BA in Club World to the Western Cape
Dec 21, 2016, 10:48 am
#1
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: JER
Programs: BA Gold/OWE, several MUCCI, and assorted Pensions!
Posts: 32,145
BA in Club World to the Western Cape
OK, we are easily led, and when BA launched their new LGW-CPT route back in March 2016, there was a typical BAFT ‘Feeding Frenzy” … http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/briti...er-2016-a.html
Being a gullible old bloke, it only took a little bit of persuading by corporate-wage-slave and henkybaby and others on that Thread to persuade us to book. After a frantic 1h30m on iMac and iPads, and having squandered the princely sum of Ł841.44 and 137,500 Avios on 24 Mar 16, using a 2-4-1 Companion Voucher, we had Club Europe and Club World seats for JER-LGW-CPT. Then it was over to my wonderful iWife, who usually does the hotel exploration aspects … with the essential criterion that there are some facilities for smokers! And so, over the next few months, the plot evolved. Poking around the Africa forum on FT gave us some ideas, as did IRC conversations and much rummaging on TripAdvisor, and eventually by May we had a plan.
5 days in Cape Town
3 days in Stellenbosch
4 days in Franschhoek
… and, eventually, being able to spell all 3 destinations
So, having fully recovered from our previous holiday, it was time to pack the cases again and head off into the unknown! Our first Africa [although I will admit to an RAF refuelling stop at Dakar in 1983, where we stood by the aircraft at a remote parking stand].
Mon, 5 Dec 16
JER-LGW, BA2773, A319, G-DBCD
CE seats 2A/C
Our Island life makes this the inevitable start to any journey, and it was as unexciting as ever! Deposit The Cat at the cattery at 1000, Taxi at 1200, gently wander through JER Bag-drop, Security and Lounge, fly to LGW.
The winds were clearly favourable, as the flight time was 28 minutes - barely enough time to stuff down an above-average Chicken Salad with Pasta
There followed a brief wander around LGW(N) before getting into the temporary ‘First’ Lounge, aka The Clubrooms, where we lurked for a couple of hours. As with our previous experience, we were completely ignored by the staff, but we’re perfectly capable of looking after ourselves.
LGW-CPT, BA2065, B777-200ER, G-YMML (4-class)
CW seats 11A/B
At 1655, Gate 50 was declared, so off we wandered. There was a separate “Premium” line, which seemed temporarily inactive, but eventually started working, and we were processed.
“Good evening”, I said to the Gate Agent as I handed over my Passport and BP. Receiving no response, I repeated the message at a slightly higher volume. She reacted! Good start!! Having then entered the holding pen, we lurked near the ramp, awaiting developments … which eventually developed. Following a couple of wheelchairs and some babes in arms, we boarded …. AAARRRGH … a substitute airframe. Instead of our preferred 11A/B in the mini-cabin on the 48J 772 [excuse tech-speak] we were in the middle of the big CW cabin in a 4-class [AGAIN]. It transpired that a disruptive pax had caused a diversion [LIM-GCM?] and screwed BA’s utilisation plot. But then we’ve never had much luck with getting the assigned seats/airframe ex-LGW We were advised by one of the CC that the lucky occupants of the F cabin were selected on the basis of CIV: clearly our increased use of AA pushed us down the pecking order!
Whilst sampling the fizzy PDB, I looked around the cabin and realised that 12G was occupied by a mother with a lap infant. OK, it’s the other side of the cabin, so there shouldn’t be a problem. Ah, it is a problem! Within a few moments of push-back, it appears that the infant has had an explosive digestive event, and has vomited copiously over mother, the blanket and the entire seat area! Cue several CC [there were 5 at one point] attempting to clean up, and are still doing so as the aircraft approaches the runway with various ‘bing bongs’ warning the CC to sit down. Good start to the flight - and the CC resumed cleaning up during climb-out. I felt a pang of sympathy for the child’s mother: it must have been quite an event.
