Babylonstoren is a stay in Simondium, Cape Winelands, South Africa. This page records what the property publishes about its building, across the eight pathways this index reviews.
Photography: Babylonstoren's published media
The recordSpecified · read 15 Aug 2026
Current as of
15 Aug 2026
Last reviewed
15 Aug 2026
Coverage
Documented across 8 of 8 pathways.
Strongest evidence
Specified
Sources
Each entry shows its source and the date we read it.
Practical details
Type
Stay
Operator
Private (Karen Roos and Koos Bekker)
Rooms
Farm hotel: Garden Cottages, Fynbos Cottages, Farmhouse suites, the Manor House and the Fynbos Family House
Stage
Operating
Listing details from Google Places, read 6 Aug 2026.
A farm hotel at Simondium in the Cape Winelands of South Africa, privately owned by Karen Roos and Koos Bekker, with rooms across the Garden Cottages, Fynbos Cottages, Farmhouse suites, the Manor House and the Fynbos Family House.
A closer look at Babylonstoren
A farm hotel at Simondium in the Cape Winelands of South Africa, privately owned by Karen Roos and Koos Bekker, with rooms across the Garden Cottages, Fynbos Cottages, Farmhouse suites, the Manor House and the Fynbos Family House. The Garden Cottages are converted farm buildings with thick whitewashed walls and gables, set beside a five hectare cultivated fruit and vegetable garden. That garden was laid out from 2007 by the French architect Patrice Taravella, and the property publishes that every one of its more than 300 plant varieties is edible or medicinal. The Cape Dutch farmstead is published by its restoration contractor as under continuous conservation-led restoration, with Malherbe and Rust Architects named as conservation architects. Three pathways, Air Ecology, EMF Harmony and Sound and Sensory Ecology, have nothing published.
The gardenTaravella's reference was his reconstruction of a medieval cloistered garden at Prieuré Notre Dame d'Orsan.…
Taravella's reference was his reconstruction of a medieval cloistered garden at Prieuré Notre Dame d'Orsan. Gravity feeds water from a stream by rills into the garden, through ponds planted with edible lotus, nymphaea lilies and waterblommetjies. Design press from 2011 describes a glass box set into one wall of each suite holding the dining and cooking area, looking over the garden or into the trees.
What this property publishes, area by area
All eight areas, for every record. Each row opens to what was published, where we read it and when.
Publishing something is not the same as it being good. Every line below was read and placed by a person, not scored by a machine. What each rung means
Named means the property published something you can look up: a brand, a product or a number. Stated means it says so with nothing behind it. Not published means we looked and found nothing, which is a gap in our reading and not an answer about the building.
Air EcologyNo evidence recordedNothing found yet
The air in a closed room is what you breathe for eight hours. What decides it is the filter grade, the fresh air rate, and whether damp has ever been looked for.
We found nothing published on this. That is a gap in what we could read, not a finding about the building.
What to ask them
What filter grade is fitted to guest room air handling, for example MERV 13 or HEPA H13?
What is the fresh air supply rate per person in a guest room?
Are carbon dioxide, particulate or volatile organic compound levels measured, and are the readings published?
Is there a mould inspection and remediation protocol, and when was it last run?
Are there gas cooktops, fireplaces or other combustion sources inside guest rooms?
Water Integrity2 source notesPublished or supplied
You drink it, cook with it and stand under it. What is in it depends on the source and on what, if anything, filters it, and both are things a property can name.
The property states on its sustainability page that no municipal water is used and that it relies exclusively on its own borehole source, in a passage set under a heading about the garden and about irrigation consumption. No treatment train, filtration specification, laboratory panel or sampling date accompanies it.
No municipal water is used, and we rely exclusively – and conservatively – on our borehole source.
A 2011 design article captions one of the property's own photographs as a saltwater pool. The caption is written as an image credit rather than as a specification, and no sanitation method, chemistry or treatment is described for the swimming pool or for the spa vitality pools.
What is the water source, and what treatment is applied before it reaches a guest room?
Is there a published contaminant test panel, and which laboratory ran it?
Is shower and bath water filtered, and to what specification?
How are pools and spas sanitised, and is the chemistry published?
How is drinking water delivered, and is it treated on site?
Light Rhythm1 source notePublished or supplied
Light is what tells a body the time of day. The part a building controls is what its fittings emit and when, which a named product or a colour temperature makes checkable.
The property states that a glass cube has been added to the Cape Dutch cottages to house the kitchen area, which is the only published description of glazing in the accommodation. No glazing specification, lighting specification, colour temperature or blackout provision is published.
