basantt

I'm travelling to S Africa with my wife.
Will arrive Johannesburg on Saturday morning and leave on Tuesday evening.

I'm looking for:
1. A very good hotel for 3 nights. Is there a way I can get a good deal for the Westcliff? Is the Hotel as good as it sounds/looks?
2. Is it better to go to Kruger Park for a night or to Cape Town for 2 nights? We just have Saturday and Sunday for touring and Monday for business.
Thanks for yr help.

luangwablondes

I found a price of $129 for the WestCliff. HAven't stayed there but I think that is a hefty discount.

luangwablondes

Double at West Cliff $166/nite. If you are going to SA, you might as well see the sights of Kruger or Cape Town/Wine Country.

africa_lover

another very good hotel is The Grace in Rosebank/Johannesburg.
http://www.thegrace.co.za/

it really is one of the most "grace"ful hotels for both tourists and businesspeople.

gard

Hi

I can't recommend a specific hotel but you should check in the Rosebank/Sandton area.

When it comes to going to Cape Town or going on a safari...that is a difficult question. If you haven't been to a safari before then it is a great experience for sure. My wife and I went to a place called Djuma Vuyatela in December last year and it was a great experience. But Cape Town is also worth a visit. I have been there 3 times and it is one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

I have posted trip reports with pictures from my trips to South Africa on my homepage http://gardkarlsen.com Maybe you can find some useful info there.

Regards
Gard
Stavanger, Norway

mkhonzo

I would not encourage you to go to the Kruger area for a night. It is like sitting down for a full five course dinner and only being allowed to have the hors d ouvre. I would recommend that you leave the safari element to a time when you can devote three nights to it.

Suggest in this instance that you do some touring either around JNB, if that is where you will be working or if you can instead spend the two nights in Cape Town that you do that.

jcasale

I second the recommendation to not try to go to Kruger for just one night. Even just two nights in Cape Town is going to leave you wanting more, but it is a wonderful city to see.

brandywine

I guess my opinion is opposite to most replies here, but I would take any chance to visit Sabi Sands outside Kruger. Cape Town is beautiful, but it's another city, while going to a Safari camp is a totally unique and exciting experience. However, trying to fly into one of the upscale lodges in Sabi Sands for a night or two will really blow your budget compared to going to Cape Town for two nights.
I'm not sure why you have two nights for Cape Town but only one night for a Safari camp.
If your budget allows, you would take the 1:30 pm Federal Air flight into one of the camps that Federal Air serves, (Singita, Londolozi, Leopard Hills, Exeter, etc.) spend two nights and take the 9:30 am flight back to Johannesburg (getting back to JNB about 11:00 am Monday morning). If you must get back to JNB earlier Monday morning, then you are more limited. According to Federal Air's website, there is a new 7:15 am flight from Sabi Sands back to JNB, but it serves only Singita and Londolozi.

Going to Cape Town would also be nice, and hopefully you would have time to go part way around the Cape or out to the Winelands, both very beautiful.

Roccco

Life is short...why not change your international ticket, even if you only add a day or two and then enjoy 2 or 3 nights in the Sabi Sand?

Celia

I vote with Roccco. Unless you know for certain that you'll be back in South Africa, why not change the ticket, even if it costs a little, and really take advantage of the country while you're there.

jcasale

Sabi Sands is fabulous and if you have a chance to go there, I would jump at it (especially if you can stay for a few days). We saw SO much there - 8 leopards, a family of cheetahs (mom and 2 boys), and tons of others. The only one of the "big 5" we didn't see in our 3 days there was a lion, but I have to say the viewing there spoiled us for anywhere else - it was that good. We stayed at Elephant Plains and had a marvelous time. Many of the people staying there with us were back for their 3rd or 4th time and I can see why.