I was pleased to see a reasonable menu for a change, including a Starter that wasn’t another salad! Sadly, not all the wines on the Wine List had been loaded, so I settled for 2nd best … and as I seem to have lost the list anyway I can’t even say what that was!
Smoked Salmon … OK
Salad - whatever!
Garlic and Thyme Chicken Breast: moist and tasty.
It was an “OK” meal, even if the CSD did seem rather semi-detached to the extent of forgetting to get iWife’s wine. And then, it being 2100, I decided to pass the time by sleeping. To my amazement, I managed 7 hours before being awakened by the arrival of breakfast at around 0430. A perfectly acceptable ‘Full English’ got the new day off to a good start, slightly marred by the CSD managing to spill coffee over my wife. His offer to get her a ‘cleaning voucher’ was appropriate, although he failed to deliver it. Possibly the least effective BA CSD we’ve encountered.
………….
Being a gullible old bloke, it only took a little bit of persuading by corporate-wage-slave and henkybaby and others on that Thread to persuade us to book. After a frantic 1h30m on iMac and iPads, and having squandered the princely sum of Ł841.44 and 137,500 Avios on 24 Mar 16, using a 2-4-1 Companion Voucher, we had Club Europe and Club World seats for JER-LGW-CPT. Then it was over to my wonderful iWife, who usually does the hotel exploration aspects … with the essential criterion that there are some facilities for smokers! And so, over the next few months, the plot evolved. Poking around the Africa forum on FT gave us some ideas, as did IRC conversations and much rummaging on TripAdvisor, and eventually by May we had a plan.
5 days in Cape Town
3 days in Stellenbosch
4 days in Franschhoek
… and, eventually, being able to spell all 3 destinations
So, having fully recovered from our previous holiday, it was time to pack the cases again and head off into the unknown! Our first Africa [although I will admit to an RAF refuelling stop at Dakar in 1983, where we stood by the aircraft at a remote parking stand].
Mon, 5 Dec 16
JER-LGW, BA2773, A319, G-DBCD
CE seats 2A/C
Our Island life makes this the inevitable start to any journey, and it was as unexciting as ever! Deposit The Cat at the cattery at 1000, Taxi at 1200, gently wander through JER Bag-drop, Security and Lounge, fly to LGW.
The winds were clearly favourable, as the flight time was 28 minutes - barely enough time to stuff down an above-average Chicken Salad with Pasta
There followed a brief wander around LGW(N) before getting into the temporary ‘First’ Lounge, aka The Clubrooms, where we lurked for a couple of hours. As with our previous experience, we were completely ignored by the staff, but we’re perfectly capable of looking after ourselves.
LGW-CPT, BA2065, B777-200ER, G-YMML (4-class)
CW seats 11A/B
At 1655, Gate 50 was declared, so off we wandered. There was a separate “Premium” line, which seemed temporarily inactive, but eventually started working, and we were processed.
“Good evening”, I said to the Gate Agent as I handed over my Passport and BP. Receiving no response, I repeated the message at a slightly higher volume. She reacted! Good start!! Having then entered the holding pen, we lurked near the ramp, awaiting developments … which eventually developed. Following a couple of wheelchairs and some babes in arms, we boarded …. AAARRRGH … a substitute airframe. Instead of our preferred 11A/B in the mini-cabin on the 48J 772 [excuse tech-speak] we were in the middle of the big CW cabin in a 4-class [AGAIN]. It transpired that a disruptive pax had caused a diversion [LIM-GCM?] and screwed BA’s utilisation plot. But then we’ve never had much luck with getting the assigned seats/airframe ex-LGW
We were advised by one of the CC that the lucky occupants of the F cabin were selected on the basis of CIV: clearly our increased use of AA pushed us down the pecking order!Whilst sampling the fizzy PDB, I looked around the cabin and realised that 12G was occupied by a mother with a lap infant. OK, it’s the other side of the cabin, so there shouldn’t be a problem. Ah, it is a problem! Within a few moments of push-back, it appears that the infant has had an explosive digestive event, and has vomited copiously over mother, the blanket and the entire seat area! Cue several CC [there were 5 at one point] attempting to clean up, and are still doing so as the aircraft approaches the runway with various ‘bing bongs’ warning the CC to sit down. Good start to the flight - and the CC resumed cleaning up during climb-out. I felt a pang of sympathy for the child’s mother: it must have been quite an event.