Into this pristine Cape Dutch style, a contemporary glass cube has been seamlessly added to house a kitchen area.
What to ask them
Is guest room lighting tunable or circadian, and what specification is published?
What colour temperatures are used in the evening, and are fixtures flicker free?
Do sleeping areas have full blackout, and is it specified?
What daylight access does a typical room have?
Is exterior lighting shielded or reduced overnight?
EMF HarmonyNo evidence recordedNothing found yet
Wiring, routers and devices put electromagnetic fields in a room. What a building decides is where they sit relative to the bed, and whether anyone has measured it.
We found nothing published on this. That is a gap in what we could read, not a finding about the building.
What to ask them
Are guest rooms wired for data, or is access wireless only?
Where are wireless access points and smart meters placed relative to the bed?
Have field levels been measured in sleeping areas, and by whom?
Can a guest have wireless disabled in their room on request?
Is any shielded cabling or shielding material specified in the build?
Materials and Textiles3 source notesPublished or supplied
The things you sleep on and touch: the mattress, the sheets, the pillows, and the paints, glues and finishes around them. A named fabric, a fibre content or a certification can be looked up. A structural palette tells you about the building, not about the bed.
The property names the furniture suppliers used in the Garden Cottage interiors as Kartell, Magis, Philippe Starck and the Bouroullec brothers, spelled Bourellec Bros on the page. No fibre content, finish, adhesive or emission standard is published for any of them.
The interiors take on an altogether contemporary feel when paired with the modern lines of furniture by international design brands such as Kartell, Magis, Philippe Starck and the Bourellec Bros.
Design press published in November 2011 reports oak plank flooring in the guest suite interiors, naming the timber species. No finish, sealant, adhesive or emission standard is named alongside it, and the account describes the accommodation as it stood in 2011.
Large planks of oak wood flooring give a rustic feel to the calming and serene interiors, while accent pieces of antique furniture provide for an old-fashioned and traditional feel.
A review of a stay, published by The Luxury Editor and referring to wine vintages of 2014 and 2015, names L'Occitane as the toiletries provided in the guest cottage bathroom. No formulation, ingredient list or certification is published.
What are the mattresses made of, and are they treated with flame retardants?
What is the fibre content of the linen, and is it certified, for example to GOTS or OEKO TEX?
Which paints, adhesives and sealants were specified, and are they low emission?
What cleaning and laundry products are used, and is the list published?
Are there named low emission certifications on the flooring or joinery?
Food and Kitchen6 source notesPublished or supplied
What a kitchen cooks with and where it buys are the parts of a stay you take inside you. A named oil, a named supplier or a published share is checkable; “healthy” is not.
The property publishes that its garden holds more than 300 varieties of plants, all of them edible or medicinal, and that the fruit and vegetables are harvested year round for two of its restaurants. The count is of varieties grown, not of the share of kitchen supply.
Every one of the more than 300 varieties of plants in the garden is edible or has medicinal value. The fruit and vegetables from the garden are harvested all year round for use in two farm-to-fork restaurants.
The property published a description of the daily method by which garden produce reaches the menu, stating that a waiter harvests with the garden staff each morning and that what is picked goes onto the menus at Babel and the Tearoom. The post dates from May 2012.
Every morning one of our waiters goes out with the garden staff to harvest the fresh produce of the day, and the food they pick is included in our menus, both at Babel restaurant, as well as at the Tearoom.
The property names the cattle breed behind its Carnivore Evening menu at the Old Bakery as its own grass fed Chianina herd. No herd size, feed record or third party verification is published.
Centred around our own grass-fed Chianina herd, this five-course feast showcases exceptional cuts cooked over glowing coals and served in generous succession.
The property states that the mozzarella and charcuterie served at the Old Bakery are made from the farm's own water buffalo and that the antipasti and salads come from its gardens.
The four-course set menu begins with abundant antipasti and salads from our gardens, followed by a selection of delicious traditional Tuscan dishes and wood-fired pizzas with airy, crisp bases topped with the farm's water buffalo mozzarella, charcuterie and fresh seasonal produce.
The property publishes its olive oil process as growing, harvesting and cold pressing on the farm under a named specialist, Petrus van Eeden, and names Frantoio as the cultivar behind its single varietal oil. No acidity figure, laboratory analysis or press date is published.
Made from several olive varietals that are grown in the sun and soil on the slopes of the Simonsberg, the entire process takes place under the expert care of our olive oils specialist, Petrus van Eeden and his team: from harvesting to cold-pressing to decanting into our uniquely designed tins.
The property publishes that the bread baked at Soetmelksvlei, its day visit farm reached by a shuttle from Babylonstoren, is made from flour milled at that site's own water mill and baked in a wood oven. The post dates from December 2024 and describes Soetmelksvlei rather than the hotel kitchens.
