Review: The St Regis Mauritius – A Beachfront Junior Suite

Posted on March 5, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Hotels + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + St Regis + Trip Report

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We had a five day stay in Mauritius at the enjoyable St Regis. While there are many choices of resorts to stay at in Mauritius, we were happy to be down in quiet Le Morne under the large views of this scenic part of the island.

This post is one chapter on our trip to South Africa, a Safari in the Maasai Mara in Kenya and Mauritius. This trip was redeemed through Air Canada’s Aeroplan and through Starwood Preferred Guest (Marriott Bonvoy) and Hyatt Gold Passport. For more information on how this trip was booked, please see our trip introduction here. For other parts of the trip, please see this index.

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Review: The St Regis Mauritius, Beachfront Junior Suite, Le Morne Peninsula, Coastal Road La Gaulette, Mauritius

” Competing in the category of Mauritius’ top luxury resort properties, the St Regis Mauritius offers a great hard product, reasonably strong house reef, a solid spa amid some minor growing pains”

Our five day resort stay was interesting and peaceful. Given the amount of activities that we did at the resort, we’ve split up our experience into two separate posts. This post outlines the Beachfront Junior Suite and the Food and Beverage around the property. The next post outlines the Resort Area, our experiences at the St Regis Iridum Spa and the wonderful house reef.

How we Booked:

We were excited to try the St Regis Mauritius. It was brand new hotel having opened in 2012 as a new build and was our first stay with the brand. We used Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) Cash and Points at the rate of 8000 points and $150 USD per night. (now 10,000 points and $180 per night). The regular room rate was 660€ per night (over $950 USD) so we had an interesting comparison of the value of the resort.

The current reward redemption rates for this property under the new Marriott Bonvoy Program are around 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points per night at a Category 7 Property. If you assume that Marriott Bonvoy points are worth about 0.005 cents per point, you’d be better off using points at this property if the rate is greater than $300 USD per night. Given that the rates are usually upwards of $500 USD per night, this is a worthwhile place to burn your collection of Marriott Bonvoy Points.

The property is located approximately 58 km away from the airport. When we booked, the asking price for an airport transfer in the Range Rover or Jaguar was approximately $200 USD each way. They now have a cheaper option in a Hyundai. Instead, we elected for week long rental car with Sixt for about the same price (not including gas).

Transferring to the St Regis Mauritius:

On arrival to the Mauritius Airport from our South African Airways Johannesburg – Mauritius flight, we walked over to the rental car building. The rental car building is separate from the main terminal building. At the time of our arrival, only three out of the eight desks were occupied. The Sixt desk was unoccupied with no one there to receive us. We were already on island time and we got Budget Clerk to call the Sixt Clerk, who turned up within 5 minutes.

We went through a much easier and faster rental process than Europcar with completion of 5-6 forms manually by pen. This included a manual scratching stencil imprint of the credit card deposit and rental fee, paid all in advance.

We were given a island map from Sixt sponsored by advertising agencies, however the map conveniently had no highway numbers on it, only lines with no corresponding route or street names. The Google maps that we printed were not of much use as they were inaccurate, non-sensical and with outdated descriptions and landmarks. Driving is on the left. We got lost 4-5 times on the way as most of the streets were not posted and highway marker signs were often only posted once at the actual intersection itself.

We ended up taking the coastal B89 route, which was a nice drive. It didn’t offer specular coastal views, but it did offer us a glimpse into local life.

We did finally make it to the St Regis Hotel about 100 minutes drive after landing. As a reference point, Google maps displayed the trip as a 55 minute drive. The drive had many sharp turns, large scale bus coaches stopping to collect locals, double parked cars in the middle of town with no opportunities to pass, dogs cyclists and pedestrians wandering across and along side the road, and signs that weren’t clearly posted. Overall, I would drive again by car if you were comfortable driving in foreign countries.

We arrived to what appears to be on initial impression a gated staff entrance. I was perhaps expecting a slightly grander gate similar to an Asian resort property. However thinking back on it, it was way to grand to be a staff entrance. There wasn’t much of an approach and now looking back, it seems few people self drive themselves to the resort on arrival. There were only about 20 parking spaces for the entire resort.

Arriving to the St Regis Mauritius:

After the drive, we arrived to the resort. The theme of the resort was supposed to replicate a Mauritian manor of a family of “circumstance”- not an obvious comparison unless you read the history card in the room.

We were led to the welcome kiosk where we were given a non alcoholic welcome drink. We were escorted by golf cart to the room via the beach, ultimately ending at Suite #273.

The Room: Beachfront Junior Suite, Suite, 1 King, Sofa bed, Balcony

We were Starwood Preferred Guest Gold members at the time of our stay. Several days before our arrival to the hotel, a member of the St Regis Butler Service Executive Team contacted us by email to ask for information surrounding any room preferences of the stay. We had asked for an upper room as close as possible the water. This request was honoured. As a result, we received a soft upgrade to a room closest to the water. During our stay, the room was branded as a Deluxe Suite, but since then, the hotel has monetized the proximity to the water of the various rooms and now brands this room as a Beach front Junior Suite.

Suite #273 was a second floor suite in an outer facing building as close as possible to the beach.

The room was room was very well featured and spacious. While it’s been branded as a Junior Suite, it’s more of a spacious and roomy room than a suite with a separate sitting and couch area.

The room also featured a sliding glass wall that allowed the suite to be opened up to allow the ocean air in. This was easily the nicest feature of the room and the property.

Vijay (the butler) thoroughly explained the features of the suite, including the TV and how to operate the thermostat controls. Vijay, completed the check in formalities in the suite. Vijay had a sense of humor as he described the features of the resort.

A massive washroom fit for two:

The Junior Suite had a fully featured bathroom with rain shower, massive tub and soap the size of hockey pucks.

As with all St Regis properties, the bathroom toiletries featured Remede products.

The bathroom offered a desk for working or charging devices. There was also a small walk in closet off the bathroom.

A Desk for working with a peek a boo view of the ocean

The room also offered coffee makers, in addition to glass ware. We didn’t actually use the room coffee makers as the St Regis Butler service offers tea / coffee to all guests on demand. In addition to the coffee makers, there was a welcome amenity consisting of a wrapped fruit tray. The amenities included disposable his and her St Regis sandals, a beach bag, fabulous view. The sandals made a great souvenir of our travels.

There were lots of hand written notes welcoming us to the property.

After several days here, my wife noted some shortcomings with the cleaning. She suspected that room service was wiping out the glassware instead of replacing the glasses after they had been used. This suspicion was highlighted by coasters with multiple water mark rings from inverted glasses, and by fingerprint smudging on the glass wear after the rooms had been cleaned.

The problem with finding shortcomings is that once you’ve found one, you start looking for more. Looking around, the waste baskets were in rough shape and some stains were prevalent in some areas of the room. Some of the towels weren’t super clean- marked with someone else’s lipstick. We found this to be a bit strange for a resort that was only 1 year old. This isn’t meant to be an investigative exposé on hotel room cleaning, nor did we alert staff about these shortcomings. However – those expecting a pristine new property at this price point may be a bit disappointed. I’d be a bit unpleased if I was paying 660 Euro a night as expectations at that price level are higher than $150 USD a night.

Corrosion in a Hotel Room only a year old?

A Room with a View:

We really enjoyed the view from our room and the oversized balcony. We spent several days enjoying the sunset views. Despite having the best possible ocean view room – the height of the palm trees partially obstructed the view. These two photographs are taken from the room deck.

Food and Beverage at the Hotel:

Another area of concern to us was that the menu and food costs are priced astronomically. By astronomically, we mean that we had cheaper and more economical costs at the Park Hyatt Maldives last year – a resort that’s 1 hour by plane and 45 minutes by boat from the nearest supermarket and international airport. Comparatively, the nearest supermarket to the St Regis is 10 minutes from the resort down a paved road.

The first day of our stay, we approached the main restaurant for breakfast. It was clear that the staff at breakfast did not know how to handle reward customers like ourselves as they seem surprised when I asked how breakfast worked when we were not on the half or full board option. At the time of our stay, consistent with it’s European customer base, breakfast is normally included in the regular rate. The quoted price for the “St Regis Breakfast Buffet” was $80 USD per person. Are they kidding? Our buffet at the Sheraton Full Moon Resort in the Maldives last year was $22 USD a person (also an SPG Category 6 property). I doubted that the unlimited sparkling wine offered here made up a worthwhile $58 USD premium on the price. Some limited a la carte items were available to bypass this at $17 for a small Eggs Benedict on a single toast. Seventeen dollars unfortunately does not go far in Mauritius:

We decided to skip breakfast and instead just get lunch the next days. However, the disappointment on the higher on resort food prices continued. A cheeseburger and fries (with caramelized onions) on the beach bar $33 USD, a club sandwich with a salad for $26 was the sweet spot on the menu. Bring your xe.com phone app- everything was priced in Mauritius Rupees:

Wine and alcohol prices on the resort echoed the same trend, a bottle of Dom Perignon was $728 USD – at the Mauritius supermarket 10 minutes drive from the resort; it was $300 USD. To me, it’s not really clear to me where the market analysis is to perform such a mark up on food and beverage.

There were obviously some growing pains with the execution of the food and beverage. We turned up one evening at 8:20 PM without a reservation – we were told it would be a 30 minute wait as restaurant was fully booked. During the time of our visit, the hotel appeared to be at 50% occupancy. I can’t imagine what happens during high season? The food servers also seem vastly overworked. One evening had three waiters plus a manager attempting to service 14 tables. I have no idea what the correct waiter to table ratio was, but this seemed to be very lean. Waiters were always rushing around, and don’t seem to be available after the food has been dropped off. Even placing order is a bit assembly line in nature. Add this to that every meal was about $100 with a single glass of wine and without appetizers and we were having a little trouble seeing the value of the food and beverage part of the holiday.

