Pack your own project

Roughly a day’s drive from Cape Town, Knysna is a picturesque stop along South Africa’s revered Garden Route. Located in its outskirts is The School Farmstay, a rustic retreat for creatives of all types. “The idea is that you come with a particular project, whether it's art or a book or a piece of music,” explains owner Janet Meintjes. “You have your own space in a big, beautiful studio, you’re catered for three times a day and you have an abundance of natural beauty nearby.”

The School is ideally suited to its purpose, having once been a real school serving the children of local farm workers. “It stood empty for about 10 to 15 years, and then along I came and renovated it,” says Meintjes. Today, most of the guests she welcomes are weary city-dwellers looking for peace, seclusion and a remedy for creative block. “I know that often when you’re in the middle of a project, you start feeling a little stuck,” Meintjes says. “It helps to be in a new environment – a very healthy, lovely one at that.

“Here you can go and walk in an indigenous forest. You can hike, you can swim, you can surf – you can be completely absorbed in and by nature. Travelling these days is so much more than just popping in and having a look at a place. It’s really experiencing it.”