Holiday Inn Waterfront

Great place, but use the room safe!

by TripAdvisor Member RadioBunny

This was the perfect place to stay, with a limited budget, in Cape Town. Nice staff and a small but nice pool area, but best of all, a short stroll to the V&A Waterfront area. The breakfast was far too expensive, you get charged automatically in an exec room for the minibar key - so you have to ask for it to be removed from your bill if you didn't actually use it (annoying) and if you were foolish enough as we were to leave some spending money (about £250-£300stg)in a bag in the room then you should expect it to be found and stolen as ours was. Our own fault. Should have used the safe for everything. But despite that, we would stay there again. Our room had a nice view and the place was immaculate. The shower had a range of different settings inclusing a few fantastic massage ones and the TV had a decent selection of DISH channels. Overall really good for a Holiday Inn - we were impressed. If there was no Holiday Inn sign, you wouldn't know it was one! Before we went I read here about a great pizza place 'round the side of the hotel and so we checked it out. WOW. Go there. You won't find a better range of pizzas outside of Italy.

Top Class Hotel With Everything You Need

by TripAdvisor Member EnaSharples

My husband and I have just returned from Cape Town where we stayed for ten nights at the Holiday Inn Waterfront and I have to say that we could not fault this hotel for its comfort, cleanliness,friendliness and convenience for both the City Centre and The Victoria & Albert Waterfront Shops and Restaurants.

I must say first that all the staff were very kind, curtious and helpful and in particular I must mention the joyful smile of Theodora who greets you daily at the main entrance with a tray of chocolates and free orange or apple juice as well as in the evening offering sherry or port.Such a lovely girl and a real asset to the hotel.

The breakfast was fantastic. Always so much to choose from and the ommlettes (which are cooked while you wait) are wonderful.The staff in the breakfast restaurant are very efficient and do everything they can to make your breakfast an enjoyable start to every day.Top marks!!!

There is a small pool but it was too chilly for us to use it although we did sit around it one afternoon as there are loungers and towels if you want to use them. There are also tables and chairs in this area.

We had a hire car for the time we were on holiday and the carpark which is under the hotel was safe and had security there the whole time.

We found it was better and safer to use the Shuttle Bus in the evenings to go for a meal at the Victoria and Albert Shopping Complex. The Shuttle only takes five minutes and runs every half hour and best of all it is FREE. There are all types of restaurants there and there isn't any need to dress formally so you can shop a little and then eat when you feel like it. Our favourite place was Jewel Of India. The food was excellent and if you like a good curry this is the place to visit.Portions are generous so don't order a starter! We also visited the Pizza Restaurant next to the hotel which was very good.

We would definately reccommend this hotel to people who don't like a "stuffy" type of place but somewhere they can feel they can relax, be comfortable and be themselves.

Thankyou to all the staff ......you made our holiday special.
Elle and Colin Chambers

Great Hotel, Great Location

by TripAdvisor Member The_Don_UK

Having come down from Gauteng, Cape Town came as a breath of fresh air. I know that they say in the hotel not to walk around after dark but I didn't feel any more threatened than I would have done in Glasgow or London.

The hotel is a clean, well presented modern hotel with all the faciliites you'd expect. I managed to get a rate of ZAR503 per night which is, in my opinion, exceptional value for money. All of central Cape Town and the waterfront is within 15 minutes' walk and there is a range of restaurants even closer than that.

The hotel breakfast is historic. Even after climbing Table Mountain, I didn't need to eat for another 12 hours. For some reason I wan't even charged for mine.

If you want to grab some cheap snacks, there's a petrol station just across the (admittedly pretty busy) road and for a taste of unreconstructed South Africa try the Fireman's Arms about 5 minutes away.

Based on my experience, I would recommend this hotel to anyone visiting Cape Town, especially if you can get such a good rate.

Great Base for Capetown

by TripAdvisor Member 2Adults2Kids

We stayed at the Holiday Inn for 6 nights, using it as a base for seeing Cape Town and the surrounding area. The location is great, about 15 min walk from the V&A waterfront and about the same to the “down town” part of the city in the other direction. The hotel is also at the end of the N2 so is well situated for getting in and out of Cape Town by car.

The hotel itself is one of the better Holidays Inns, and for the 430 rand a night we paid for a room (they charge by the room rather than per person, which is great if you have a family and a little unusual in SA) excellent value.

As other contributors have said, the breakfast was excellent (free for children) as was the Italian restaurant just round the corner. The hotel only has one restaurant, which has a carvery (watch out, it ran out of food at 9.00 pm) and an a la carte menu both good and reasonably priced.

The down sides? Well, the bar is totally soulless and hotel is undergoing some refurbishment, so expect to get woken up by drilling at 8.00 am. Also the internet access is poor, (wireless broadband really only works at a few tables in the lobby and that’s it; rooms only have dial up) and expensive at 1 rand per min.

