Umhlali: A Guide to the Old Sugar Village Behind Salt Rock

Umhlali was the main town of this district when Ballito was still sugar cane. It was settled around 1850, it had the magistrate, the bank, the post office and the hotel where the farmers met, and its school has been teaching since 1918. Today it is a small inland village where the R102 meets Salt Rock Road, a few kilometres from the sea and from the estates that have grown up along it.

It has no beach. Much of what people come for now sits on its edges: a farm centre on Old Main Road, a weekend market up the R102 and a country club to the south.

A little history

The North Coast Courier's history of the village gives two explanations for the name. One is that it is the Zulu name for the monkey orange tree that grows along the river. The other is that it means the place of waiting, where travellers waited to cross.

The village was settled around 1850 by Byrne settlers from Britain, and for the next few decades it was the seat of the magistrate and the main town of the district. Its main road once held a bank, a post office, a supermarket, a farmers' co-op and the Lali Hotel. Most of those old shops have closed, and the main road is being redeveloped.

Umhlali Preparatory School opened on 11 February 1918 and has grown to more than 1,000 pupils. Burnedale has been a family farm since the 1800s.

Where to eat and drink

Burnedale Farm Centre

A family farm on Old Main Road, open daily from 08:30 to 16:00. Burnedale Bistro, the coffee bistro and restaurant, is open seven days a week. Abbiocco Italian Restaurant and Deli makes its pasta by hand and serves lunch from Wednesday to Sunday and dinner on Fridays. It is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Caffe Giordano and Fratte, for Italian street food, are at the farm centre too.

Old Main Road, Umhlali

Plato Coffee

The coffee stop at Sugar Village, on Old Main Road.

Ohana at Umhlali Country Club

The club restaurant. Note that the club is on Compensation Road, well south of the village itself.

Things to do

Ballito Farmers Market

Despite the name, the market is here, on the R102 between Umhlali and Shakaskraal, about 500 metres past the Umhlali Police Station and over the railway line. It runs on Saturdays, Sundays and selected public holidays from 08:00 to 14:00, with more than 150 traders and two play areas for children. Entry is free and the market is pet friendly.

R102, between Umhlali and Shakaskraal

Umhlali Country Club

Founded in 1961, with an 18-hole course designed by Peter Matkovich, a driving range, five tennis courts, some of them floodlit, squash and two bowling greens. Visitors are welcome.

Compensation Road

Burnedale Farm

Beyond the food there is a small animal farm and a play area, with pottery, candle making and sand art for children, and a handful of boutique shops.

Padel

Station Padel is at Sugar Village.

Shops

Sugar Village on Old Main Road is the practical centre, with a medical centre, a pathology lab, salons, a school uniform shop, a sweet shop and a gym.

Good to know

• Umhlali mostly keeps daytime hours. Burnedale closes at 16:00 and the market at 14:00. Abbiocco opens for dinner on Fridays, and the country club restaurant trades into the evening.
• The market entrance crosses a working railway line. Take it slowly.
• The nearest beach is Salt Rock Main Beach, a few minutes east.

Looking for more? Start with things to do in Ballito.