Given these prices, we ended up taking a minimalist approach – paying for one lunch / breakfast and dinner a day and self catering all the nibbles and wines. We had hand carried from South Africa and purchased from the Supermarket at La Gaulette 10 minutes down the road.

The hotel took steps to ensure that it’s guests were looked after. I don’t know whether these were as a result of growing pains or being told by management to make sure all guests are accommodated. For example, on our last day, a letter was received under our door saying that the Boathouse Bar restaurant had an emergency air conditioning problem. The letter announced that the restaurant would be closed unexpectedly for 2 days while repairs are undertaken. Of course, on the last morning, we missed breakfast taking in our last snorkel. When we went to go find some food after packing our suitcases at 11 AM we were told –“Oh I’m sorry. The restaurants do not open until lunch at 12 PM. This meant that there was no food to be had anywhere on the property between 11 AM and 12 PM. Eventually a discussion ensued asking if we were leaving the property. Once they learned that we were, we were invited to have a seat “to see what they could do”. This meant bringing out the chef to the table to explain what could be ordered and prepared while they were in between service. While this was appreciated, it seems that despite their efforts to notify guests of restaurant closures, there was no contingency plan to make sure that a food and beverage outlet was open. Either way, the resort managed to make it work, just like they made the champagne sabering work when we turned up late.

Coming Up:

In the next post, I’ll go over the resort grounds, our experience at the St Regis Iridium spa, and the wonderful house reef at The St Regis Mauritius at Le Morne, Mauritius.

Tags: Hotel Review, Le Morne, Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott Platinum, Starwood Preferred Guest

Review: South African Airways Business Class A320-2, Johannesburg – Mauritius

Posted on March 4, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Airbus 320 + Airline + Business Class + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + South African Airways + Trip Report

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South African Airways offers medium haul services from Johannesburg to Mauritius. British Airways’ South African franchise also offers service on this same route four days a week on much older B737 aircraft. Today’s experience was on SAA’s newest aircraft and offered a really pleasant way to get to Mauritius.

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Review: South African Airways Business Class A320-2, O.R. Tambo International Airport Johannesburg, South Africa – Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport, Mauritius.

South African Airways had recently announced a turn around strategy that involves focusing on African routes and the investment of new, lower fuel efficiency aircraft. By focusing on African expansion, it is forging ahead with a strategy to service “key African destinations” as the airline feels that low levels of competition have ensured that profit margins on ticket sales are larger than those offered on premium destination routes and it’s long haul service. SAA has recently announced the cancellation of its Johannesburg to Buenos Aries service as it attempts to manage a R1.2 billion rand loss over it’s network in the last calendar year. This would end up being one of many turn around strategies as the carrier struggles to find its footing.

South African Airways
Business Class
JNB-MRU (O.R Tambo Johannesburg International – Mauritius)
SA 190 – Business Class (V)
9:40 AM – 3:45 PM
November 15, 2013
Booked: Boeing 737-300
Flown: Airbus 320-200

Another part of this strategy is the shift to more fuel efficient aircraft. SAA is in the process of acquiring new Airbus 320-200 aircraft, currently being used on the Nairobi and Mauritius destinations. We would end up enjoying one of their newest aircraft on today’s flight.

Boarding the Flight:

Flight boarding was announced in the South African Airways Baobab Premium International Lounge and we proceeded to gate A21, which was approximately a 7 minute walk from the lounge. Boarding today was from a non gate position. Although there was a dedicated priority boarding line, it only got you onto the bus quicker where we waited until the bus filled up with all the other passengers.

On Board South African Airways Business Class:

On board the new short to medium haul South African Airways business class, the Seats are fitted in leather equivalent materials and look really sharp. The configuration is 2-2 in a narrow body Airbus 320.

As one of their newest planes, there was no personal Advanced Video on Demand screens but instead USB plug in’s and laptop power between the seat. I was surprised that there was no AVOD as they will likely be operating this equipment type for 7-10 years from now on routes as long as 5 hours duration. Instead, they have opted for an I-Pad / tablet solution where there is a spot for an I-Pad in the chair ahead, but SAA has cheaped out and hasn’t purchased them or isn’t bothering to.

Pre-Departure Beverage Service:

After most of the passengers were on board, a pre-departure beverage was offered of bottled water. The captain announced a delay for the baggage removal of 6 passengers’ luggage from the hold who decided not to join us. At this point, sparkling (Simonsig Brut) and orange juice were brought around on a tray.

Pre Departure Beverage of Simonsig Brut Sparkling

Landing cards and health immigration forms were also distributed. The Mauritus Landing Card has a unique dodo bird on the front side. The Dodo bird originated in Mauritius and is now extinct.

The Meal: A Full Lunch by Reuben Riffel

After take off, menus and wine list were presented. Menus were slightly different in that this time a South African celebrity chef “Reubens’ were offered. Not all menu items were by the celebrity chef, but rather select items on the list.

The wine list contained the same wines as on our international segments and included Taittinger Champagne.

Service started with an Amuse bouche of goat cheese, shrimp and light curry on toast, paired with Taittinger champagne.

SAA Amuse Bouche – goat cheese, shrimp and light curry on toast

I started with the Reuben Kingklip fish, which was nicely presented along with a bread basket.

For the main course, I went with the Reuben Steak, which was a nice change from the usual presentation of steak on an airplane. I just had to watch the drips from the sauce. Today’s serving paired with the South African Alto Shiraz.

To close, I enjoyed a glass of South African Western Cape Port, which was very tasty along with coffee cake dessert.

The In Flight Entertainment:

After the wonderful three course meal, I sacked out for balance of flight as did most everyone else and enjoyed the overhead monitor for entertainment. Today’s movie was Shanghai Calling.

As the movie eventually drew to a close, the entertainment switched to the moving map. The moving map was the next generation style with multi dimensional displays.

As our flight drew to a close, we had some very beautiful scenery on the descent in to Mauritius. There were many small jagged lush mountains similar to the Pacific North West, except covered with lush greenery, similar to Hawaii. The taxi from the runway to the terminal was pretty.

Mountains on the approach into Mauritius

My Final Thoughts on South African Airways Medium Haul Business Class:

Overall the “regional” service as SAA describes it’s medium haul service was very pleasant and nicely appointed. Full meals were served and wines were identical to the SAA long haul routes which were a nice touch. The only real disadvantage was the lack of AVOD, which we didn’t miss all too much. Considering all this, I would fly them again if given the choice.

Tags: JNB, MRU, SA 190, South African Airways

Review: South African Airways Baobab Lounge International, Johannesburg, South Africa

Posted on March 3, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Lounges + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + South African + Trip Report

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We decided to get the most value out of our reward ticket by not ending our journey in South Africa, but in Mauritius. We added on South Africa as a stopover on our journey, and got the Mauritius part mostly for free.

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Review: South African Airways Baobab Premium Lounge International, OR Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg, South Africa

“Like many aspects of South African Airways, the Baobab Lounge International at OR Tambo International Airport offers a large windowed space to relax before your connecting flight.”

This review is about the South African Airways Baobab International Lounge at O.R. Tambo International Airport. For the other South African Airways lounge at O.R. Tambo International Airport in Johannsberg, please see our review of the South African Airways Baobab Domestic Lounge.

Checking into South African Airways:

We took the Gautrain back into the airport from our stay at the Hyatt Regency Johannesburg. Jo’Berg airport is a place from the 80’s. The place is dark and uninviting. Although the airport makes use of natural light, it is limited and selective in it’s approach. Furthermore, at night, there aren’t enough lamps to make up for the lack of natural illumination.

Today’s check in was again at the South African Airways Premium Check in for Terminal B, the same place we checked in for our South African Airways Johannesburg – Cape Town domestic flight. We decided to go again without the plastic wrap on the bags, although many passengers leaving on regional flights were opting to take the plastic wrap for 60R ($6 USD). Check in was handled promptly and priority tagged bags were loaded without incident.

We passed through security and passport control in a dark Terminal A. There were no Priority Lines available at security today so it was a short wait for us. Terminals A & B are located right next to each other and are really just at opposite ends of the airport.

A long walk down a long concourse of shopping that rivalled Heathrow, Dubai or Singapore in size. It also had a curved storefront face, which although was interesting, made it difficult to see what stores or merchants were coming up next. The shopping included every type of African Souvenir, including camping gear and full zebra pelts. MrsWT73 got some “very very good” Clinique deals here at Big Five Duty Free. Some boutique South African wines Kanonkop, Meerlust and some 50+ other wines were available at the duty free so there was perhaps limited need to purchase and pack wines from the Cellar Door of wineries in Stellenbosch and Franschhoek.

O.R. Tambo International Departures Secure Side

Locating the South African Airways Baobab Lounge:

After some souvenir shopping, we headed over to the SAA Premium Baobab Lounge which was located at the end of the shopping strip. It’s officially described on the South African Airways website as being in Terminal A, International Departures Duty Free area, up the escalator on the left after Carol Boyes and then turn to the right-hand side. Unlike the the domestic lounge, the lounge is accessible by escalator and there is no stinky or cramped elevator to ride.

Accessing the SAA Baobab Premium Lounge:

The lounge was accessed today courtesy of the class of service of our Star Alliance business class ticket. The lounge can also be accessed for those with a Star Alliance Gold Card, regardless of travel class.

South African Airways also affords Premium Lounge access to those travelling on South African Airways Business Class, South African Airways Gold and higher (Platinum and Platinum Elect), and South African Airways Lifetime Platinum members. If you happen to be a credit card holder of the SAA Nedbank Premium Card and Voyager Credit Card issued by Ecobank, you also get access.