Don't change anything - it's great as it is - just warm up the pool!

by TripAdvisor Member uk2sa

We have stayed here almost every year 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 since they opened in 1999 and enjoyed every day spent there. The staff have to be some of the best in the world for their attention to your every need.
They always have a smile and a welcome for you and always seem to remember us each time we arrive, even the breakfast staff.
Five star staff.
Wish they would find a way of heating the pool, maybe solar as there is always plenty of sunshine around!
Have booked for next January, 2007

From Cape Town to Cederberg

by Hexepatty

"Cape Town - Stellenbosch - Tulbagh - Cederberg"

(THE PHOTO IS A TRADITIONAL CAPE DESIGNED HOME IN TULBAGH, SA)

15 May - Cape Town arrival
Today I step on the African Continent for the first time, and begin a 28-day tour of the South Africa's Western Cape and Namibia. After a 22+-hour flight from Honolulu, I arrive at Cape Town International Airport and manage to find a local shuttle into town to meet up with my German travel partner, Lucy. She's strictly an independent traveler and no stranger to Africa, having visited South Africa 6 times, and Namibia once.

We meet without a hitch and had reservations to spend our first few nights at Holiday Inn Waterfront Cape Town. With a 12-hour time zone difference, I figured I'd be one jet-lagged puppy, so staying in town would be convenient. The hotel is nicely situated, walking distance to the business district, historical walks, as well as the popular Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, a generic 'scenic port' touristy mall (The Gap, Hard Rock, IMAX, Planet Hollywood, etc...) is just a ten-minute walk.

Having napped a bit during the day, we decide to head over to 'V&A,' for dinner. A walk at night in S Africa - Cape Town in particular - well, most people will say don't do it! True, it is unnerving being so conscientious of every movement you see out the corner of your eye, and every squeaky sound you hear as well, but you get used to it. Plus, you learn to walk fast. Which is good, because I would soon discover I would need SOME form of exercise: eat and drinks, I'm quickly determining, are not only very good here, but inexpensive, too.

The next day, we walk from our Waterfront-vicinity hotel to the base of Table Mountain to catch the cable car to the summit. It's a pretty far walk, about three miles, and mostly uphill. Had I half a clue as to how far it was, I might have opted for a cab or something, but never one to appear as out of shape as I am, I persevere! We proceed to take the cable car up to the top, enjoy great weather and a killer view of the bay, Robben Island (Nelson Mendela's former prison island home) and the city below, and then take the cable car back down. We walk to Camps Bay, a fashionable, wealthy and VERY secured neighborhood and grab a bite to eat at a beach-side café in time for a fantastic sunset.

Dusk approaching, so we decide to take a taxi back to Holiday Inn. Not a cab... but a taxi. Taxis in S Africa are vans that are hailed down cab style, but pack in people like cattle. Cheaper than cabs, a tad more expensive than the public bus, and an aroma - stench really - that would make the faint of heart swoon. Taking a taxi, apparently something else you are also NOT supposed to do, but we survived the interesting cultural exchange.

We spend the next day walking around town visiting small museums, former slave quarters, historical forts and traditional open markets. I learn that Cape Town is where the first colonists, the Dutch, settled in 1652, and there are many of S Africa's oldest colonial structures still in existence and good examples of traditional 'Cape Dutch' architecture.

18 May - Stellenbosch Wine Region
An important pre-arranged planning item we squared away before arrival was to secure a car rental that permitted travel between the two countries with unlimited miles. With the South African Rand at approximately 6.99 to one USD, we pick up our car today averaging slightly over $10 per day. It's a four-door sedan, Volkswagen Polo, manual transmission, right-side drive. This should be fun.

Tons of maps in hand, we venture on the well-designed highways of Cape Town to the nearby wine region of Stellenbosch. Our destination, the Dankbarrheid Guest House, is the last pre-arranged item for the duration of our trip. Discovered after an exhausting Internet search, it looked good on the computer, but would it look good in person? Once we arrive I realize it was well worth my effort. The small studio is attached to a large home and it is well equipped with a mini-kitchen, heater, TV, and a large spotlessly clean bathroom. It also has three separate security devices, too! (Do you get the feeling this is an unsafe country yet? You should. It is...)

South Africa's dubious safety record aside, I can't help but find the country beautiful, and all the people I have met up to this point are genuinely grateful to have visitors. They are equally impressed that I would come from as far as Hawaii. I shake off the last of my jet lag, and enjoy the beautiful surroundings of Dankbaarheid, which happens to be situated smack dab in the middle of a wine vineyard. I'm relieved that we are having unusually good weather, this being the beginning of winter for the Cape, and Southern Africa, in general.

