Rediscover Plettenberg Bay at Plett Arts Festival

From live jazz and wine tastings, to poetry and digital art exhibitions

Last updated: Monday, 29 September 2025

Every year, Plett comes alive with fine and digital art, jazz concerts, workshops and exhibitions in forests, galleries, restaurants, and even its beaches. The Plett Art Festival is 10 days of experiencing art in unexpected ways, while rediscovering everything that makes Plett magical, like its migrating whales and boutique wine tastings. 

It’s happening from Friday, 3 October to Sunday, 12 October. Here’s everything you need to know. 

The Plett Arts Festival is a beloved tradition. Image: Plett Arts Festival

EXPLORE 22 EXHIBITIONS 

This year, there’s 22 exhibitions to experience across Plett, and most of them are free. 

Perspectives at Barrington’s (Piesang Valley Road) will showcase Beezy Bailey and Stuart Dods’ “painting safaris”, with new works from Namibia and pieces from Plett, the Camdeboo, and Hogsback. 

There’ll be many must-see exhibits on Main Street too. Milkwood Gallery will host three first-time Plett exhibitors: Etienne Hubert’s coastal canvases, Linnea Pergola’s colourful silk works, and limited-edition prints by the late Jan Cilliers de Wet in Three New Artists. 

And PRONK at SELAH Fine Art Gallery will feature Semona Diener and Yolande Grobler-LoLa’s vibrant works, celebrating fearless creativity. Wild at The Junction will showcase five local artists exploring the natural world and inner landscapes through painting and collage, inviting reflection on identity and the wild in us.

There’ll be 22 art exhibitions to explore across Plett. Image: Plett Arts Festival

FOR ART NEWBIES & CONNOISSEURS

Firehart Earth Element by Debra de Villiers will merge digital art and AR, using 3D animation and motion graphics to explore digital media at Ivory Haus Coffee Terrace. And A Natural Mystic at Studio Lyon (F30 Airport Road) by Das Lyon invites you to see completed works and pieces in progress. His sculptures, paintings, and prints draw on wood and bronze to explore sacred nature, myth, and the subconscious. 

If you’re new to the art scene, a must-see is Life in Colour at Slops (Melvilles Corner, Main Street), where Christy Strever blends photography, painting, and alcohol ink art to create landscapes, portraits, and wave imagery full of movement and mood. 

And if you’re curious to discover something new, Pigment of Imagination will have a vibrant mix of paintings, prints, and mixed-media works from local and international artists, featuring landscapes, portraits, and playful abstract pieces at Dallas Smith Gallery (Main Street).

Most of the exhibitions are free. Image: Plett Arts Festival

TWO MUST-TRY EXPERIENCES   

The festival will have so many events too, and according to the organisers, these are two you shouldn’t miss: 

The Twilight Meander (Friday, 3 October)

The Plett Arts Festival starts at 5pm with Twilight Meander along Main Street. It’s an evening of people dressing up, music drifting from every corner, and art filling the sidewalks. You can stop to chat with artists, browse restaurants lined with new artwork, or stumble upon a tucked-away performance with a glass of wine in hand. 

Land Art Route (daily)

Land Art is all about creating art directly in nature, using the landscape itself. These pieces, made from wood, stones, sand, leaves, and fynbos, carry deep meaning or invite reflection, but they’re not meant to last forever. The result is art that leaves no trace, just an experience of creativity and connection with nature.

From Friday, 3 October to Tuesday, 7 October, land artists will be creating works on Plett’s beaches and estuaries before moving to Cairnbrogie from Wednesday, 8 October to Sunday, 12 October. You’re welcome to stop by on any of these days to see the artists in action and watch the installations take shape.

Land Art is about creating art in nature. Image: Plett Arts Festival

SO MANY WORKSHOPS & TALKS 

There are 17 workshops for the whole family to try. 