I was pleased to see a reasonable menu for a change, including a Starter that wasn’t another salad! Sadly, not all the wines on the Wine List had been loaded, so I settled for 2nd best … and as I seem to have lost the list anyway I can’t even say what that was!
Smoked Salmon … OK
Salad - whatever!
Garlic and Thyme Chicken Breast: moist and tasty.
It was an “OK” meal, even if the CSD did seem rather semi-detached to the extent of forgetting to get iWife’s wine. And then, it being 2100, I decided to pass the time by sleeping. To my amazement, I managed 7 hours before being awakened by the arrival of breakfast at around 0430. A perfectly acceptable ‘Full English’ got the new day off to a good start, slightly marred by the CSD managing to spill coffee over my wife. His offer to get her a ‘cleaning voucher’ was appropriate, although he failed to deliver it. Possibly the least effective BA CSD we’ve encountered.
………….
Last edited by T8191; Jul 27, 2022 at 4:26 am
Dec 21, 2016, 10:48 am
#2
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: JER
Programs: BA Gold/OWE, several MUCCI, and assorted Pensions!
Posts: 32,145
Tue, 6 Dec 16
0430 ... Breakfast … huzzah! And rather tasty too!
Anyway, the view from the window indicated that the Captain had found land somewhere after his long overnight trek over the sea to the west of Africa. This is an important aspect of the flying experience! Huzzah again!
At 0745 we touched down at CPT, parked at a remote stand, and disembarked onto buses. Happily they did not wait to fill them, and so the first bus had us at Immigration by 0800 … to join a LONG queue already filled with the pax from a LH flight that had arrived shortly before us. Things moved rather slowly, despite 15 open desks, as most pax were going through the new ‘biometric capture’ process. However, when we reached the front of the line, we were sent to Desk #1 which just had manual processing - and one minute later we were sorted! So to Reclaim, where our 2 cases were already forlornly performing continuous circuits of the baggage belt, and then to the Arrivals area where we easily found the Rep holding our name-board to link us up with our pre-booked taxi with Rikki’s taxis *** http://www.rikkis.co.za *** for the fixed rate R290 ride to our hotel. Very efficient service from Rikki’s, with a good website and e-mail contact with their bookings team.
Our base for the next few days was Southern Sun The Cullinan, *** https://www.tsogosun.com/the-cullinan *** , chosen for a variety of reasons including availability of smoking rooms, and a regular hotel shuttle bus to/from the V&A Waterfront a mile away. The rate seemed reasonable for a City hotel: R19,260 for the 5 nights (or 1106 GBP/1368 USD at the time of writing). As good luck would have it, a room was already available … enabling us to short-cut the published 1400 check-in time. A very pleasant room (#714): well appointed and with a nice view over the swimming pool and a major road junction that we named “Malfunction Junction” as the traffic was forever getting snarled up at the lights.
Lobby …
Pool …
Room …
“Malfunction Junction” … with Public Safety guys over-ruling the lights in an attempt to avoid everything getting blocked up!
On arrival we unusually treated ourselves to a treatment at the hotel’s excellent Spa … one full hour of head/neck/shoulder massage for just R400 - bargain, and we consequently started the holiday refreshed … and of course, no jet-lag with just a 2hr time difference from UK.
The hotel rate included Breakfast, which offered a vast range of cold, hot and cook-to-order options: all very good quality, and loads of choice. At other times, we used the Stella Cafe/Bar, which offered an interesting range of Tapas options throughout the day (charmingly served in small copper saucepans), and which satisfied our needs perfectly. We are not big eaters!