Guests touring the Farmhouse are welcomed into the kitchen by Louise Johannes and Jacky Matthews, who stoke the wood oven to bake loaves from flour milled in Soetmelksvlei’s own water mill.
What to ask them
What share of produce is grown on site or sourced locally, and is it verified?
Which cooking oils are used, and is the policy published?
What cookware is used in the kitchen?
Is kitchen and ice water filtered, and to what specification?
Is there a published position on additives, preservatives or allergens?
Biophilic and Healing Design5 source notesPublished or supplied
Daylight, planting, outlook and the way a room meets the outside are what make a place feel the way it does. Named design decisions can be checked; atmosphere cannot.
The property publishes the authorship and intent of its garden layout, naming French architect Patrice Taravella, commissioned in 2007, and citing his reconstruction of a medieval cloistered garden at Prieure Notre Dame d'Orsan as the reference.
In 2007, owner Karen Roos commissioned French architect Patrice Taravella to plan the layout of the garden.
The property publishes the water movement through the garden as gravity fed from a stream by rills into ponds, and names the plants growing in those ponds as edible lotus, nymphaea lilies and waterblommetjies.
Gravity feeds water from a stream by rills into the garden, flowing through ponds planted with edible lotus, nymphaea lilies and waterblommetjies.
A heritage restoration contractor publishes that its work at Babylonstoren is ongoing and that the Cape Dutch farmstead complex has been under continuous conservation led restoration, and names Malherbe and Rust Architects as the conservation architects it works with at the property.
The firm’s portfolio includes ongoing work at Babylonstoren, the celebrated heritage wine farm near Paarl, where the Cape Dutch farmstead complex has been the subject of continuous conservation-led restoration and new construction since JDV’s appointment
Design press published in November 2011 reports that a glass box set into one wall of each suite holds the dining and cooking area and looks out over the garden or into the trees. No dimension, glazing specification or design brief is published with it.
Slotted into one wall of each suite, a spacious glass box contains a dining and cooking area, with extraordinary views are offered over the garden or into the trees.
The property states that the Garden Cottages are converted farm buildings sited next to the cultivated fruit and vegetable garden. The same sentence records a fireplace in each cottage, which is noted under Air Ecology rather than counted here.
Set adjacent to a 5 hectare cultivated fruit and vegetable garden, the cottages are characterised by thick whitewashed walls, elegant gables and hearty fireplaces that emulate an authentic farm stay experience.
What to ask them
Does every guest room have direct outdoor access or an operable opening?
What is the published design intent behind the natural materials used?
What are the typical ceiling heights and room volumes?
Was the landscape designed with native planting, and is the palette published?
Sound and Sensory EcologyNo evidence recordedNothing found yet
What you can hear at three in the morning decides whether you slept. Insulation, plant and machinery, and what sits next door are what decide it.
We found nothing published on this. That is a gap in what we could read, not a finding about the building.
What to ask them
What is the measured background noise level in a guest room at night?
What acoustic separation is specified between adjoining keys?
How loud is the guest room air conditioning at its lowest setting?
Is fragrance diffused into guest rooms or public areas, and can it be declined?
Not everything is published, and an empty row is a gap in what we could read rather than a fault in the building. If one of these matters to you, ask the property before you book. Send us something that updates this record
Feature sources and certification records show their own scope and dates.
Compare what each stay offers, how it was checked and what still needs confirming. Assessment labels describe the review, not an overall quality rating.
A low score means a property has not published information. It does not mean the property is unsafe, unhealthy or poorly run.
These scores describe disclosure, not property quality. Listings are free, and any commercial relationship is disclosed.
Regional data is context about the location. It does not establish conditions inside a room.
Safely managed drinking water, South Africa · 2024The World Health Organization reports 68 per cent of the population nationally, 76 per cent in urban areas, 51 per cent in rural areas using a safely managed drinking water service. This describes the country, not this property, and says nothing about what reaches a guest room here. It is recorded because it is the background against which a property's own treatment is worth publishing.World Health Organization
Ambient PM2.5 and PM10 near Simondium, Cape Winelands, South Africa · 30 days to 2026-08-17Modelled ambient air over this location averaged 32.8 micrograms per cubic metre of PM2.5 and 35.1 of PM10 across the 720 hours to 2026-08-17, peaking at 149.0 PM2.5. The World Health Organization annual guideline for PM2.5 is 5. This is the outdoor air over the area, modelled rather than measured on site, and it is not a reading of the air inside any room.Open-Meteo, from CAMS