Kids will love the cyanotype printing workshop, where they can use sunlight, leaves and flowers to make their own blue-and-white prints to take home. Or they can join a texture hunt and stamp-making workshop, roaming the streets of Plett to collect textures and turn them into unique clay stamps. 

Parents have plenty of options too; there’s a creative breath workshop where mindful breathing is paired with continuous line drawing to ease stress, and Walking Backwards under the Full Moon, a meditative group walk that turns the shoreline into a collaborative artwork. 

And there are insightful art talks. “The Power of Art” includes a meal, glass of bubbly and a talk with Michele Bestbier on both the value of art in the market and its impact on the soul. Plus “A Call to Oneness” with Plett Tourism and IRSKSAAA will explore on unity, knowledge sharing, and nation-building. 

There are workshops for the whole family to experience. Image: Plett Arts Festival

LIVE MUSIC, CRAFT BEER, GAMES 

Aside from all the exhibitions, workshops, and talks, there are a bunch of events. Like Barrington’s Oktoberfest (Saturday, 11 October), where you’ll find craft beer, carnival games, and live music. 

The Story of Eva Cassidy (Friday, 3 October) brings the legendary singer to life with a live trio performing jazz, blues, and gospel hits in an award-winning tribute show. And on Sunday afternoon (12 October), Jazz at The Palms will ease you into the sunset with smooth jazz.

At the Bronze Fields Sessions (Sunday, 5 October), you can wander through a sculpture garden with a glass of bubbly, watch molten bronze poured in a barn display, and end the afternoon with a forest concert by Wendy Oldfield and Keenan. 

Silk and Soul (Wednesday, 8 October) will bring vocalist Auriol Hays to Plett for one night only, celebrating the timeless Nina Simone. Plus, Afterglow on Main (Friday, 3 October and Saturday, 11 October) will have deep house grooves to Eleven Plett from sunset to midnight, with top local DJs. This event is free for all visitors.

The festival will be buzzing with live music, and some events are free.  Image: Plett Arts Festival 

REDISCOVER PLETTENBERG BAY  

Spring in Plett is a season that shows off in every way, and when you visit the arts festival, you can experience its magic without the December crowds. 

Southern rights, humpbacks and Bryde’s whales migrate along the coastline, and you can easily spot them from beaches, Robberg Nature Reserve or even at Lookout Point. The Plett Winelands will also be buzzing with boutique tastings and farm-to-table dishes alongside restaurants that celebrate fresh seafood.

What makes the Plett Arts Festival special is how close everything feels. Within minutes, you can walk between exhibitions or step into cafés like Eleven On Main and Barringtons, which become galleries. Plus, many events are free, making it easy to spend the day moving between art without the rush of the city.

There’s so much to rediscover and fall in love with in Plett. Image: Plett Arts Festival

WHERE TO STAY 

You’ll find everything from budget-friendly hostels and caravan parks to boutique hotels and luxury stays in Plett. 

Kwendalo’s Manor House offers six spacious suites, most of them self-catering, and each is named after a local bird. There’s also a garden, terrace, and complimentary wifi at Kwendalo’s dreamy holistic wellness farm. 

For something closer to the beach, The Old Rectory Hotel & Spa is charming and modern with 18 suites, a spa, and easy access to Plett’s beaches, forests, and the Robberg Nature Reserve. See more on The Old Rectory Hotel & Spa’s website.

PLETT ARTS FESTIVAL TICKETS

Plett Arts Festival is happening: Friday, 3 October to Sunday, 12 October 2025
Find it: Melville’s Corner, Main Street, Plettenberg Bay
Book: Via Plett Arts Festival’s website
Contact on: info@pletttourism.com, @plettartsfestival, Plett Arts Festival’s Facebook page

By Saarah Gierdien

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MORE ART & THINGS TO DO

See our guide for 7+ things to do this weekend. 

Here’s our list of unique art galleries in Cape Town. 

Plus 18 of the most curious Cape Town museums.

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