South African Airways Baobab International Premium Lounge Entrance

Inside the South African Airways Baobab International Lounge:

The lounge was designed much like the airport, lots of different nooks and crannies that would take hours to explore. It was pretty busy when we were here, with some challenges locating a quiet seat. Most high value real estate around the windows were fully taken throughout our entire stay, so we ended up in the back.

Window Seating with Food Stations on the Right

The lounge, like it’s South African Airways Cyobab Lounge Cape Town sister, also had excellent views of airside operations. We were able to get in views of the the Nigerian based Arik Air, B737-7 and the Queen of the Skies British Airways B747-4.

Unfortunately, at the time of both our visits at around 8 AM when most regional flights were leaving, the lounge was at near capacity with few places to sit. The lounge appears to have wasted a lot of space in making it a full featured lounge, in that they scrimped on the actual lounge seating itself.

The lounge contained a business center, several stand alone tower internet computers, free wifi for 3 hours with a code, and separate tables, group workstations, and lounge chair areas.

Communal Business “Board Room” Long Table

There were some quieter areas in the back that were without windows and faced inwards towards the terminal. We ended up setting up camp there for the duration of our stay.

Like our experiences in the other South African Airways Lounges, there was a kids area in the corner that was surprisingly empty of toys.

Food and Beverage:

We were visiting during breakfast hours as we had a 9:40 AM departure. We enjoyed some light breakfast food snacks today. The catered muffins and sandwiches that tasted like they’d traveled a long way to get to the table…

Boarding was announced in the lounge and we proceeded to gate A21, which was approximately a 7 minute walk from the lounge. Boarding today was from a non gate position. Although there was a dedicated priority boarding line, it only got you onto the bus quicker where we waited until the bus filled up with all the other passengers.

The Bottom Line: South African Airways International Departures Lounge:

Overall, it was a more than adequate place to hang out for a few hours, but don’t miss out on the last minute shopping in favour of the lounge. The best part about the lounge was the large windows that offered great airside views.

Tags: JNB, South African Airways, Star Alliance Gold

Activity: Soweto and Informal Settlement Tour, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Posted on March 2, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Activity + Africa + Attraction + City Visit + South Africa + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + Trip Report

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While Johannesburg is one of the larger cities in the southern portion of Africa, it’s not always known as a terrific place to visit. While I had been through several times in the past, on this trip I spent some time actually getting to see some of it’s sights that it is known for. This included an excellent tour through Soweto and a visit to the Klipton Informal Settlement.

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Activity: Soweto and Informal Settlement Tour, Johannesburg, South Africa

Johannesburg has a reputation of being a “get in and get out” city, with few tourists stopping over on the way to Cape Town or their safari’s in Kruger National Park. The real reason that we wanted to visit Johannesburg this trip was that I had heard that tours were being offered of Soweto and the opportunity to see how some of the people have to live in Johannesburg.

We booked our tour through Themba Day Tours, specifically the full day Soweto and Apartheid Museum Tour. We received excellent service through Themba and we’d highly recommend them to anyone. They are among the highest rated tour on Trip Advisor with over one thousand reviews. We booked with them online and were picked up and dropped off from the Hyatt Regency Johannesburg in a semi private van.

Visiting the Apartheid Museum:

Our tour took us to the Apartheid Museum. Segregation starts as soon as you get your ticket – you’re assigned a race right away and have to use different entrances.

Walking through the entry of the Apartheid Museum

The museum was well documented given that the end of Apartheid was not too long ago. The museum (which doesn’t allow photos) was rich in multi media and contained interesting facts on apartheid. It complimented the Robben Island Tour that we took earlier in the trip. It’s a must see if you happen to find yourself in Johannesburg. If you’re doing this yourself, I’d recommend allowing at least 3 hours for a visit.

Getting into Soweto:

From the Apartheid Museum, we and were driven through Johannesburg under the Jacaranda Trees over to Soweto.

It’s worth noting that Soweto is a very large area of many different demographics and levels of wealth. There is a rising middle class here and a sense of prestige now with calling Soweto home.

On Local Highways with the Orlando Towers in the Background

The majority of local transport in Johannesburg and South Africa is by mini bus (shared vans). The locals use an intricate finger pointing system in order to tell the driver where they want to go.

Arriving to the neighbourhood of Soweto, we proceeded on foot to our next attraction. You can see the government row housing in the background of this photograph, in this upscale neighbourhood.

Upscale Homes with a background of government housing

Visiting a Local Shebeen:

Our comprehensive tour took us to visit a “shebeen” in Soweto. A Shebeen was the underground drinking establishments used during Apartheid by the blacks. They are usually found in the backs of houses, with secret passage ways out in the event they were raided by the police. They now are local drinking hang outs.

Local signs set out the rules of the house…

The Shebeen had the usual entertainment as one would expect from a local hang out location.

We were given the opportunity to try the local beer. At the time of our visit, it was sold in milk cartons for 10R ($1 USD) for a two litre container. It was similar to UHT milk that required no refrigeration. It is mixed to mix the chemicals to make the beer frothy. It is normally shared in a communal bowl (as pictured).

Local Beer traditionally presented in a communal bowl

The public warning sign on the side of the beer carton says it all about the realities of South Africa…

We also drove past the Orlando Towers and spent some time near the Hector Peiterson museum.

Visiting the Kilpton Informal Settlement in Soweto:

The informal settlements are often connected to apartheid in South Africa. An informal settlement represents illegal housing that has surfaced on what is usually municipal land. While an argument can be made that visiting an informal settlement can be a bit of exploitive tourism, I take a view that through education and sustainable tourism, the world can be a better place through understanding of issues that affect all walks of life. Themba Day Tours makes a contribution to each Informal Settlement they visit, and they spread the wealth so that no one settlement is treated better than any other. They are small steps but worthwhile ones when you consider the magnitude of the conditions facing these residents.

Our driver, Patrick gave us a basic explanation of the workings of the informal settlements (or shanty / slum to the rest of us).This was by far the most moving part of the tour. Our guide Patrick, met up with a local guide who was our escort into the Klipton Informal Settlement in Soweto.

It was a heart wrenching experience. Getting out of the van at the informal settlement, an instant smell came over us – there’s no other way to describe it other than the smell of raw sewage and decaying waste. The smell was strong enough to the point were some of the women on our tour were starting to feel sick.

As we were led into the settlement, it was apparent that none of the units had working plumbing or proper draining. Some had improvised electricity for lighting. It didn’t take to long to find raw waste / used water flowing through the settlement in make shift drains.

There is typically no running water in the informal settlements in each home. Water was made available through communal water pumps that have been installed by the government. The government, for hygienic reasons, has started to maintain the slums by installing portable pit toilets on a 1:20 person ratio and by removing trash. Clothes washing was done by hand.

Inside Informal Settlement Houses:

As we were led into a residence, our guide described the living conditions. The buildings are made with any available improvised materials. The structures have no heat and are often too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter. The buildings contain no cooking elements or refrigeration of course, so all food purchased has to be consumed right away.

Each unit sleeps eight people, with five elders on the elevated bed, and three of the young adults on the floor. I recalled back to that sign in the South African Airways Saubouna in flight magazine and finally understood what they meant when they asked for “no sleeping on the floor”. Eight people share this space.

The government “allows” people to reside in the Informal Settlements for free while they wait for subsidized housing. Our local guide had already been on the waiting list for 5 years.

It was quite heart wrenching to see children living in this environment. Most were thankfully in school, but some younger ones were at home.

As we left, we had a deep pit in our throats. It was one of the few times were I felt like emptying my wallet and just handing over the $40 USD that was in there. I really didn’t need it compared to the lives of these people whom are obviously just struggling to get by. Not a single person asked me for money while I was there.

Patrick indicated to us that Themba Tours had arrangements with informal settlements to bring in tourists in a sustainable manner. The arrangement offers a donation to the settlement, in exchange for safety of the visitors. The arrangements are varied across several settlements so that one settlement does not profit over another. Despite the dangers of Johannesburg, I didn’t feel any risk or security concerns throughout our day and our visit.

My thoughts on the Soweto and Apartheid Museum Tour:

An argument can be made that it’s exploitive to conduct voyeuristic tours through shanties for tourists gawking at the misfortunes of others. However, as a participant, I felt a better understanding of the challenges that informal settlement citizens face, in addition to the opportunities that present themselves to Non Governmental Organizations and charities that are operating throughout Africa. At Klipton, these people didn’t have enough food to eat at night, let along a roof over their head or comfortable living arrangements. By way of comparison, my biggest worry was waiting for the photocopier to warm up at work…

I decided at the end of the tour where to make my chartible donation for the year when I got home.

Tags: Apartheid Museum, Informal Settlement, Klipton Informal Settlement, Orlando Towers, Soweto, Themba Day Tours

Review: Hyatt Regency Johannesburg, South Africa

Posted on March 1, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Hotels + Hyatt Regency + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + Trip Report

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We had a two day stay in Central Johannesburg for a little sight seeing and city experience. With Starwood Preferred Guest not having any properties in the city at the time of our stay, we opted for our next favourite hotel chain: Hyatt and it’s property in upscale Rosebank, Johannesburg.

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Review: Hyatt Regency Johannesburg, Rosebank, Johannesburg, South Africa.

“A convenient business hotel in heart of approachable Rosebank Johannesburg, situated close to the Gautrain, and convenient restaurants in the adjacent Rosebank Mall next door, with an excellent spacious Hyatt Regency Lounge”

We ended up staying at the Hyatt Regency because it was a brand affiliated hotel that was located within walking distance of the Gautrain; two requirements, nothing more and nothing less. We had considered the Intercontinental at the O.R. Tambo Airport. However, I generally prefer to stay as far away from airport hotels as possible, given the price premium that they usually command, coupled with the fact that there is usually nothing to keep you entertained once you’re there.

