Hearsh

I am looking for a nice, friendly place to stay in Johannesburg. I am a women traveling alone so safety is paramount. Also I would like to be walking distance from a good Africa crafts market.

So far I have found the following alternatives:
Parkwood guest lodge
Rosebank hotel
Hotel Wanderers
Melrose Place Guest House
Hotel Balalaika
Don Rosebank

I would appreciate any feedback on any of these or other suggestions.

Celia

I've stayed at the Rosebank (several years ago) and it was great. I'm a bit familiar with some of the others; know their names and/or general locations, but haven't stayed there. At the Rosebank, you'd be very close to the good African craft market just outside the shopping mall. Maybe someone else can be more helpful.

jasher

Hello,

If you'd like to be near an African craft market a place in Rosebank is your best option. The market is at its best on Sundays, when traders and craftspeople take over the roof of the parking lot at the mall. I've found that the rooftop traders offered better prices and less tourist tat than those in the permanent market area.

Of those on your list, personally I'd got with the Parkwood -- South African guesthouses tend to be very warm and welcoming, and I like smaller places. It's also within walking distance of the mall and the market.

Cheers,
Julian

ShayTay

As a women traveling alone, I have stayed at the Grace in Rosebank (different from the Rosebank Hotel). It's a wonderful hotel with a great restaurant, spa, etc. The hotel has an enclosed private walkway leading into the Rosebank Mall next door. As Julian has mentioned, the Sunday rooftop market on top of the Mall's parking garage is a great place for crafts, although there is a permanent marketplace nearby. The mall has some interesting shops, too. There is a movie theater in the Mall, which is nice evening diversion. I found it interesting that they assigned seats!

Hearsh

Juilan,

Have you ever stayed at the Parkwood?

suzic

My reccomendation is The Grace at Rosebank, there is a Craft market in the attached mall. There is also suppposed to be a FANTASTIC craft/flea market on Sunday mornings on the roof of the mall. It is said to be so wonderful that I am staying an extra day on this nect trip just for this craft market!!! I am also a single female traveller, and last trip I was with my sister (not very explorative, afraid of the police at the airport with guns-LOL). I am in law enforcement- and especially safety conscious- I can reccomend The Grace without reservation. There are also several wonderful restaurants in the attached mall (Great steak house), and The Grace has a wonderful spa, which I found especially nice after such a long flight. A massage was great to get the knots out before safari- really (and NO I am not Spa Girl-LOL)
Suzi

jasher

Hello Hearsh,

I was scheduled to stay at The Parkwood but ended up at The Grace. I spent some time walking around the neighbourhood while I was there and did drop in to the Parkwood-- the staff were very friendly and the place looked great. Unfortunately I left my camera in my room so no pictures for the Safari Photo Album.

I was focusing on less expensive places in my previous post, but if your budget allows for it The Grace would be my top recommendation; it's a very gracious (no pun intended) historic hotel with a good restaurant and unusually large rooms. The rate includes a bunch of complimentary services which are very nice: a 10-minute massage, café complèt (tea, coffee, and home-made cakes and pastries -- VERY yummy!) served in the lounge from 6am-5pm; daily newspaper; clothes pressing; shoe shine; use of the nearby Virgin Active gym; mobile phone loan (calls charged to your account, plus R10 insurance per day); and secure underground parking. If you make use of these services it's great value for money, and the hospitality is great as well.

Cheers,
Julian

jasher

PS Schedule your complimetary massage when you arrive (or book it in advance) as the spa is very popular, and sometimes it's a challenge to get in. I didn't do this and nearly missed out.

The mobile phone hire is great if you're particularly safety-conscious.

Cheers,
Julian

Hearsh

Now I am torn between the Parkwood and the Grace. What I like about the Parkwood is that it is small. I find that I tend to meet other people when I stay at a small place. It sounds like the streets in the Rosebank area would be busy at night so that it would be safe to walk around from the Parkwood.

While I can swing the 2700 YAR for the Grace, it just seems silly to spend almost $400 a night for a room. The only service that I probably would take advantage of is the massage.

Does anyone know if there is a way to get a discounted rate at the Grace? All the "discounted" hotel sites that I have found charge the same amount.

suzic

If you go directly to their site to book the room, I think the rate is about $295 USD a night. I just did this 2 nights ago for an additional night stay in June (I am going a night earlier than originally planned- to save on airfare). Google (The Grace Johannesburg)

suzic

R1880 is the exact quote I got!
Suzi

Hearsh

Suzic,

I get a quote of R2400 at http://www.thegrace.co.za. I even tried different months and got the same quote. Did you find another site?

suzic

The reservation came back through http://www.south-african-hotels.com
so you may wish to try them, but I am going in June, and I did the reservation thru the Graces homepage. I did (in the additional section) request the spa treatments that I wanted, and an additional tour to be arranged by the hotel for me during my stay, perhaps that helped???
Best of luck Suzi They are also listed on Orbitz, but I don't remember the price.

Hearsh

Thank you Suzic,

By going to south-african hotels I was able to get a reservation for R1810 a night so you saved me about $250 over the three nights.

If you request a tour, does the Grace find a guide for you or does it find a organized tour? If a preset tour, is there a list of available tours?