Salt & Pepper Squid, w/ Squid Ink Rice, and Bobotie Spring Rolls.
Squid and Bobotie again, this time with and added pot of Malay Braised Sausage w/Roti and Sambals.
The staff were absolutely delightful too - friendly and attentive, and constantly checking up on whether we needed anything as we sat in the sun in the ‘designated smoking area’ behind the swimming pool.
Menu >>> https://d2qk001qea2413.cloudfront.ne...ember_2016.pdf
(Edit: I see the menu has changed quite a bit since we left ... and has even more items that we would have gone for in a BIG way. Damn!)
Nice wine list too, with wines by the glass (175ml) from R40 - R85 … this made testing a range of the local produce a cheap and cheerful option
Wine List >>>https://d2qk001qea2413.cloudfront.ne...tober_2016.pdf
That’s enough marketing for The Cullinan for now
Out and About.
The Victoria and Alfred Waterfront is one place you have to visit … a large shopping Mall with restaurants and bars and other activities ‘down by the docks’. Very nicely done, and a very agreeable place to spend a few hours. And. most conveniently, the Cullinan has a FREE shuttle bus operating continously on a 60-minute rotation: don't forget to tip the driver, it's VERY much appreciated!
We also wandered into the City, which wasn’t very far. Long Street, St Georges Mall [street stalls in profusion], the Company Garden and some interesting architecture also filled the hours contentedly.
Crowded pavements …
Tranquil gardens …
Typical markets …
Fine old churches …
… and much more!
The 5 days drifted by, with gorgeous weather [except for the one morning when it decided to pour with rain]. By the weekend the hotel was getting quite full, with loads of people wearing Springboks rugby shirts … at which point we discovered it was the weekend of the World Rugby Sevens! Team supporters were out in force, many in varying forms of fancy dress.
But it was time to move on to our next destination - Stellenbosch. We asked the Concierge to get us a quote for a taxi: he said “R 800, but you might be able to negotiate that to R650.” We checked with Rikki’s, who quoted R520 - that was an easy decision
……………..
0430 ... Breakfast … huzzah! And rather tasty too!
Anyway, the view from the window indicated that the Captain had found land somewhere after his long overnight trek over the sea to the west of Africa. This is an important aspect of the flying experience! Huzzah again!
At 0745 we touched down at CPT, parked at a remote stand, and disembarked onto buses. Happily they did not wait to fill them, and so the first bus had us at Immigration by 0800 … to join a LONG queue already filled with the pax from a LH flight that had arrived shortly before us. Things moved rather slowly, despite 15 open desks, as most pax were going through the new ‘biometric capture’ process. However, when we reached the front of the line, we were sent to Desk #1 which just had manual processing - and one minute later we were sorted! So to Reclaim, where our 2 cases were already forlornly performing continuous circuits of the baggage belt, and then to the Arrivals area where we easily found the Rep holding our name-board to link us up with our pre-booked taxi with Rikki’s taxis *** http://www.rikkis.co.za *** for the fixed rate R290 ride to our hotel. Very efficient service from Rikki’s, with a good website and e-mail contact with their bookings team.
Our base for the next few days was Southern Sun The Cullinan, *** https://www.tsogosun.com/the-cullinan *** , chosen for a variety of reasons including availability of smoking rooms, and a regular hotel shuttle bus to/from the V&A Waterfront a mile away. The rate seemed reasonable for a City hotel: R19,260 for the 5 nights (or 1106 GBP/1368 USD at the time of writing). As good luck would have it, a room was already available … enabling us to short-cut the published 1400 check-in time. A very pleasant room (#714): well appointed and with a nice view over the swimming pool and a major road junction that we named “Malfunction Junction” as the traffic was forever getting snarled up at the lights.
Lobby …
Pool …
Room …
“Malfunction Junction” … with Public Safety guys over-ruling the lights in an attempt to avoid everything getting blocked up!