As usual, we booked directly on the Hyatt website. We ended up redeeming Hyatt Gold Passport points for 10,000 points per night for the Regency Club Floor for two nights totalling 20,000 Hyatt Gold Passport points. I thought this was a reasonable point value compared to cash rates which were over $250 USD a night during our stay. The regular rooms were also available on a redemption for 8,000 Hyatt Gold Passport points per night. For those on a cash stay, there was a $30 USD up charge for the club level, which I though was also reasonable given that’s its pretty much compound living after dark in South African and at least this way, we’d have a little entertainment after our arrival.

Getting to the Hyatt Regency in Rosebank:

We departed O.R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg and located the connected Gautrain elevated rail system.

Unusually, the Gautrain is an elevated train and the platform is on the top level of the O.R Tambo Airport (instead of the usual airport train locations of being in the basement). The charge was about $15 USD a person one way. The Gautrain is the “safe” subway connection into Johannesburg from the airport. Indeed, there was a security guard physically posted to every single platform at all times and roving guards throughout the train during its journey.

After the one hour Gautrain transfer, the Hyatt Regency was located 100 meters from Rosebank Gautrain North Entrance on a broken and uneven sidewalk (without ramps) just one building past the Holiday Inn Hotel. It’s totally walk-able but I don’t know if your wife / significant other would approve unless they had a traveling spirit to them. Mrs WTS73 was okay with it. I would not attempt if it’s thundershowering or if showers are imminent since the walkway is not in any way covered and you’d get drenched.

The below photo is a reverse view from the hotel. The photo is taken from the hotel, and the station is the area surrounded by the green scaffolding with a white roof.

Walk from the Hyatt to the Rosebank Gautrain station

The Gautrain was a convenient way to get to the hotel, but it shuts down at around 8:30 PM. If you’re travelling with a lot of bags, or have a late airport arrival, a car service or taxi is probably better. The sidewalk between the station and the hotel is also a bit bumpy with curbs – some with ramps.

Arriving to the Hyatt Regency Johannesburg:

We were offered bag assistance as soon as we stepped on the hotel property. We were led over to reception by the doorman and the start of another very “cold” check in experience. At first, the front desk attendant glanced at my wife and asked “Ohh- there are two of you?” with a puzzled look. After some tapping on the computer, the answer was “We only have twins available.” She made a joke out loud about bumping someone else from a king but then ended up standing firm and gave us a twin at Room 826, claiming “It was what you had booked.” I asked if there was really nothing else available? “No, sorry.” I initially chalked this up to jokes sometimes not transferring well across international cultures and thought at the time that we would make the best of it.

Lobby and Front Desks of the Hyatt Regency

We went to the room with the porter. We had twins in Le Quartier Francais in Franshoek (and admittedly not by choice). When we got to the Hyatt room, the twins were very tiny (much worse than I thought) and were unable to be pushed together without major room modifications (i.e. removal of a coffee table and clock and phones in between them). I then made the mistake of re-checking the paper reservation and discovered that I had actually booked a Club King, contrary to the “It was what you had booked” that the reception had told me.

I was pretty much out of patience with all the hiccups on this trip at this point, lost luggage, flight cancellations and other interruptions. and I went back downstairs, paper reservation in hand. I politely asked for a King or complimentary upgrade to the next category of room up. I had made the reservation well over 6 months ago so I felt well within rights to at least ask for the reserved room configuration Furthermore the reservation specifically stated 2 adults, 0 children and we were arriving at 5 PM so not like we were the last guests in for the night. I think it was the fact that she tried to tell me that I had booked something else that was the irritating part of it that prompted me to act.

As a compromise, we were offered a on lower fourth floor and offered to grant us with the Regency Executive Club access. I accepted this compromise at which point the clerk entered into a long discussion with another manager.

A few more clicks and a “manager over ride” and we ended up not back on the fourth floor as proposed, but back on the eight floor immediately next door to our twin room. I wasn’t really clear whether this was some one else’s room or whether it was too much of a problem to grant executive floor key card access with a guest checked into fourth floor room. A bluff or not, but magically a room opened up. Obviously, the check in desk at the Hyatt Rosebank isn’t monitoring the inventory of what is available, who has checked in, or what has been reserved or aren’t telling their guests accurate information.

I’m no interior decorator, but the look and feel of the elevator looks nothing like the lobby or the upgraded restaurant areas.

The Room: A Regency Club King

Finally to our assigned room for two nights. The room itself was nice and lightly upgraded although it was obviously an older property and showing some signs of wear under the surface.

The room also had. chair as a small seating area.

The room must have had a soft update as there were some older touches to the property. The shower door didn’t close due to sagging. As a result, we had some water leaks throughout the floor after a shower. The gold motif also seems a bit dated these days. The toiletries were mid scale / upscale Pharmacopia.

They must have a few power cuts here – given the supplied flashlight. We were okay throughout our stay.

We noted another “lock up your valuables” sign, similar to Cape Town. Wow – many people must have gotten taken by this that they have to install signs everywhere.

Security Signs at Hyatt Regency Johannesburg

Keeping our security in mind, we attempted to use the safe. Except that the safe doesn’t fit a standard 13” Macbook laptop inside; it’s too small. Furthermore the safe is broken and not working as it doesn’t appear to have any power. On our way to dinner, we stopped by the front desk to address the safe issue. We requested someone to stop by to fix it. This time, a different staff member “I’ll send someone right up”. Sure enough, back at the room after dinner, some 90 minutes later, safe remains broken, unfixed and unusable. This type of apathy, or lack of follow up, seemed to be a theme during our stay.

The Regency Club on the 8th Floor:

I booked an club / executive floor since hotel stays in Johannesburg are pretty much compound living after dark. We spent some time in the lovely executive Regency Lounge. Usually, hotel executive lounges are mild afterthoughts without much space or nice features; sometimes relegated to tiny spaces off to a corner. The Regency Lounge itself was in an open concept format with no separate controlled entrance, which I think added to the appeal of this place. High ceilings also provided a nice airy feel. In terms of an executive lounge, this place has to rank within my top five in terms of space and comfort. It was among the best hotel lounges I’ve had the opportunity to experience.

The Regency Club’s overstuffed couches made for excellent relaxing. MrsWT73 in blue has me on ignore as usual. (laughing)

Food in the Regency Lounge: Evening Snacks

The Breakfast Hours were posted as 6 AM -11 AM, with Evening Snacks were scheduled from 5 PM – 8 PM. Our impression certainly improved after spending a little time here. There were double height windows that offered a great view of J’Berg and it’s Jacaranda trees. There also happened to be thundershowers tonight so it was a pleasant watching place. The complimentary hot / cold appies started at 6 PM, with free Wifi offered in the lounge only.

There was a complimentary bar service available in addition to self pour South African Wines.

We experienced very pleasant staff in lounge. They were willing to get everything at drop of a hat. This was a contrast based on our other experiences in other parts of the hotel.

Food and Beverage around the hotel:

Our first impression of the lobby was a large contemporary space. It had obviously recently been renovated with newer oranges and purples giving the impression of a very sleek space. This hotel was previously branded as a Park Hyatt but after closer examination, the property was clearly showing it’s age in both soft and hard product. After some time, it was apparent that only parts of the property had received the full refurbishment whereas a partial update had taken place on some other parts of the property.

On our first evening, we decided to stay on the property and have dinner in the lobby lounge. It was thunder showering outside and the lobby has large glass windows that look outside. It appeared that the roof had a problem with water containment as the rain was leaking through the roof and onto the floor next to the table. Overall, dinner was a slow affair taking 45 minutes to get food ordered and on the table. The staff didn’t seem to happy either. . . The food was pretty average but adequate for an on hotel restaurant, rain drips in the restaurant not withstanding.

Impressive Wine Racks at the Restaurant Entry

Immediately next door to the hotel is an outdoor mall called Rosebank Station. The area shows much better than the map on the website. There are quite a few reasonably priced restauraunts, including a Spur Steakhouse. It’s safe to walk from the hotel as access is via a security guarded walkway on the mall property. Despite the amenities and the upscale nature of Rosebank, Johannesburg as a city had an overall dreary feel of desperation to it.

My thoughts on our stay at the Hyatt Regency Johannesburg:

Overall, the hotel looks great on the surface. The rooms are nice and clean and generally functional. I had a great time laughing at all the issues with my wife; safes that don’t work, restaurants and shower stalls that leak water and rooms that comes available at a moments notice. Aside from the issues, the star of this place is the pleasant Regency Lounge with its high ceilings and comfortable lounging experience. However, admittedly, if I was traveling here on a business trip on my own, it would be a pretty meagre experience. There was little effort to resolve problems aside form the usual “I’ll look into it” with minimal follow through. However, I would stay again with some slightly adjusted expectations.

Tags: Hotel Review, Hyatt Gold Passport, Hyatt Regency, Johannesburg, Rosebank

Review: South African Airways A340-3, Cape Town – Johannesburg

Posted on February 28, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Airbus 340 + Airline + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + South African Airways + Trip Report

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Our Aeroplan Business Class Redemption had us breaking out journey on that ticket with a stop over in Johannesburg. Since most of the excitement (for us) in South Africa is down in Cape Town, we needed a short positioning flight to get down there. This segment is the return of that separate segment. We booked this ticket separately on the SAA website on the most commonly travelled domestic route in South Africa.

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Review: South African Airways A340-3, Cape Town – Johannesburg

At about 45 minutes prior to our flight, we left the South African Airways Cyobab Lounge and headed down to the gate area. Today’s flight was being boarded via the bus gate area. As usual, we experienced the African boarding process and all it’s usual chaos. This is how a domestic Airbus 340-300 is loaded. Priority boarding line? Not today… Not even an announcement for Voyager Platinums or Star Alliance Gold’s.

