Spacious and well-kitted for a couple (sleeps 2) on a palm tree-lined dune with the best view of Barra Beach, Mozambique. A spacious for a couple grass-thatch cottage built in wood and local materials with a lot of character, which is cute and comfortable, and opens up on a sizeable veranda, which is like a breezy, outdoor living room. Shaded by trees and the adjacent main house, and up on a dune
overlooking Barra Beach, Inhambane, Mozambique, the sea breezes ensure that even in mid-summer the cottage remains surprisingly cool and quite mosquito-free. A studio-style open plan kitchen with all the amenities, and main room with a comfortable double bed, mosquito net and fan, plus an ice machine (!). Lots of storage space. The veranda leads to a soft-sand space in front that has a large brick braai, perfect for star-gazing at night. The water is filtered and crystal tasty and drinkable. There is ample parking space in the back. This cottage is part of our dream home (built by Etna and Renaud Booysen - who is a lecturer in plumbing, gas and electrical at a Pretoria technikon) we have recently acquired and feel is too much of a hidden gem to have kept to ourselves. Please enjoy it - it is beautiful and spectacularly located. PLEASE NOTE THOUGH: One important request and house rule we make is that guests burn only coal fires, with the grid down, in the braai. Absolutely no wood fires! Both the cottage and house are made of wood, reeds and grass, and an ember can burn them down. We thank you for your understanding on this. NO SMOKING inside and be careful, of course, with any flammables. ALSO - please no BLEACH, DISINFECTANT or foreign objects in the toilets - it can kill the animals in the septic tank and cause a huge problem. WE THANK YOU! Along the Lighthouse Road (Rua da Farol), a 4x4 road turning off the main road just before you reach Barra and running along the back, top of the dune next to the beach to the old, famous lighthouse at the point, which is about a 600-metre walk away on the beach or road. There are restaurants to sample all along the the beach below. Local fish, prawn, calamari, clam and crayfish catches will be brought to your door to negotiate a sale, and Sarah can daily bring fresh fruit, vegetables and Portuguese rolls. It's about a 150m walk down a path to the beach. For those without 4x4s, there is a rental service in both Tofo (20km) away, and Barra. Contact us for pricing and details. There is also a local shuttle service (Ernesto, who has a Mahindra 4x4) either from the airport (about 1500 Mets / R300). For 2x4 drivers, Ernesto will also allow you to park at his house near the "Bar Babalaza" turnoff to Tofo, and shuttle you to our house/cottage. Contact us for his details. Given this, and the fact you can have seafood, fruit and vegetables delievered, and other necessities bought at the small local shops on the 4x4 road in walking distance a few hundred metres away, one can actually take the shuttle to the house and be self-sufficient there even if you aren't a 4x4 driver. Our minority shareholder Luis and his family will welcome you, briefly clean each day (1-2 hours in the morning, at an arranged time of your choice), give advice on Dhow trips to Pansy Island in the Inhambane estuary, where to shop, who to buy seafood from, and make your stay more comfortable. Should you require more than the quick daily clean-up, or want your clothes washed (which is not included), negotiate a further price with Luis or your cleaner (usually Beatriz or Veronika). So you are not caught unawares the electricity is on pay-metre, and you are asked to pay 800 Mets (about R160) on arrival to top it up, and again should it run out. Our Rates for 2021 are (*based on South African school holidays):
Dec/Jan Holidays - R750 per night
April Holidays - R700 per night
June/July Holidays - R600 per night
September/October Holidays - R450 per night
Low season - R380 per night
Find the dates for SA school holidays at this link:
https://www.gov.za/about-sa/school-calendar
The cottage is on the property of our beautiful, large, excellently-kitted, tasteful 9-sleeper, front-of-the-dune house, Casa Vista Celestial. Search for the page, or contact us by DM, WhatsApp or call on the details on this page to enquire for pricing and details. Just by the way, a family of squirrels may visit. They're extremely cute and harmless, but perhaps watch your fruit, vegetables and cashews!
