Guest houses abound in Oudtshoorn, making it rather difficult to set one aside from the bunch. Hlangana is a good bet, with expansive manicured lawns and a large, sparkling pool – an absolute must if you’re visiting in summer when temperatures tend to hover around the 40 degree Celsius mark.

Rooms all face out on to the lawn and each has a share of the patio that edges the hotel. Inside, the rooms are simply decorated, painted in warm shades of burnt orange, perhaps inspired by the arid Karoo landscape. As well as a basic cable TV package, rooms have DVD players and you can rent movies from reception, though there is a fee for the service.

As well as seating outside on the patio, each room has a small sitting area, for as hot as this region gets in summer, it gets equally cold in winter and siting out in the evenings becomes more of a survival skill than a relaxing end to the day. Wherever you sit, the Wi-Fi is free and the minibar is exceptionally well-priced – it’s rare I buy an in-room beer, but Hlangana’s rates are so reasonable I couldn’t resist. Bathrooms are large and come with large corner baths as well as showers and a toilet in its own cubicle.

Hlangana is en route to the Cango Caves in a quiet spot on the edge of town – not as central as some of Oudtshoorn’s guest houses, though some of the town’s best restaurants are within strolling distance if you don’t mind a bit of a walk. Breakfast comes with sparkling wine and offers the usual combo of cold buffet and hot plated breakfast, though there are sadly no ostrich egg omelettes on the menu…