South African Airways Crush for the Gate

On Board South African Airways A340-3 Short Haul Domestic:

South African Airways
Economy Class
CPT-JNB (Cape Town International – O.R Tambo Johannesburg International)
SA 223 – Economy Class (V)
2:10 PM – 4:10 PM
November 13, 2013
Booked: Boeing 340-300
Flown: Boeing 340-300

On board, we settled into a 2-4-2 economy configuration on today’s A340. It’s a pretty standard layout for the Airbus A340 and it’s nice to have 2 seats to yourself as compared to Boeing’s usual 3-3-3 (or 3-4-3) seats on the comparably sized Boeing 777 series.

The usual chaos of boarding : on Board SAA Airbus 340-3

The seats had a video entertainment system, but for some reason it was not turned on for the duration of the flight. Those attempting to game the system by choosing a better wide body aircraft over a narrow body for entertainment purposes on the Johannesburg to Cape Town route will be disappointed if this is any indication of the usual experience.

A logo staring at you for all the flight

We had a nice smooth flight up to Johannesburg with pleasant views out the window.

The Meal: A Small Lunch Sandwich Snack

Again, reminiscent of flying 15 years ago, we were served a full lunch consisting of an aubergine pepper sandwich, complimentary wine service, moist toilettes and a toothpick.

Arriving to OR Tambo International Airport:

On arrival to O.R Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, we taxied to an international gate. Of course, in the organization of all things South African, there seems to be no interior corridor to take us to domestic arrivals. We were off loaded from the plane and immediately out the exit doors down onto the jetway onto the apron immediately below the plane. There were no buses available for some reason so we waited on the apron for 15 minutes for buses to arrive. It’s a bit unusual to have 250 passengers standing around on an apron, but guess it’s business as usual here.

Hanging out on the apron with 250 of my new best friends

We collected our checked bags before we transferred to the Hyatt Regency Johannesburg Rosebank via Guatrain for the night.

In closing:

Our South African Airways domestic flight was another reasonable experience offering wine, food and a reasonable wide body aircraft ride for a domestic flight. It’s always a treat to fly a giant wide body Airbus 340 on a domestic flight and this route was no exception.

Tags: CPT, JNB, SA 223, South African Airways

Review: South African Airways Cyobab Lounge Domestic, Cape Town, South Africa

Posted on February 27, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Lounges + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + South African + Trip Report

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Before departing the Mother City, we were able to visit the South African Airways Cyobab Premium Business Lounge Domestic at the Cape Town International Airport. Visiting a nice lounge is always a great way to end any visit and the South African Airways Cyobab Premium Business Lounge Domestic fit the bill with it’s beautiful oversized windows.

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Review: South African Airways Cyobab Premium Business Lounge Domestic, Cape Town Airport, Cape Town, South Africa

“Like many aspects of South African Airways, the Cyobab Lounge Domestic at Cape Town International Airport offers a spacious place with great airside views to relax before your flight.”

Arriving to Cape Town International Airport:

More Headaches with Europcar…

After the food extravaganza at The Tasting Room, the next morning we checked out of Le Quartier Français and drove the two hours to the Cape Town airport and returned the Europcar to CPT Returns. There was no roving return attendant with a printer here today, although there was a very through check of car including mileage, fuel level and spare and equipment.

I asked about the GPS that were were promised and proposed to be billed on the reservation. “Go talk to Bradley inside”. Bradley inside says we have a GPS on reservation. Can I have it removed? I’ll have to email you back later today. “I can’t remove it from here”. I never heard from him again.

“We will email you a bill”. A little strange to leave the counter without a final tally but it seems that the business travelers were doing this so we went with the flow.

As we mentioned earlier, four days later we received an email bill as promised with a 10$ charge on it for refuelling. The car was returned full and filled up for $35 less than 30 minutes ago. We emailed National at the email provided. We never got an answer.

Based on this treatment, lengthy initial process, unclear policies, failure to guarantee GPS when reserved and gas mix ups, lack of customer service response, I’d probably recommend renting some where other than Europcar while you visit CPT.

Checking into South African Airways:

We entered the airport building and checked in at the Star Gold counter at far left end of the Cape Town terminal.

Cape Town – South African Airways Premium Check In

Our two bags were accepted as checked bags without issues. We had elected not to wrap bags in plastic film for this short domestic flight. We had a few bottles of wine that we had purchased at wineries hidden in our bags for Mauritius.

Locating the South African Airways Cyobab Lounge:

We cleared through security and proceeded onto the secure side. We located a not well marked passage way to the upstairs domestic lounges and an elevator that smelled like stale smoke and sticky floors reminiscent of a pub that has been open for too long.

Access up to the Cape Town Domestic Lounges

The South African Airways Lounge was at the end of a long corridor. The left side was marked for Business with the right side marked for Platinum First Class. At the time of our visit, South African Airways was still running a premium First Class lounge for it’s South African Airways Voyager Lifetime Platinum travelers.

Accessing the SAA Cyobab Lounge:

The lounge was accessed today courtesy of holding Star Alliance Gold Status in the Air Canada Aeroplan Program, on a departing Star Alliance flight, regardless of travel class. The lounge can also be accessed with a departing flight in business class on South African Airways or connecting to another Star Alliance carrier.

South African Airways also affords access to those travelling on South African Airways Business Class, South African Airways Gold and higher (Platinum and Platinum Elect), and South African Airways Lifetime Platinum members. If you happen to be a credit card holder of the SAA Nedbank Premium Card and Voyager Credit Card issued by Ecobank, you also are lucky enough to get access.

Entry – SAA Cyobab Domestic Premium Business Lounge

Entry to the Lounge with the Reception Desk in the Foreground

Inside the South African Airways Cyobab Domestic Lounge:

We were give access and invited into the lounge. The lounge is some what split into two areas. It has a darker part that shares windows with the indoor terminal concourse check in desks, and a part that has great views outside to the apron. In its efforts to be contemporary, similar to the South African Airways Baobab Premium Business Lounge in Johannesburg, the area lost a lot of space thanks to curvy design.

The lounge really shines on the brighter side with the plane apron views. Unfortunately, due to the foot print, there are a lot less seats over here. As a result, we weren’t able to get a seat over on this side.

Looking through the Shadows of the Lounge

There was also a general computer work area with separate tables and chairs for eating, seen on the center left of the below photograph.

The brighter air side seats with a computer cove for twelve of your closest friends

In addition to loungers, the air side portion of the lounge also offered bistro styled tables.

The lounge offered WiFi with a free with code available at front desk. Unfortunately, there were no electric plug in’s near seats which were regretfully only for work stations.

In addition to the above amenities, the lounge also offered a children’s play area. There was also a media room for the adults.

The airside views were a great opportunity to see aircraft that I don’t usually get the opportunity to see back home. Today, we were treated to views of a Taag Angola B737 and a South African Airways Airbus 340.

Food and Beverage:

The lounge itself reminded me of a format that was much along the lines of a Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge.

There were some light snacks available along with an attended bar. The lounge featured self pour South African wines with 2 reds and 2 whites.

Saam Mountain Chenin Blanc & Stellenrust Chardonnay

The airport was featured as one of Africa’s Top Airports and placards were posted around the lounge celebrating this fact. I actually think that the Mauritius Airport is much better than Cape Town, and easily takes the trophy for the best airport in Africa.

The Bottom Line: South African Airways Domestic Lounge:

The South African Airways Cyobab Premium Business Lounge at Cape Town International Airport was an enjoyable place for a domestic lounge. The high ceilings, large windows and views of airside operations made this place an entertaining spot to hang out in before a flight.

Tags: CPT, South African Airways, Star Alliance Gold

Review: The Tasting Room, Franschhoek, South Africa

Posted on February 26, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Activity + Africa + Restaurant Review + South Africa + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + Trip Report

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While food is always quite good in South Africa, there are pockets where it is downright interesting and innovative. With an up and coming dining scene, there are lots of opportunities to try interesting restaurants for a rising middle and luxury class.

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Review: The Tasting Room, at Le Quartier Français, Franschhoek, South Africa

“Our experience moving through a ten dish tasting menu celebration, with no road map, by one of Africa’s most decorated chef’s”

During the time of our visit, in the restaurant research for the area, I focused in on The Tasting Room at Le Quartier Français by Relais and Chateaux. The Tasting Room is marketed as Africas most decorated restaurant, having won several awards and a spot on again at the time of our visit on the San Pelligrino Top 50 Restaurants in the World for 8 years.

The write up from the website read as follows:

The Tasting Room at Le Quartier Français is South Africa’s most lauded fine-dining restaurant. It is the stage to award-winning Relais & Châteaux Grande Chef, Margot Janse, and her unique African Inspired Surprise Tasting Menu.

Here, in this intimate setting, serious diners have the opportunity to experience a true journey of taste. With a menu that continues to evolve and astonish The Tasting Room, and its African Inspired cuisine, creates a dining experience unlike any other. One where surprise and nostalgia take centre stage.

In The Tasting Room every African Inspired dish is exceptional and engaging. Truly refined with a distinct feminine touch and, at the same time, unexpectedly exciting … exhilarating in fact. It is this contradiction that results in The Tasting Room menu’s outstanding balance and ensures that the cuisine is nothing short of a theatrical masterpiece.

In The Tasting Room the journey extends further than just phenomenal cuisine; it moves fearlessly into the captivating realm of stories and magic. A place where each plate, and its African inspired elements, have the ability to captivate the hearts and minds of diners.

The Chef, Margot Janse was highly decorated and has been credited for introducing tasting menus to South Africa. She has spent time underneath chef Thomas Keller at The French Laundry; a chef that also features elaborate tasting menus at his Yountville, California, United States restaurant.