On arrival we unusually treated ourselves to a treatment at the hotel’s excellent Spa … one full hour of head/neck/shoulder massage for just R400 - bargain, and we consequently started the holiday refreshed … and of course, no jet-lag with just a 2hr time difference from UK.
The hotel rate included Breakfast, which offered a vast range of cold, hot and cook-to-order options: all very good quality, and loads of choice. At other times, we used the Stella Cafe/Bar, which offered an interesting range of Tapas options throughout the day (charmingly served in small copper saucepans), and which satisfied our needs perfectly. We are not big eaters!
Salt & Pepper Squid, w/ Squid Ink Rice, and Bobotie Spring Rolls.
Squid and Bobotie again, this time with and added pot of Malay Braised Sausage w/Roti and Sambals.
The staff were absolutely delightful too - friendly and attentive, and constantly checking up on whether we needed anything as we sat in the sun in the ‘designated smoking area’ behind the swimming pool.
Menu >>> https://d2qk001qea2413.cloudfront.ne...ember_2016.pdf
(Edit: I see the menu has changed quite a bit since we left ... and has even more items that we would have gone for in a BIG way. Damn!)
Nice wine list too, with wines by the glass (175ml) from R40 - R85 … this made testing a range of the local produce a cheap and cheerful option
Wine List >>>https://d2qk001qea2413.cloudfront.ne...tober_2016.pdf
That’s enough marketing for The Cullinan for now
Out and About.
The Victoria and Alfred Waterfront is one place you have to visit … a large shopping Mall with restaurants and bars and other activities ‘down by the docks’. Very nicely done, and a very agreeable place to spend a few hours. And. most conveniently, the Cullinan has a FREE shuttle bus operating continously on a 60-minute rotation: don't forget to tip the driver, it's VERY much appreciated!
We also wandered into the City, which wasn’t very far. Long Street, St Georges Mall [street stalls in profusion], the Company Garden and some interesting architecture also filled the hours contentedly.
Crowded pavements …
Tranquil gardens …
Typical markets …
Fine old churches …
… and much more!
The 5 days drifted by, with gorgeous weather [except for the one morning when it decided to pour with rain]. By the weekend the hotel was getting quite full, with loads of people wearing Springboks rugby shirts … at which point we discovered it was the weekend of the World Rugby Sevens! Team supporters were out in force, many in varying forms of fancy dress.
But it was time to move on to our next destination - Stellenbosch. We asked the Concierge to get us a quote for a taxi: he said “R 800, but you might be able to negotiate that to R650.” We checked with Rikki’s, who quoted R520 - that was an easy decision
……………..
Last edited by T8191; Jul 27, 2022 at 4:29 am Reason: typoos and stuff
Dec 21, 2016, 10:49 am
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: JER
Programs: BA Gold/OWE, several MUCCI, and assorted Pensions!
Posts: 32,145
Sun, 11 Dec
Stellenbosch
Checkout from The Cullinan was at 1100, and the taxi [a minibus, to our surprise] arrived on time for the 45 minute/30 mile journey. Good roads, very little traffic, and there we were at ** http://www.eendracht-hotel.com ** , a charming little B&B in the heart of the old part of town. It proved to be an excellent decision on our part, with a very nice room and our own little private courtyard [where we could smoke]. R5754 for the 3 nights, breakfast included: a bargain! A very well-equipped bathroom, with separate shower and bath and all with hansgrohe plumbing fittings.
Inner courtyard and plunge pool …
Our room (#2)
Bathroom …
And little private courtyard, with ashtray …
As our room wasn’t ready until 1400, we strolled the three hundred yards into the centre of town and started exploring the dining options. We were spoilt for choice, but settled for dining outside at the Stellenbosch Kitchen [part of the eponymous hotel] for our first meal.
http://stellenboschkitchen.co.za/wp-...INNER-ONLY.pdf
Oh, WOW!
Steak …
And their twist on Shepherds Pie. Yes, that’s a huge slice of Braised Lamb Shoulder, with a potato topping!!
