Visiting Ronnie's Sex Shop: South Africa's Weirdest Roadside Attraction (It's Not What You Think, Mom)

Now, if my mom’s friends are reading this and silently judging me for my desire to visit a sex shop, you can stop. Ronnie's Sex Shop isn’t a sex shop at all. Despite the name, it’s actually just a quirky roadside pub on Route 62 and possibly South Africa's most famous roadside attraction. It has become an iconic stop for travellers exploring the Klein Karoo.

As someone with a deep, spiritual appreciation for anything weird, Ronnie’s has been on my bucket list for years. I have driven past it on hosted media trips (where I had no control over the itinerary) many times. But on my latest Karoo adventure, I finally got to pull over, grab a drink, and make my own contribution to the chaos.

How a Padstal Became a "Sex Shop": The Backstory

The story goes that Ronnie bought the shop 29 years ago with the plan to create a padstal. For my international readers or those who don’t road trip very much, a padstal is a roadside farm shop that sells mostly homemade goods and products from nearby farms. 

When the signage for what was originally supposed to be ‘Ronnie’s Shop’ was vandalised by his friends, it inadvertently drew many curious passersby and the success of this accidental marketing move worked wonders. He turned it into a pub instead. (Proof that sometimes the best marketing strategy is having terrible friends.)

Is it just a graffiti-covered hole-in-the-wall with underwear suspended from the ceiling? Yes, but its notoriety makes it worthy of a stop and a chuckle. 

Of course, this is me, and if I was finally going to stop here, it was going to be for more than a chuckle… 

Oh yeah, and there's chess!

First Impressions of the Famous Roadside Pub

The website for Ronnie’s Sex Shop is not the most elaborate. I did a Google search and looked at images of the place, but it’s not the most well-documented roadside attraction despite being one of the most famous.   

Here are some of the things that I didn’t expect:

• I didn’t realise the bathrooms were as intensely vandalised as they are. They are covered in koki/permanent marker. 

• I assumed that they would have a koki/permanent marker so you could contribute to the graffiti that I did know they had.

• I didn’t realise that there were so many different ways to leave your mark on this place. I should have anticipated that there would be a space for some good old-fashioned vinyl sticker vandalism but forgot my Rodrigo stickers at home (except for one little one).

• And I didn’t expect to meet the legend that is Ronnie himself! I just assumed he would have someone else running his shop for him. 

Leaving My Mark on Ronnie's

I knew I was going to have to leave my mark on Ronnie’s Sex Shop and I thought the only way to do this was to leave a bra behind. Finding a good bra that fits right and supports you in all the right places is a rare and precious thing, so I wasn’t going to part with anything decent. 

In anticipation of my trip, I ended up at a U-Turn and managed to purchase a red bra (I couldn’t find a pink one in my budget) for just R20. (By the way, support U-Turn, they do good work.) 

I thought about wearing it on the outside of my clothing for the entire duration of the journey there, but there are a lot of conservative religious people in this part of the world, and I wouldn’t want to offend anyone. (My road trip companion Bronwyn is immune to embarrassment, so she would not have cared.)  

Instead, I kept the bra in my car and subtly put it on as we arrived in the parking lot. And then I subtly took it off in the bathroom section. (Okay, putting on and taking off my wetsuit may have been less complicated.) What was the point of wearing it at all? I don’t really know, it just felt like the right thing to do. 

As I stated, I expected there to be some permanent markers around. There were not. But someone lent me a ballpoint pen to autograph my bra and hang it from the ceiling with the one tiny Sharonicles sticker I had on me. … and with the assistance of a dirty old man who seems way more likely to own a sex shop than a padstal. 

Always up for crafts

Meeting the Legend that is Ronnie of Ronnie's Sex Shop

I was quite surprised when we walked in and Ronnie was sitting there manning the bar himself. He very kindly helped me climb up on a barstool to attach the bra to the ceiling. Did his hand end up on my butt? Yes, yes it did. 

It was still something of an honour to meet the man (and for him to "meet” me too, it seems). He is now 77, the shop is 29. He retired at 39, and started Ronnie’s Sex Shop at 47, expecting the joke to last six months, but all these years later, he is still here, and the shop is still going strong. But he has had enough. “I want to be able to just go to a braai”, he said. So Ronnie’s Sex Shop is for sale. He’s not in a rush to sell it though, it seems he is waiting for the right price. 

I’m sure this graffiti-covered dive bar will continue to be a national landmark, but I'm not sure it will quite be the same without the legend that is Ronnie sitting there on the other side of the bar or “lending a hand” while you're trying to suspend your charity store R20 bra from the ceiling.

He kindly agreed to pose for a pic with me and opted to say “sex” instead of “cheese”, as he would. Try not to be jealous. 

Tips for Your Visit to Ronnie's Sex Shop

Be sure to stop here when you next road trip the R62 and when you do, do it properly. You can't not donate something to the decor. Well, you can but that's all part of the fun.

Things that people donate: 

• Their names tagged to the bar or bathroom
• T-shirts
• Underwear
• Business cards (I don't want the spam calls but okay) 
• Money (autographed notes from different countries)
• Stickers - I was so angry at myself for forgetting mine
• And of course bras. 

Bring your own koki!

How to Get There

Location: You can find it here on the R62 Road, near Barrydale, Western Cape, South Africa. 

Opening Hours: 

According to Google Maps, they are open Wednesday to Monday from 9:00 AM to 11:00 PM (Closed Tuesdays). 

Good to know: 

There’s no cellphone reception there. Ronnie's Sex Shop is about 20 minutes outside of Barrydale and the cellphone signal disappears shortly before you get here. 

Find more info about this roadside attraction here.

And explore more things to do in Barrydale here.