Given the description, we were eager to enjoy a nicely wine paired menu, featuring the best of what South Africa had to offer. Weve been fortunate enough to experience food at many top rated restaurants across the globe. Each one offered a different vision on what fine contemporary dining was to them. Needless to say, the Tasting Room was an interesting contrast to our previous experiences with some unique nuances.

Inside the The Tasting Room:

We arrived to an 8 PM reservation. We were among the last tables to be seated for the evening. With me being aged forty years old at the time we visited, we were also appeared to be the youngest ones in the restaurant. The décor was dark but modern contemporary along with the lines of the rest of the Le Quartier Français resort.

We were presented with a glass of Cape Classique (local sparkling) wine to start along with 3 amuse bouches in a rapid fire delivery similar to what youd get when your order is placed on a tray at a McDonalds restaurant counter. Three servers dropped off a wine list, amuse bouches and a server stopped by to explain the dinner process. The first impression was one of flurry and of a rushed delivery.

The Concept:

In practical terms, the concept of the surprise tasting menu is a great idea. The goal of the restaurant is to feature local ingredients, presented in unique ways. Unfortunately, we felt a bit dissuaded by the whole dining experience.

The meals are each presented verbally as they are delivered, along with the paired wine. As you’ll see at the end of the post, the ingredients are hard enough to say in clear English without any accent at all. Having the menu items explained through thick accents by a different server ever time made it a bit challenging to decipher what it was exactly that you were eating. The plating was also different, in that it was sometimes hard to interpret what was being served. Perhaps you’ll be the judge when you look at the photos.

The meal should note that no menu is presented at this time, or at any time at all during the evening. We had to ask for a souvenir copy for ourselves after the cheque was paid. The idea is the meals are supposed to be a complete surprise. This makes choosing a bottle of wine from the wine list a little difficult, as you don’t know whether it will pair with whatever you are ordering. Thankfully, the meals ended up being paired with appropriate glasses of wine to accent the food.

Since we can do things any way we want on the blog, here is the menu of what enjoyed this evening.

The Surprise Tasting Menu – The Tasting Room

The Tasting Menu with a slight variation since MrsWT73 had a slightly different meal – The Tasting Room

Our first starter was a black snow with an onion crisp, accompanied with Foie Gras Chocolate and another dish that I cant recall, nor reference of what it was; it was off menu.

Unknown Bread Square Starter with our Main

A bread serving was presented in a Lucky Star Tasty Fish can. I might have the spelling or type wrong of the Tasty Fish. We were given the international explanation (that the presentation of the bread was meant to remind patrons of how fortunate we were to be dining here in contrast to the Lucky Star Tasty Fish can.

For those that aren’t South African, the Tasty Fish can was a product purchased by many poor people in South Africa as it was the cheapest canned fish available. Mrs WT73 found this concept to be a bit off putting when this was explained to us by the staff. I had a different take and actually found it to be an innovative and neat presentation of the bread course.

One the Tasty Fish can was removed, a delicious baked corn bread was found inside the can.

Delicious Corn Bread Presented underneath a Tasty Fish Can

The first item on the menu arrived, which was Beetroot, buttermilk labne, dill and cucumber granita, presented with Graham Beck The Game Reserve Chenin Blanc 2013.

The first course was followed by a salad described as: A spring walk through Franschhoek, poured with Altydgedacht Gewürztraminer 2013. It was probably the freshest salad I’d ever tasted and was deliciously tasty.

The third course was a small fish plate. Tonight’s serving was Eastern cape marron, cape gooseberry, lemon verbena with Terra Del Capo Pinot Grigio 2012.

Eastern cape marron, cape gooseberry, and lemon verbena

The menu continued to be a total surprise. However despite dining for two, the meals were not the same and actually two versions of the menu were presented with different wines poured as well.

Also, not knowing the menu in advance made it a bit challenging to know where you were in the meal process. Two starters? Two fish courses – is one of them supposed to be a main? Two desserts? One cheese plate? Migrandeses? It is all a surprise until its placed in front of you.

Our fourth course was presented. I had no idea what this was when it was presented, but it was called: Saldanha Bay oyster, vichyssoise, sour fig, roasted baby gem with Excelsior viognier 2013

Saldanha Bay oyster, vichyssoise, sour fig, and roasted baby gem

Our fifth serving was another dish which I had no idea what it was… it was described after the fact as Swartland guineafowl, waterblommetjies, porcini mushroom, liquorice root paired with My Wyn cabernet franc 2011. It looked like a car accident in space, if I speak truthfully.

Swartland guineafowl, waterblommetjies, porcini mushroom, liquorice root

Our sixth course was Paradyskloof quail, amasi, sweetcorn, granola and a glass of Haut Espoir rose 2010

Our seventh course was Baleni salt and kapokbos roasted guava, confit suckling pig, broad beans, fynbos caramel and Haute Cabriere unwooded Pinot Noir 2011

Baleni salt and kapokbos roasted guava, confit suckling pig, broad beans, and fynbos caramel

For the eight course, MrsWT73 enjoyed the nicely presented cheese plate, described as: Dalewood huguenot cheddar, rusks, mebos custard, currants and Allesverloren fine old vintage port 2009. The taste and presentation of the cheese was outstanding.

Whereas, I finished with a chocolate dish of Madagascan chocolate, cape lemon, holy basil. This was a two stage dessert which collapsed when sauce was added. It was served with a glass of bubbles: Morena brut savage.

After – a bubble under the weight of it’s sauce

As if that wasn’t enough, we had another round of Cake and sweets… It was presented in a whimsical toad stool format.

In terms of the wines enjoyed with the meal, the wines paired were general wines and not speciality or limited release or first growth wines. I suppose you could argue that all the wines in South Africa are special as they are unique to the region but for the top restaurant in South Africa, and possibily the continent, it was a different .. I was perhaps expecting nicer wines than ones that sold at the nearby Cellar Doors of the winery for R80 ($8) a bottle. Perhaps local reserve wines or something similar…

At this level, we felt a little underwhelmed about the whole experience. Despite this, the dinner presents value. It’s only $130 per person with wine. However, adding a spot for a gratuity at the end is strange when you have 8 servers bringing the plates out along with a head server and assistant server. How does one divide a tip 10 ways? I think an all in pricing would have been more appropriate at this level.

Overall, it was an interesting experience, although I don’t think either of us will be in a rush to return.

Our experience at The Tasting Room:

This was indeed an interesting meal. While it was meant as a surprise and delight, I personally found the concept a little strange. Despite the hundreds of fine dining meals I have had, this one did remain in the fore ground of my memory as a result of its unique presentations, innovative service and some bizarre dishes. In a restaurant branded as “The Tasting Room”, this measure of success was indeed achieved.

Perhaps as a person that likes to understand and examine the food, I personally would have preferred to follow along with a presented menu. Our experience felt a little like the challenge on Gordon Ramsey’s television show “Hell’s Kitchen” where aspiring chefs are asked to blind taste various foods. As a thoughtful and analytical person, I would have perhaps approached the execution a little differently.

Editors Note:

Since our visit, The Tasting Room continued to enjoy great success under the steady leadership of Margot Janse for twenty one years. She left the restaurant in 2017 to focus on Isabelo; a charity focused on reducing hunger in children in the Franschhoek, South Africa area. The restaurant space has since been re-branded into another format.

Tags: Franschhoek, Le Quartier Francais, The Tasting Room

Region Visit: Touring the Western Cape Winelands in Stellenbosch and Franschhoek, South Africa

Posted on February 25, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Activity + Africa + Region Visit + South Africa + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + Trip Report

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The Western Cape Winelands is one of the worlds’ greatest wine regions producing world class Pinotage, Chenin Blanc and other varietals. It’s marked with fabulous scenery and shows like a beauty queen much like many other parts of South Africa.

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Region Visit: Touring the Western Cape Winelands of Stellenbosch and Franschhoek, South Africa

We spent two days touring around the area enjoying some wine tastings at various wineries.

Wine tourism in South African has developed into a model that’s somewhere in between the commercial Napa Valley and the traditional French vineyards. Most of the tastings in South Africa involved being seated at a table and enjoying a seated tasting of 5-7 wines. The formal nature was a nice change of standing at the bar next to a motor coach or van full of people on tour. The disadvantage is that you can’t fit in many wineries in the day as it takes 30-50 minutes to get through a tasting.

I’ve provided a brief highlight of some of the locations we visited on this particular tour, instead of a more in depth look at each stop.

Cellar Doors with Cape Dutch Architecture:

Most of the South African wineries have beautiful Cape Dutch Architecture, which make for an interesting setting than the usual barrel rooms to taste wine.

Meerlust home of the “first growth” Rubicon:

Stopping in at Haute Caribière:

We found this to be one of our favourite with a particularly good Chardonnay / Pinot Noir. They also have a restaurant on site, which we did not try. This was very close to our hotel at Le Quarter Français in Franschhoek.

Underground Tasting Room at Haute Caribiere

Fabulous Tasting Patios at Haute Caribière

It has gorgeous views over the Franschhoek valley.

Calling in at Spier:

We stopped in at Spier, which is a large scale operation. Unfortunately, this meant a large tasting room without much history or personality.

A Visit to the Smaller Thelema:

Some wineries are of course, large scale operations, whereas some others, such as Thelema are more family run operations. Access to the Cellar Door is at the end of their farm access road, well off the main trail. We were treated quite well by Thelema with surprisingly nice wines.

Stopping at a Giant – Nedeberg Wines:

Surprisingly, for a large scale operation, we had wonderful private treatment from Nederburg when we turned up 1 hour before closing. We were treated to a quiet tasting on the outside deck with their premium wines:

The Nedeberg Visit was among our highlights given how nice the wines were and how well we were taken care of.

