Lezard Bleu is a lovely guest house, situated in the exclusive suburb of Oranjezicht in Cape Town, and Travel Butlers have practically taken over this guest house during the period around England’s first game in Cape Town.

The owners, Chris and Nikola, are certainly looking forward to hosting our customers, and having looked around the guest house last week AND spent a very pleasant few hours one evening in Chris’s and Nikola’s company, I am 100% sure that our customers will just love their stay here !

The rooms are great – spacious, comfortable and a bit quirky, especially the Tree House. There is a large pool, though in June I am not quite sure how much swimming or sunbathing will be done !

The main guest area consists of one large, family style table, around which sumptious breakfasts can be enjoyed, and of course there will be a communal TV so that everyone can watch all the other World Cup games being played inbetween sightseeing.

Nikola runs a small curio ‘corner’ too, and all items are locally sourced and made, so sales will benefit local artists and communities.

The family dogs are always around too, there were 4 at the last count !

We walked to the stadium from here on the Saturday afternoon, and it took about an hour – Chris has already mapped out a route that he is going to recommend to everyone, including where to stop for lunch on the way down (‘Fork’ in Long Street … apparently THE best tapas in Cape Town – unfortunately we didn’t quite have time to stop here en-route !!).

After the game, to walk from the stadium back to the Waterfront will take about 5-10 minutes, but we would strongly advise everyone to then take a taxi back to the guest house – please do NOT walk back late at night.

We are absolutely convinced that everyone staying here will have a great time … and we are very envious that we can’t join you … unless someone has a spare ticket ??!!

A flying visit from Travel Butlers on Saturday 20th February, but definately worth the time !

We arrived at Primi Royal Hotel just as someone was being checked out, so we waited for the manager by the pool area. Standing on the wooden deck, in the sun, looking out over just a couple of rooftop terraces onto the Atlantic Ocean … not a bad way to spend a few minutes, I will admit !!

There are a lot of good things about this hotel – the location first of all. The hotel is just a 2 minute walk (maybe not even that) from the main Camps Bay beach front – for anyone who has not been to Camps Bay before, you are talking white beaches, palm trees, and a plethra of bars and restaurants – a great holiday spot, especially in the summer months.

Secondly, the rooms. There are only 10 rooms, so it is not a large hotel by any means – which also means a personal service for each guest checking in. There are 3 room types – Standard, Superior and Luxury, and we saw one of each type. All rooms bar one have a balcony (and the one that doesn’t, a lovely Standard Room, has an outside patio area instead with limited sea views). All rooms are individually styled with a definate contemporary feel to the furnishings and bed linen.

As already mentioned, there is a small pool with a couple of sun loungers, what looked like a nice breakfast dining area (I can’t comment on the breakfasts however as we arrived too late to see this in action), and parking for a few cars.

It is the current rates that also make this an appealing place to stay at. For the quality of the rooms, and the overall hotel, I think that it is exceptionally good value – for example, the current published rack rate for a Standard Room, including breakfast, is only R750 per person per night until the end of April.

Again, I would have absolutely no hesitation in recommending this as a place to stay during a stay in Cape Town.

Stay for 5 nights for the price of 4 at Cape Cadogan Boutique Hotel in Cape Town between 1 December 2010 and 31 January 2011 (BUT excluding travel over the Christmas and New Year period between 20th December 2010 until 7th January 2011).

The Cape Cadogan is a stately double-storeyed Georgian and Victorian building that dates back to the beginning of the 19th century, and was declared a national monument in 1984.

The hotel is situated in the heart of Cape Town, just off the fashionable Kloof Street, so some of Cape Towns’ finest restaurants are a leisurely stroll away, and you are just a short drive from the beaches at Camps Bay, Table Mountain and the V&A Waterfront.

This boutique hotel is well known for its comfortable, luxurious atmosphere. The 12 luxuriously appointed en-suite bedrooms are decorated with an eclectic mix of contemporary and antique furniture using dramatic fabrics to maximum effect.

Stay for 5 nights for the price of 4 at Cape Cadogan Boutique Hotel in Cape Town !

The Cape Cadogan is a stately double-storeyed Georgian and Victorian building that dates back to the beginning of the 19th century, and was declared a national monument in 1984.

The hotel is situated in the heart of Cape Town, just off the fashionable Kloof Street, so some of Cape Towns’ finest restaurants are a leisurely stroll away, and you are just a short drive from the beaches at Camps Bay, Table Mountain and the V&A Waterfront.

This boutique hotel is well known for its comfortable, luxurious atmosphere.

