Kestell

The tiny village of Kestell in the Eastern Free State is a quintessential example of the the character of the area. We cannot confirm reports of anything bigger, but there is a hotel, a pub, a garage, a bank, two ATM’s, a post office, a few small shops, some houses and locals who will welcome you like long lost friends.

As always in the Free State, a pretty sandstone church dominates, but Kestell’s church is bigger than most. Designed by the same architect who designed the Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria, Gerard Leendert Pieter Moerdijk, Kestell’s church tends to the magnificent considering the size of the village.

According to Kestell’s own website, everything is in walking distance, most roads are paved, and there are no traffic lights to speak of. Add to that Kestell’s location, and you have a tiny piece of heaven.

Kestell is located midway between Harrismith and Bethlehem on the N5, at the foot of the Rooiberge (Red Mountains) in the Maluti Mountains foothills, just north of the Golden Gate Highlands National Park, and about an hour’s drive from Clarens. The area is part of the ‘Free State Maize Triangle’, but it is the picturesque north-eastern belt of golden fields, hugging the mountain foothills, often looking up to early morning mist and subject to often snowy winter conditions.

Kestell offers an off-the-beaten-track base for people wanting to do the Sentinel Hiking Trail just past Phuthaditjhaba, visit the Golden Gate Highlands National Park and the Basotho Cultural Village or doing the Rhebok Hiking Trail in GGHNP.

The unique route from Kestell to the Golden Gate Park is also a particularly picturesque road that takes you to the north entrance to the Park. Ask a local.

Getting there: Kestell lies at the juncture of the R57 and the N5, between Bethlehem and Harrismith.