Goat-tastic: Calling in at Fairview

We also visited the bizarre, but entertaining goat tower at Fairview– home of the mass produced “Goat’s do Roam” wine. Everyone has to have a signature item, and this one is a circular climbing goat tower.

Picnic’s at the Long Table at Boschendal:

One of our other highlights was a picnic at Boschendal. We also arranged (reservation made in person a day prior) for a very filling picnic at Boscehndal. Not all picnics are served at the long table, but if you happen to be with 20 friends, it’s a pleasant way to go.

Passing by Victor Verster Prison:

Lastly, by chance, we happened by the Victor Verster Prison where Nelson Mandela was released in 1992. The prison is still a functioning prison but we stopped for this photograph of the statue at the front gates. We were able to relive this bit of history recently through the footage of Nelson Mandela’s life after his passing.

My Thoughts on Our Time in the Western Cape Winelands:

Our two days went by way too quickly. In the warmth of late November, we were often the only ones in the tasting room. It was a bit surprising at the level of attention we were able to get. I’d highly recommend a visit if your travels bring you to the Western Cape.

Tags: Boschendhal, Capet Dutch Architecture, Fairview, Franschhoek, Nederberg, South Africa, Spier, Stellenbosch, Thelema, Western Cape Winelands

Review: Le Quartier Français, Franschhoek, South Africa

Posted on February 24, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in American Express Fine Hotels and Resorts + Hotels + Independent + Relais and Chateaux + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + Trip Report

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No visit to Cape Town is complete without an experience visiting South Africa’s premium wine country. The wine areas are split between Stellenbosch and Franschhoek. Basing ourselves at Le Quarter Français was a great way of starting the trip.

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Review: Le Quartier Français, A Relais and Chateaux Property, Franschhoek, South Africa

“A Terrific Luxury Option for those looking to stay in the Heart of Franschhoek with easy driving access to local wineries, and walking distance to several in town Franschhoek restaurants”

A visit to Cape Town isn’t complete without a visit to the fabulous wineries that start less than an hour from the City Center. On my last visit, I lightly sampled the wine tourism industry by making day trips from Cape Town. Unfortunately, this led to a less than enjoyable experience thanks to the driving needed and I committed to myself that when I returned, I would have a longer, more immersed experience.

Le Quartier Français was the answer. It’s advertised as an “exclusive boutique hotel situated in the heart of the Franschhoek” that is affiliated with Relais and Chateaux and Virtuoso / American Express Fine Hotels and Resorts. The term “exclusive boutique hotel” can have many interpretations but we were really satisfied with our stay here.

How we Booked:

We picked this hotel because it was in the heart of wine country in the wonderful small town of Franschhoek. This allowed us easy access to and from the heart of wine country, without having to commute back and forth to and from Cape Town.

Our booking was made direct on the website of the property. If you can find availability, the property is also available for American Express Platinum and higher credit card holders through the American Express Fine Hotels and Resorts program, which would offer a noon check in (where available), a complimentary upgrade (when available), free wifi, complimentary breakfast (although our rate already included breakfast) and an on property amenity valued at $100 USD.

Getting to Le Quartier Français, Franschhoek:

We left Cape Town in our Chevrolet Aveo rental (driving on the left) and made the two hour drive to Franschhoek. Taking the drive through Stellenbosch, and not the faster M1 drive, we passed by the large “informal settlement” south of the airport across the M2 motorway on the Cape Flats. The poverty in near proximity of some of the financial wealth of the Cape Town made a stark statement of the poverty conditions of some of the poorest South Africans.

Checking into to the Le Quarter Français:

Arriving to the property in Franschhoek, the location was a bit hard to find. Marked with only a small pink sign on the main street, we drove around back and were buzzed into the main reception and gated parking area using the intercom. A porter immediately arrived to us parking the car. Receiving a bit of a cool reception, we were immediately led to the room. Our passports were not reviewed or scanned on check in.

The Room: A Comfortable Twin Auberge Room

We had booked a “Comfortable Twin Auberge Room”. Unfortunately, there were no king / queen beds today as they had completely sold out. The twins were pushed together to make a king size with individual bedding. There are limited rooms on the property.

The Auberge offers nine en-suite Auberge Rooms, three Grande Rooms, three Petite Garden Suites and two deluxe Auberge Suites (with splash pools). There are also “four state-of-the-art suites”, overlooking a private pool and sun-splashed deck.

The Comfortable Twin Auberge Room offered a colorful décor a small living space with an attached patio space and a stocked wood burning fireplace. I didn’t mind it at all considering it was a small inn in a small town in wine country but MrsWT73 found it a bit dated and not contemporary enough for her liking.

There was a wood burning fireplace in the room stocked with firewood, a flat screen TV and a DVD player. I’ll take a wood burning fireplace anyway given the right conditions.

Entertainment Amenities – a wood burning fireplace

There was also a small desk in the event you needed a a surface to write on.

The bathroom offered a heated floor and heated towel rack. It was comfortably spacious and roomy for two.

In the room, there was coffee available with Le Creuset cups. A mini bar was also offered with alcoholic apple cider and a bottle of South African wine. All mini bar items were complimentary, re-stocked on a daily basis.

At this price point, I was surprised to find a few maintenance issues in a country where security was of an elevated concern. Our front door, with a lock falling off its hinges.

Around the Le Quarter Français Property:

A fabulous feature of Le Quartier Français is the wonderful outdoor landscaping. Of course, the gorgeous scenery of being in the foot hills of Franschhoek certainly helped. It was very easy waking up to these views every day.

The property is also located on the Main Street in Franschhoek, making it a central location for window shopping or visiting local restaurants for dinner.

We also visited “The Tasting Room” during our visit, which was a luxury tasting experience restaurant.

Recreation at the Property: An outdoor pool

The pool area was hardly used by any guests during our visit. I couldn’t resist myself, taking a dip after a day of wine tasting. The pool was not heated.

Food and Beverage at the Hotel:

Breakfast was included in our rate in easily the nicest breakfast room I’ve ever experienced in a commercial hotel. During our visit, an entire wall of windows were opened, allowing fresh air into the room. A water feature fountain offered a peaceful soundtrack. I cant think of many hotel breakfast rooms that are as attractive to enjoy breakfast in as this one.

There were a mix of cold and hot features for breakfast. The service was much more attentive in the dining room than it was in the main part of the hotel. Hot items were also available at no charge off a menu, in addition to the fresh continental items on the buffet.

In addition to wonderful muffins, I enjoyed delicious coffees in Le Creuset Coffee Cups, an an Eggs Benedict with Watercress.

The Bottom Line on Le Quartier Français:

Overall, Le Quartier Français was a comfortable place to stay while visiting the Western Cape wineries. I enjoyed the property much more than MrsWT73 who found the property a bit expensive for the value received (nights started at approximately $400 USD per day). The breakfast room and the overall xeclusion of the property was a major draw for us, in addition to it’s convenient location. The property offered more hands off than hands on service, and we spent our down time lounging around the pool and enjoying the sights of this lovely corner of the world.

Tags: American Express Fine Hotels and Resorts, Franschhoek, Hotel Review, Le Quartier Francais, Relais and Chateaux

Region Visit: Where the Two Oceans Meet. Driving to the Cape Point, South Africa

Posted on February 23, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Activity + Africa + Region Visit + South Africa + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + Trip Report

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The Cape Point Drive where the two oceans meet is one of the worlds greatest ocean front drives. The trip is filled with spectacular scenery, breath taking vistas and unique places to stop.

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Region Visit: Where the Two Oceans Meet, Driving to the Cape Point, South Africa

Driving to where the two Ocean’s meet is an experience for anyone who visits Cape Town. The route is a full day’s drive. It is marked with views of the Indian Ocean, the Cape Point where the oceans meet, and the Atlantic Ocean on the way back.

How to drive the route:

During our time in Cape Town, we rented a car from the Europcar outlet at our hotel The Westin Cape Town. As Canadian based travellers, we found driving in South Africa to be reasonable and manageable during day time hours. Make sure you take a letter from your credit card company to confirm that you have car rental insurance to avoid unnecessary delays at the rental counter and the usual pressure tactics to take the car rental companies car insurance cover.

The approximate 150 kilometer route takes you down the coast from Cape Town towards Muizenberg Beach, along Boulders Beach where Penguins can be seen, down to Cape Point. After visiting the Cape Point, you can return through the Cape of Good Hope, followed by great views along Hout Bay, before returning to your hotel in Cape Town.

In our experience, the best way to drive the route is to take the eastern coast down towards the Cape Point, returning on the West Coast. This route follows the path of the sun, allowing for the sunniest photos and maximizes daylight. The trip is a full day drive, and the two times we’ve done it, we’ve always wished for a longer day before the sun goes down.

The First Stop: Muizenberg Beach

The first stop is near Cape Town. Muizenberg Beach is minutes from Cape Town central business district. The beach is set against the large mountains that border The Mother City and are home to some of the unique coloured changing booths that pock mark the beach. The place makes for interesting photographs.

Our Second Stop: Visiting Penguins at Boulders Beach

After Muizenberg, it’s a little ways south to Boulders’ Beach. It’s home to one of the highlights of the Southern Hemisphere, a spot where you can visit Penguins naturally on the beach. The area is so well populated with penguins, there are even road signs cautioning their presence.

Boulders Beach is a small colony of Penguins that started here in 1982. From just two penguins, the colony has grown to approximately three thousand penguins. It’s one of the few places in the world where you can get close to penguins in their natural habitat; only a few hours drive away from Cape Town.

It’s pretty interesting and engaging to be able to get up close to Penguins. They are pretty still and stationary creatures here at Boulders.

Penguins Scattered around Boulders Beach

Where the Two Oceans Meet: Cape Point

From Boulders Beach, it’s a drive down to Cape Point. It’s the spot where the cool Atlantic Ocean meets with the Indian Ocean. It’s natural to think of this as the most southern point on the African continent, but that honour actually goes to Cape Agulhas which is situated 170 kilometers east of Cape Town.