Your stay will include breakfast, and this offer is valid for travel between 1 April 2010 and 30 September 2010 (but excluding travel during the World Cup period between 1st June 2010 and 18th July 2010).
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We stayed at this guest house for 2 nights – the 19th and 20th February 2010.

Floreal House is situated in the extremely pleasant suburb of Oranjezicht, which has a truly relaxed feel about it. Wide tree-lined roads, beautiful large houses (many of them converted into guest houses), and with a backdrop of Table Mountain and views over the city. Quite simply, all these combine successfully to give you a real ‘feel good’ factor about being in Cape Town.

The guest house itself has 9 rooms, and my tip would be to ask for one of the ‘new’ rooms. Some of the rooms have been refurbished recently, and the decor is terrific – stylish and contemporary. The older rooms (which are still awaiting refurbishment) are still extremely comfortable and pleasant, but they lack the ‘wow’ factor that the new styled rooms give.

There is a small pool area, with sun loungers and tables, and offers a perfect setting for relaxing with a bottle of cold wine which can be purchased from the delightful deli on the opposite corner – Carluccio’s.

The breakfasts were modest but enjoyable – a selection of juices, cereals and cold meats and cheese, and fruit and yogurts – and there was a menu from which you could also order hot food from too.

There is space for 4 cars inside the gates, otherwise you can park on the street (which is perfectly safe, but do make sure that you don’t leave anything on show in your car – so don’t leave maps / coats / hats on back seats or on parcel shelves – just to be on the safe side).

It is a 5 minute taxi ride to get you to Kloof Street, with its variety of restaurants and bars, and about a 10 minute taxi ride down to the Waterfront or over the Kloofnek Pass to Camps Bay. We walked down to the Waterfront – it took about an hour – but I would definately not advise walking back late at night – always take a taxi.

Natalie, who is the front of house manager, is a delight to deal with – extremely friendly and efficient.

All in all, a great place to stay – either at the start of your trip or at the end, and also either for first-timers or repeat visitors to Cape Town.

I have one word to describe this new addition to the Protea / African Pride portfolio … WOW !!

We stopped here for lunch and a quick tour around on 18th February.

The 15 on Orange Hotel only recently opened its doors, and in fact, they are still in the process of completing some of the floors, and in particular the area where they will have shop franchises is still under a bit of construction … but this does not at all detract from the hotel as it stands today, it just means that when everything is finally completed, the hotel will be simply stunning.

You travel up to the reception floor by lift, complete with a soft sofa just in case your legs just cannot hold you up any more – I have honestly never seen a lift with a sofa in it before !!

The lift doors open onto the main marbled reception, where there is another sofa masterpiece – a ‘centipede’ sofa – you have to see it to know what I mean ! Here you will find the dining / restaurant area, which serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Off to the side is the contemporary lounge bar, complete with a purple pool table – or for a really funky atmosphere, try the other bar, which is lit at night with blue neon lights and pounds out music to maintain a lively atmosphere.

We saw just 3 types of rooms – a standard room, a ‘pod’ room, and a deluxe / family room. I would not have a complaint at all if I was staying in any one of them.

The pod rooms in particular are just so unique – instead of a balcony you have an area with 2 chair pods suspended from the ceiling, looking out over the atrium and the restaurant area.

There is secure parking – not sure about the cost, as we were there as guests of the hotel so we didn’t actually pay anything !

Locationwise, it is about a 5-10 minute drive from the Waterfront area (depending on traffic), and a short walk to the many bars and restaurants along Kloof Street and Long Street. Having said that, if the quality of the lunch that we had is anything to go by … I would not venture out of the hotel !! It was absolutely gorgeous ! I enjoyed butternut squash ravioli, and Paul savoured every last morsel of the wild mushroom risotto – both can be difficult dishes to get right, but the chef achieved 100% perfection !

Definately one to be recommended – a truly stunning 5* property which could almost be classed as a ‘destination’ in its own right.

Travel Butlers are delighted to announce that the latest Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa (FTTSA) certified business is the 4* Peech Hotel in Melrose, Johannesburg.

Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa is a non-profit organisation that promotes sustainable tourism development. They award businesses who demonstrate their commitment to Fair Trade by adopting policies for fair wages and working conditions, fair purchasing, fair operations, equitable distribution of benefits and respect for human rights, culture and environment.

The hotel has a proven track record of operating in an environmentally responsible manner, and this has been the mainstay behind their recent FTTSA certification.