We spend our days tasting wines at various vineyards, and eating at some of the top restaurants in the country at unbelievable prices. Wines, quite good wines, run $3 - 5 dollars a bottle. At a restaurant, maybe they are marked up only slightly higher: $5 - 6 per bottle. Fine dining is taken seriously in South Africa. Chefs use local ingredients, wild game, and take care with preparation as well as presentation. In S Africa, we could easily go to a top restaurant, have a glass of sparking wine, a bottle of some of the finest wines, have a 3 course meal, and spend no more than $60 for two. For a moment, in the vineyard surroundings, eating and drinking in gourmand-like splendor, I would occasionally feel as if I was in Napa or Sonoma - but wait: I would NEVER be able to afford this kind of dining in California's wine country.

20 May - Tulbagh
I thought once we left Stellenbosch we would be on our way to "deepest, darkest Africa." We end up traveling maybe 50 miles north, however. We deliberately have no future lodging arrangements for the rest of our trip because we wanted to leave our options open. Plus, we planned to camp anyway, so we'd never really be caught sleeping in a car. Well, it's a Friday night, and due to the unseasonably warm weather, we are unable to secure a reservation anywhere along the Cape's western coast. Lucy, no stranger to the Western Cape area, recalls a self-catering cottage rental in the village of Tulbagh. Fortunately, the apartment is available, and at $30 per night (2 bedrooms, living room, dining room and day room, full size kitchen and bath), we decide to go for it.

Once we arrive at the Kloofzicht Vineyard - again putting us in the middle of grapes - I learn our hosts cultivate, bottle and sell their own wine. They excel in the crafting a fine pinotage - a S African specialty -- under the label name of Alter Ego, which prices out to $4USD a bottle. A bed so close to good wine so reasonably priced: Will I return home a lush?

Tulbagh, I discover, is a charming, historic town with a good deal of Cape Dutch architecture, neatly tucked away in a secluded valley. We spend our days visiting - you guessed it - more vineyards and the fruit growing area in Ceres. I spy my first roadside baboons eating food tossed from tourists' cars, and more amusingly, signs that say not to feed them. We also drive to the nearby seaside villages of Langebaan and Paternoster.

One highlight from our stay at the Kloofzicht vineyard: the neighbors' cows occasionally break free from their fences and roam onto our property. So much so that one night we awake to the sound of moo-ing cows and swishing cow tails up against our bedroom windows and walls. Not much sleep this night, and the morning view: cow pies galore! Our hosts "comp" us one night for the perceived inconvenience. Frankly, we are more amused than bothered, it being such a once in a lifetime occurrence! But we appreciate their kind act and decide to stay for yet another night. We begin to downscale our dining, and start having nightly 'braais' - Afrikaner for Barbecue - and cook 'boerewors' (local style sausages) and sweet potatoes.

Walks around the farm, picking eggs from the chicken roosts, playing with the dogs, ducks and young calves on the estate; its all very pastoral and inviting. I find it difficult to leave. 'Who needs deepest darkest Africa and wild animals? I can see that on the Discovery Channel. I LIKE the good life: farm living with nice wines and good food." Of course, about this point, my clothes are beginning to get a little tight: maybe I need a little roughing it. The only wild life I have seen - ostrich and kudo - have been served on china along w/ith a fork and knife!

23 May - Citrusdal
Still not quite roughing it, and as the crow flies, not even 200 KM from Cape Town (we just don't seem to be able to get far, but we are having a blast!) we arrive in Citrusdal, home to a natural hot spring. We spend the night at a private lodge where there are fully-equipped cabins, private hot baths, and a large in-ground outside pool filled with the hot spring water. The private hot bath rooms are the popular draw, however. There are two cottage size buildings, each containing four private bath rooms. In each hot bat room is a large hot tub which could easily accommodate 4 people, and you have the room to yourself for a 1 hour maximum time limit. More, if no one is waiting! You draw the water, plug up the drain and away goes your problems of the day. In our case, w/ little problems to speak of, we quickly got into the hot bath lifestyle.

But eventually we have to do something physical. And remarkably, I brought this one on myself! One of my guides to the area describes the nearby Cederberg Wilderness Area, a considerable mountain range about a 2 hour drive north, notable for its magnificent rock formations. We take the drive to the area and decide, based on our arrival time, we could realistically make the hike to the "Maltese Cross" rock formation.

The Maltese Cross is a pillar standing 9 meters high, resembling a worshipping pole of some forgotten religion. It ends up taking us 1 hour 40 minute to get to the top, after ascending about 750 feet. Bitsch-fest? Well, yes, naturally, as my physical shape is actually diminishing with all the quality eats I’ve been doing. But more than anything I find myself scared. It is not the most "marked" trail, this being a wilderness area, and not a heavily trafficked national park. You have to be mindful of rock pile markings. And, in addition, there are some pretty steep crevices and narrow passes w/ big drop-offs on either side. It is about as daring as I have ever been, and by the time I make it to the Maltese Cross, I expect to discover a jewel-encrusted rock cross, something - ANYTHING - more than what I discover. But as in life, it’s not so much where you go, it’s how you get there, right?

As exciting and invigorating as the hike is, I am much relieved to make it back down – to see the car there, primarily - and we head back to Citrusdal. This evening’s soak in the hot bath is well deserved!