From the parking lot, it’s a short walk along paved paths to the view point where the two oceans meet.

A very picturesque area where the bodies of water collide.

Walking at the Cape of Good Hope:

Our last major stop of the day is at the equally scenic area known as the Cape of Good Hope. It’s almost adjacent to the Cape Point. What makes the Cape of Good Hope unique is that it’s home to several hiking trails, which can add some value to your visit as you get out to see the area. During our visit, we took in a walk to Dias Beach.

Walking to Dias Beach

From the trail head, we headed down to Dias Beach. It’s a breathtaking walk down.

Our Travelling Day at Cape Point:

Our day at Cape Point and its surrounding area was a wonderful and pretty day. I can’t encourage travellers who visit this area to visit this region. While a full day, it’s an easy drive from Cape Town. The highlights are Boulders Penguin Colony, calling at the Cape Point and walking on the Cape of Good Hope trails to Dias Beach. It’s a memorable day adventure everyone who visits Cape Town should try to do at least once.

Tags: Boulders Penguin Colony, Cape of Good Hope, Cape Point, Muizenberg Beach, South Africa

Activity: Visiting Africa’s Most Famous Jail, Stepping onto Robben Island Cape Town, South Africa.

Posted on February 22, 2021 By World Traveller 73 in Activity + Africa + Attraction + South Africa + South Africa, Kenya & Mauritius via SAA, Swiss and Air Canada Business Class + Trip Report

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A visit to Table Mountain behind Cape Town, South Africa is another essential activity to do when in Cape Town. A visit to Cape Town will leave these mountains seared into your memory forever.

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Activity: Visiting Africa’s Most Famous Jail, Stepping onto Robben Island, Cape Town, South Africa

During our time in Cape Town, we also took a tour of Robben Island. This story isn’t properly told without introducing Nelson Mandela. Mandela was a South African Anti – Apartheid revolutionary who fought against his country’s apartheid government state. He later served as South Africa’s first black Prime Minister from 1994 to 1999.

On his route to dismantling apartheid, Robben Island was the location where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for most of his 27 years in captivity. Robben Island is located off Cape Town and is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its importance to South Africa’s political history and development of a democratic society. It is also significant as being a jail for Apartheid prisoners including Mr Nelson Mandela who was imprisoned here for eighteen of twenty seven years in South African Government custody.

Booking and Getting There:

Robben Island is located approximately 12 kilometers off shore from Cape Town, South Africa.

In our experience, the Robben Island tours sell out quickly due to limited capacity and were booking full 48-72 hours in advance of our visit in the spring season. Advance Reservations can be made via the web. On our visit, we turned up in person at the booking counter on the first day and were lucky enough to be accommodated later on in the week.

The tours leave from The Victoria and Alfred Gateway from the picturesque Victoria and Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town, South Africa.

The Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, Cape Town

The Nelson Mandela Gateway Building next to the Yellow Swing Bridge Tower

The trip out to Robben Island is, naturally, by ferry. The ferry takes approximately thirty minutes from shore to shore. When it came time for our posted tour, we boarded the boat.

Arriving to Robben Island:

After about thirty minutes, we arrived to the docks of Robben Island. There are some pictures on the dock of past life on the island before you enter the gates of the Prison.

It’s a pretty barren and desolate experience on the island. Robben Island isn’t as welcoming as a resort, it’s a start contrast arriving here with lined barbed wire fences marking the jail boundaries along with stark conditions around the island.

Inside the Robben Island Prison:

Our tour itself was conducted by an ex prisoner of the island and are highly structured. You are escorted at all times and as a result, you’d be lucky if you get fifteen minutes to walk around on your own. Never the less, you get an opportunity to see many aspects of what would have been prison life during the Apartheid era.

Our guide had been imprisoned as a result of traveling to Angola for African National Congress activities although he didnt specify exactly. The advantage to having the prisoner guides are the direct connection to the history of the place. The disadvantage is that, with the greatest respect, their presentation skills arent as polished as a commercial tour operation and the stories can be a bit hard to follow.

We got the opportunity to pass through the interiors of the prisons themselves, along with the cell area and the dining / communal bunk areas.

The Limestone Quarry:

We were able to see the limestone quarry where Nelson Mandela worked and his cell where he spent many of his years in segregation. Many of the prisoners here were sentenced to hard labour which involved digging up limestone. This later resulted in many health defects amongst the prison population.

The Shore Line of Robben Island:

Lastly, we were given a look at the shoreline of Robben Island. While the shoreline had an absolutely spectacular view back at Table Mountain in Cape Town, it must have been haunting for the prisoners who were residents here… looking back at the mainland of South Africa from a far.

Views of Table Mountain from Robben Island

I felt that the island tour was a must do in Cape Town. I was really happy that we had the opportunity to take walk down these halls given the journey that these prisoners had travelled to get here.

Robben Island Summarized:

I felt that the Robben Island Tour was an essential part of our visit to Cape Town. Aside from being one chapter in a very fascinating political story, it is worth a visit to understand a part of what South Africa had grown into. Perhaps a place of pilgrimage for some, a trip to Robben Island is a means of understanding the fragility of democracy. My recommendations would be to make sure you book well in advance of your trip.

Tags: Nelson Mandela, Robben Island, South Africa, UNESCO

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Review: The St Regis Mauritius, Beachfront Junior Suite, Le Morne Peninsula, Coastal Road La Gaulette, Mauritius

How we Booked:

Transferring to the St Regis Mauritius:

Arriving to the St Regis Mauritius:

The Room: Beachfront Junior Suite, Suite, 1 King, Sofa bed, Balcony

A massive washroom fit for two:

A Room with a View:

Food and Beverage at the Hotel:

Coming Up:

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Review: South African Airways Business Class A320-2, O.R. Tambo International Airport Johannesburg, South Africa – Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport, Mauritius.

South African AirwaysBusiness ClassJNB-MRU (O.R Tambo Johannesburg International – Mauritius)SA 190 – Business Class (V)9:40 AM – 3:45 PMNovember 15, 2013Booked: Boeing 737-300Flown: Airbus 320-200

Boarding the Flight:

On Board South African Airways Business Class:

Pre-Departure Beverage Service:

The Meal: A Full Lunch by Reuben Riffel

The In Flight Entertainment:

My Final Thoughts on South African Airways Medium Haul Business Class:

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Review: South African Airways Baobab Premium Lounge International, OR Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg, South Africa

Checking into South African Airways:

Locating the South African Airways Baobab Lounge:

Accessing the SAA Baobab Premium Lounge:

Inside the South African Airways Baobab International Lounge:

Food and Beverage:

The Bottom Line: South African Airways International Departures Lounge:

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Activity: Soweto and Informal Settlement Tour, Johannesburg, South Africa

Visiting the Apartheid Museum:

Getting into Soweto:

Visiting a Local Shebeen:

Visiting the Kilpton Informal Settlement in Soweto:

Inside Informal Settlement Houses:

My thoughts on the Soweto and Apartheid Museum Tour:

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Review: Hyatt Regency Johannesburg, Rosebank, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Getting to the Hyatt Regency in Rosebank:

Arriving to the Hyatt Regency Johannesburg:

The Room: A Regency Club King

The Regency Club on the 8th Floor:

Food in the Regency Lounge: Evening Snacks

Food and Beverage around the hotel:

My thoughts on our stay at the Hyatt Regency Johannesburg:

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Review: South African Airways A340-3, Cape Town – Johannesburg

On Board South African Airways A340-3 Short Haul Domestic:

South African AirwaysEconomy ClassCPT-JNB (Cape Town International – O.R Tambo Johannesburg International)SA 223 – Economy Class (V)2:10 PM – 4:10 PMNovember 13, 2013Booked: Boeing 340-300Flown: Boeing 340-300

The Meal: A Small Lunch Sandwich Snack

Arriving to OR Tambo International Airport:

In closing:

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Review: South African Airways Cyobab Premium Business Lounge Domestic, Cape Town Airport, Cape Town, South Africa

Arriving to Cape Town International Airport:

More Headaches with Europcar…

Checking into South African Airways:

Locating the South African Airways Cyobab Lounge:

Accessing the SAA Cyobab Lounge:

Inside the South African Airways Cyobab Domestic Lounge:

Food and Beverage:

The Bottom Line: South African Airways Domestic Lounge:

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Review: The Tasting Room, at Le Quartier Français, Franschhoek, South Africa

Inside the The Tasting Room:

The Concept:

Our experience at The Tasting Room:

Editors Note:

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Region Visit: Touring the Western Cape Winelands of Stellenbosch and Franschhoek, South Africa

Cellar Doors with Cape Dutch Architecture:

Stopping in at Haute Caribière:

Calling in at Spier:

A Visit to the Smaller Thelema:

Stopping at a Giant – Nedeberg Wines:

Goat-tastic: Calling in at Fairview

Picnic’s at the Long Table at Boschendal:

Passing by Victor Verster Prison:

My Thoughts on Our Time in the Western Cape Winelands:

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Review: Le Quartier Français, A Relais and Chateaux Property, Franschhoek, South Africa

How we Booked:

South African Airways
Business Class
JNB-MRU (O.R Tambo Johannesburg International – Mauritius)
SA 190 – Business Class (V)
9:40 AM – 3:45 PM
November 15, 2013
Booked: Boeing 737-300
Flown: Airbus 320-200

South African Airways
Economy Class
CPT-JNB (Cape Town International – O.R Tambo Johannesburg International)
SA 223 – Economy Class (V)
2:10 PM – 4:10 PM
November 13, 2013
Booked: Boeing 340-300
Flown: Boeing 340-300