The hotel’s policies include solar water geysers which service the entire property as well as drinking water that is filtered on site. They also make use of refillable glass bottles, thereby helping to minimise the evergrowing use of plastic bottles which is unfortunately a growing concern for environmentalists worldwide.

On top of all this, the hotel gardens are watered with processed and recycled rain and bath / shower water.

The Peech Hotel also invest in the local community, and has actively supported Little Eden Children’s Home for a long time. Help includes donating items such as linen and crockery to the charity, and the staff of Little Eden are incentivised with offers of hotel stays.

Hotel guests are also welcome to support this charity by voluntarily contributing R5 for each night that they stay at the hotel, and the hotel then matches the donation.

The Peech Hotel gives preference to local and BEE-rated businesses and purchases Fair Trade products on a regular basis. Support for new and emerging suppliers in the local area is significant: for example, the hotel assisted a local man to obtain a car loan and guaranteed that they would utilise his services for guest transfers and staff transport. In addition, the hotel also assisted a local woman to establish her laundry business by supporting her on a regular basis.

We stayed at this Southern Sun property for just one night, on the 18th February 2010.

Getting to the hotel when you first arrive in Cape Town is a doddle. For anyone coming from the airport, you exit the airport, and just follow the signs to Cape Town … and keep going until you reach the Cullinan ! It seriously could NOT be any easier. The hotel offers secure underground parking – it cost us only R40 per day.

On arrival, the first thing you notice is the distinctive colonial architecture of the building and it’s superb location. The walk from the hotel to the Waterfront is about 15 minutes, of which about 5 minutes is taken up waiting for traffic lights to go from green to red at the main busy intersection junction.

To get around this problem, they are in the process of constructing a pedestrian ‘fly over’ this junction in time for the World Cup, and for those who don’t want to walk, the hotel offers a shuttle bus service.

I would definitely NOT recommend walking between the Waterfront and the hotel after dark – take the shuttle or a taxi instead (there is a ready supply of taxis waiting at all exits of the Waterfront, so this is not a hardship at all).

The hotel is classified as a 4*, and I would say the rooms are definitely this standard. They are clean and comfortable, and spacious – the standard rooms either have one queensize bed and a small table with 2 chairs and a writing desk, or 2 double beds instead, which is ideal for families.

The hotel has just undergone some refurbishments in terms of new linen and chairs in the rooms, but the rooms still have a slightly ‘tired’ look about them.

Having said this, the main guest areas – ie the reception area, bars, dining room and pool area – are easily 5* standard.

The reception area is large and marbled, and extremely impressive; the outside pool area is a pure sun-trap, and offers sun loungers around the pool or tables where you can sit and order drinks and snacks from the bar.

The bar is cosy and pleasant, and the dining room large and airy.

The breakfast selection was extremely good – buffet style, with the choice of juices, cereals, cold meats and cheeses, fruits, and a hot selection too.

Overall the combination of great location, lovely public areas and good staff make this an easy place to recommend, and the fact the rooms are not up to 5* standard helps keep the cost of staying here down a little.

Highly recommended for anyone who wants to be near the Waterfront area without paying 5* prices.

Johannesburg is becoming more and more accessible !

A new daily direct service is soon to be launched by Jet Airways between Mumbai and Johannesburg, starting on April 15, subject to regulatory approval.

Jet Airways will be running an A330-200 aircraft, and will offer 30 seats in Business Class / Première and 190 seats in Economy class.

Première passengers will enjoy a 180-degree flat bed with lumbar support and massage systems, oversized table, laptop power, telephone, SMS, email and live text news and on-demand in-flight entertainment.

Flights will depart Mumbai at 02h05, arriving in Johannesburg at 07h35 – so absolutely ideal for then connecting with an onwards flight over to the Kruger for a safari, or getting down to Cape Town in time for a spot of lunch !

The return service will depart Johannesburg at 11h00, arriving in Mumbai at 23h30.

Sibuya Tented Camp, situated in the malaria-free Eastern Cape, is a 3,000 hectare ‘sanctuary’ to an abundance of diverse wildlife from elephants to otters, and almost everything in between, including the other 4 members of the Big 5 – so lion, leopard, buffalo and rhino.

River Camp is ideal for families, as the children can be accommodated on fold-out sofa beds in the suites, and there is also a special ‘entertainment tent’ just for younger guests.

Rates from Travel Butlers for a stay in this camp start from just R2,130 per adult per night up until the end of August, and then increase on the 1st September to R2,420 per adult sharing. Single rooms attract a 50 supplement, and children under 3 stay free of charge, and up to 12 years pay half rate.