: if you choose not to play while the course is open, it counts as a cancellation. Southern Sun’s booking terms base pace of play on 4 hours 20 minutes for a four-ball. The dress note encourages collared shirts, tailored shorts or trousers and golf shoes. There is a driving range, chipping and putting greens, locker rooms and showers, so you can arrive from Cape Town and change on site.
Fly into Cape Town International (CPT). The usual route runs along the N2 over Sir Lowry’s Pass to Bot River, then south towards Kleinmond and the R44; Southern Sun puts the hotel about 90 minutes from central Cape Town. The slower coastal road through Gordon’s Bay and Betty’s Bay joins the same R44 and is worth taking once in daylight.
Nearby: 1. De Zalze Golf Club (47 km) · 2. Pearl Valley Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course (57 km) · 3. Royal Cape Golf Club (68 km) · 4. Steenberg Golf Club (71 km) · Compare all Cape Town & the Winelands tee times
The Arabella Hotel, Golf & Spa stands above the course on the estate and offers deluxe rooms, premium rooms and suites; its golf enquiry form lets you request a tee time with the room. Kleinmond, a few minutes away, is a small holiday town with self-catering houses and guesthouses. Hermanus, roughly half an hour further east, has the widest choice of hotels on this stretch of coast and suits a group that wants restaurants within walking distance after golf.
Hermanus Golf Club is the closest second round and keeps you on the same coast. If you are basing yourself in Cape Town, Arabella makes a full day out from the city, with Royal Cape or Steenberg on the days either side. Off the course, the African penguin colony at Stony Point in Betty’s Bay is on the coastal road back to Cape Town, and Hermanus is known for southern right whales, which are often seen close to the shore from the cliff path between about June and November.
These packages have a confirmed round at Arabella Golf Club in the itinerary, with the other courses, nights and hotels listed so you can compare like with like.
10 nights, 5 rounds plus safari
Rounds: Steenberg · Royal Cape · Arabella · Pearl Valley · Leopard Creek
Stay: Queen Victoria Hotel, Arabella Hotel & Spa, Lanzerac Wine Estate and Jock Safari Lodge
Cape Town, Hermanus and the Winelands before Kruger: five rounds, transfers included, and daily game drives at Jock Safari Lodge.
Prices are Golfbreaks’ published per-person guide prices in US dollars, checked November 2026; your quote depends on dates and group size. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. How we work
The Overberg coast has a winter-rainfall climate, so the driest golf runs from about October to April. Summer brings the strong south-easterly wind. Arabella closes for hollow tining twice a year: 3–7 May and 27 September–1 October in 2027, and 24–28 April and 18–22 September in 2028. Opening hours are 07h00 to 18h00 in winter and 06h00 to 19h00 in summer.
Explore golf by monthSouthern Sun puts the hotel and course about 90 minutes from central Cape Town. Most drivers take the N2 over Sir Lowry’s Pass and turn onto the R44 towards Kleinmond. The coastal route via Gordon’s Bay and Betty’s Bay is longer but passes the Stony Point penguin colony.
Arabella plays in all weather unless the club decides the course is unsafe or unplayable. If the course is open and your group decides not to play, the club treats it as a cancellation, and inside 48 hours of the confirmed date that means a 100% charge.
The course closes for hollow tining twice a year. The published dates are 3–7 May and 27 September to 1 October 2027, then 24–28 April and 18–22 September 2028. Avoid those weeks if Arabella is the reason for your trip.
The par-five 8th, with a green set against the Bot River Lagoon, and the closing 17th and 18th are the holes most often described as lagoon holes. The 18th has a long bunker running along the water’s edge.
Last checked 10 November 2026. This is an independent planning guide, not a first-hand review or a booking service. Check live availability, access, fees and travel details with the operator before booking. Airport suggestions are starting points for route planning.
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