THE BATES FAMILY

Fordoun (pronounced “For-Dun”) is named after a parish and village in county Kincardineshire, Scotland and Skye Bistro is named after the Isle of Skye, and Richard Bates’s daughter who was born just before the venue opened.

Fordoun was registered in the early 1850’s by Byrne settler William Taylor, after a successful land grant. The Midlands scenery reminded him of Fordoun back home in Scotland, hence the chosen farm name.  Most of the original settlers in the area came from Perthshire, Scotland hence the ancestral influence being quite apparent in the Midlands area.

Fordoun farm has been in the family since the late 1940’s when Lady Usher and Sir George purchased the former dairy farm for a winter home, away from the blustery English climate.  They came to appreciate the property and country so much that they decided to stay year around. Fordoun was their piece of England in Africa!

The Bates family have been living on the farm for the last twenty years and during this time modernised the dairy into one of South Africa’s most efficient dairies and quadrupled the size of the herd. Visionary owner, Jon Bates realised that to stay in dairy farming, they’d have to use economies of scale; so he started Fordoun’s transformation in 2005. The dairy and Fordoun’s old 1860’s homestead was converted into an award-winning boutique hotel and spa. Each hotel bedroom and suite is individually styled, highlighting the historical past while focusing on luxury, comfort and authenticity.

The relatively new addition to Fordoun is the self-catering farm village offering 11 fully equipped cottages, a chapel and a wedding/conference venue boasting panoramic views of the Drakensberg.

Being a family owned and managed destination; we are perched in a unique position of being able to offer our guests the very best of the KwaZulu Natal, Midlands and South Africa, where our focus is on service, intimacy and personal touch.