It was interesting to discover that all the prices, everywhere we looked, were around the same … R150-200 for Mains, R40-60 for wine by the glass. Oh, so cheap by UK standards!! (Our quick GBP conversion was divide by 2 and shift the decimal point, so R40 is a bit over Ł2).
Stellenbosch is a lovely little town, everywhere walkable and with dozens of bars, cafes, restaurants and shops. A most agreeable base for a few days - indeed, we now wish we’d stayed a little longer. Maybe next time, eh? Let me show you around with a few pictures, including the “Village Museum”, which is actually 4 houses furnished as they were at their time through the centuries [a most interesting and effective idea].
Essential shopping if you're a "Diamond Member"
The Village Museum … The Villiage Museum of Stellenbosch
The Toy and Miniatures museum … Toy and Miniature Museum in Stellenbosch, Western Cape
More food, this time at Oppie Dorp, Home another restaurant just down the street. We chose the ’Sharing Plate’, which comprised [clockwise from the sauté potatoes]: Duck Breast, Kudu Steak, Ostrich Steak, Springbok Spring Rolls and Crocodile in Tempura Batter. R600 [25 GBP/35 USD] = AWESOME!! And we finished it
With all the strolling around, we were frequently in need of refreshment and tended to pop in to [or rather sit outside] the Slug and Lettuce (Edit: 2017 ... now closed) where Madam would sip a refreshing cider and I would glug the local Castle lager … or we might have some wine, of course, depending on the time of day! A generous R25 bowl of garlic and rosemary infused Stellenbosch Mission olives was a nice accompaniment. They're not mean with their portions around here!!
Another meal at the Stellenbosch Kitchen [it’s so close, and almost irresistible] for Sea Bass [for me] and Prawn Risotto [for her].
Sea Bass …
Prawn Risotto …
And room for some Orange Tart, Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, Ginger Crumble and Créme Anglaise …
And, before we move on, I must compliment the Eendracht on their delicious breakfasts … hot or cold
We were really sad to leave, but this was just one part of the itinerary. We had done “The City”, then “The Town”, and it was time to move on to the “Franschhoek Country House and Villas”
…………………
Stellenbosch
Checkout from The Cullinan was at 1100, and the taxi [a minibus, to our surprise] arrived on time for the 45 minute/30 mile journey. Good roads, very little traffic, and there we were at ** http://www.eendracht-hotel.com ** , a charming little B&B in the heart of the old part of town. It proved to be an excellent decision on our part, with a very nice room and our own little private courtyard [where we could smoke]. R5754 for the 3 nights, breakfast included: a bargain! A very well-equipped bathroom, with separate shower and bath and all with hansgrohe plumbing fittings.
Inner courtyard and plunge pool …
Our room (#2)
Bathroom …
And little private courtyard, with ashtray
…As our room wasn’t ready until 1400, we strolled the three hundred yards into the centre of town and started exploring the dining options. We were spoilt for choice, but settled for dining outside at the Stellenbosch Kitchen [part of the eponymous hotel] for our first meal.
http://stellenboschkitchen.co.za/wp-...INNER-ONLY.pdf
Oh, WOW!
Steak …
And their twist on Shepherds Pie. Yes, that’s a huge slice of Braised Lamb Shoulder, with a potato topping!!
It was interesting to discover that all the prices, everywhere we looked, were around the same … R150-200 for Mains, R40-60 for wine by the glass. Oh, so cheap by UK standards!! (Our quick GBP conversion was divide by 2 and shift the decimal point, so R40 is a bit over Ł2).
Stellenbosch is a lovely little town, everywhere walkable and with dozens of bars, cafes, restaurants and shops. A most agreeable base for a few days - indeed, we now wish we’d stayed a little longer. Maybe next time, eh? Let me show you around with a few pictures, including the “Village Museum”, which is actually 4 houses furnished as they were at their time through the centuries [a most interesting and effective idea].
Essential shopping if you're a "Diamond Member"
The Village Museum … The Villiage Museum of Stellenbosch
The Toy and Miniatures museum … Toy and Miniature Museum in Stellenbosch, Western Cape
More food, this time at Oppie Dorp, Home another restaurant just down the street. We chose the ’Sharing Plate’, which comprised [clockwise from the sauté potatoes]: Duck Breast, Kudu Steak, Ostrich Steak, Springbok Spring Rolls and Crocodile in Tempura Batter. R600 [25 GBP/35 USD] = AWESOME!! And we finished it
With all the strolling around, we were frequently in need of refreshment and tended to pop in to [or rather sit outside] the Slug and Lettuce (Edit: 2017 ... now closed) where Madam would sip a refreshing cider and I would glug the local Castle lager … or we might have some wine, of course, depending on the time of day! A generous R25 bowl of garlic and rosemary infused Stellenbosch Mission olives was a nice accompaniment. They're not mean with their portions around here!!
Another meal at the Stellenbosch Kitchen [it’s so close, and almost irresistible] for Sea Bass [for me] and Prawn Risotto [for her].
Sea Bass …
Prawn Risotto …
And room for some Orange Tart, Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, Ginger Crumble and Créme Anglaise …
And, before we move on, I must compliment the Eendracht on their delicious breakfasts … hot or cold
We were really sad to leave, but this was just one part of the itinerary. We had done “The City”, then “The Town”, and it was time to move on to the “Franschhoek Country House and Villas”
…………………
Last edited by T8191; Jul 27, 2022 at 4:32 am
Dec 21, 2016, 10:49 am
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: JER
Programs: BA Gold/OWE, several MUCCI, and assorted Pensions!
Posts: 32,145
Wed 14 Dec 16
To Franschhoek, which took a while to get used to spelling, and means “French Corner”. It’s where the Huguenots ended up, after escaping religious persecution in Europe. So, a bit more French than the Cape Dutch bit in Stellenbosch. This time the transit was booked with the hotel, with ‘Winelands Shuttle’ in another smart minibus for the massive sum of just R420. And welcome to the Franschhoek Country Hotel and Villas http://www.fch.co.za for our ‘rural retreat’ for Part 3 of the trip. R14,800 for the 4 nights, pre-paid in full, and Breakfast included.
WOW, albeit with a small reservation which I shall come to later. The location is peaceful, the grounds are lovely [2 pools, one heated and one not] and our “Standard Room” met every possible expectation. Spacious, extremely well-equipped, and with a seemingly endless provision of free bottled water. And, unlike most rooms/suites/villas on the property, we had a huge balcony with the most perfect view. If you ever consider going there, ask specifically for Standard Room #2 … nearly all other accommodations look out at trees, or other buildings.
Pictures of room and view …
These are the ‘Luxury Rooms” …
Delightful gardens and grounds too … a real haven of peace!
And constantly refreshed free home-made soft drinks by the Pool [and ashtrays!] …
Breakfast included, and what a spread they offer!
OK, “Tourist Time” … with the free shuttle bus into the village [about 1-2 km away], and you can ask any local establishment to call the shuttle for a pick-up F’hoek is essentially a strip High Street, with a peculiar character. High End Estate Agents, posh Art Studios, a few Tourist Shops, and not a lot else, to be honest. OK, they’re big on the Wine Tours [no surprise] and they even have a rail line with a tram-car to take people around if that’s your thing … the rail line ran right past the end of the grounds.
So, how to pass the time? Well, we wandered [via the shuttle bus] into the village a couple of times, and imbibed a bit at the
http://www.elephantandbarrel.co.za in the courtyard.
We searched the shops endlessly for the mandatory “Been There” souvenir t-shirt, and came up with a complete FAIL as we had in both CT and S’bosch. They existed, but not to our taste [which is quite modest and adult!].
We walked to the far end of the village to visit the Huguenot Museum [no photography allowed inside, but a lovely setting].
http://www.museum.co.za
And we were LAZY … breakfast, pool or town, eat and drink … which leads me inevitably to the food aspect. The establishment has a ‘posh’ restaurant, where we dined on the first evening. http://www.monneaux.co.za
Charming! There was however, a slight snag … they don’t open until 1930, and we prefer to eat late afternoon. Anyway, we gave it a try. The menu is severely over-complicated, and frankly we couldn’t be bothered to wade through its pretentious complexity. We settled for the 3-course menu option: it was “OK”, but we were left slightly unimpressed by both the presentation and the service. Our waiter was clearly struggling with taking orders in what was. for him, a 3rd language, and had to laboriously write out each order item in full, and the service was a bit untidy/random. After that experience, we decided we would try to find somewhere else to dine.
The solution to eating sat conveniently right next door at The Village Grill … open all day, and specialising in steaks.
http://villagegrill.co.za
A very comfortable setting, with a lovely garden, and jolly good food! The wine ‘by the glass’ actually comes in a little 250ml carafe - a nice touch. Apart from eating steaks, we also enjoyed Roast Pork Belly, Karoo Lamb Chops, and the Linefish of the Day which turned out to be Kingklip http://www.ij.co.za/kingklip/ and was absolutely delicious. Add one more unusual foodstuff to the list
Sadly, with the end of the trip looming, we headed for Reception to check on the taxi fare to CPT. They quoted R1000, Rikki’s quoted R900 by email, and we decided to go with the hotel’s option. “Pick-up at 1500, please.”
…………………………….
To Franschhoek, which took a while to get used to spelling, and means “French Corner”. It’s where the Huguenots ended up, after escaping religious persecution in Europe. So, a bit more French than the Cape Dutch bit in Stellenbosch. This time the transit was booked with the hotel, with ‘Winelands Shuttle’ in another smart minibus for the massive sum of just R420. And welcome to the Franschhoek Country Hotel and Villas http://www.fch.co.za for our ‘rural retreat’ for Part 3 of the trip. R14,800 for the 4 nights, pre-paid in full, and Breakfast included.
WOW, albeit with a small reservation which I shall come to later. The location is peaceful, the grounds are lovely [2 pools, one heated and one not] and our “Standard Room” met every possible expectation. Spacious, extremely well-equipped, and with a seemingly endless provision of free bottled water. And, unlike most rooms/suites/villas on the property, we had a huge balcony with the most perfect view. If you ever consider going there, ask specifically for Standard Room #2 … nearly all other accommodations look out at trees, or other buildings.
Pictures of room and view …
These are the ‘Luxury Rooms” …
Delightful gardens and grounds too … a real haven of peace!
And constantly refreshed free home-made soft drinks by the Pool [and ashtrays!] …
Breakfast included, and what a spread they offer!
OK, “Tourist Time” … with the free shuttle bus into the village [about 1-2 km away], and you can ask any local establishment to call the shuttle for a pick-up
F’hoek is essentially a strip High Street, with a peculiar character. High End Estate Agents, posh Art Studios, a few Tourist Shops, and not a lot else, to be honest. OK, they’re big on the Wine Tours [no surprise] and they even have a rail line with a tram-car to take people around if that’s your thing … the rail line ran right past the end of the grounds.So, how to pass the time? Well, we wandered [via the shuttle bus] into the village a couple of times, and imbibed a bit at the
http://www.elephantandbarrel.co.za in the courtyard.
We searched the shops endlessly for the mandatory “Been There” souvenir t-shirt, and came up with a complete FAIL as we had in both CT and S’bosch. They existed, but not to our taste [which is quite modest and adult!].
We walked to the far end of the village to visit the Huguenot Museum [no photography allowed inside, but a lovely setting].
http://www.museum.co.za
And we were LAZY … breakfast, pool or town, eat and drink … which leads me inevitably to the food aspect. The establishment has a ‘posh’ restaurant, where we dined on the first evening. http://www.monneaux.co.za
Charming! There was however, a slight snag … they don’t open until 1930, and we prefer to eat late afternoon. Anyway, we gave it a try. The menu is severely over-complicated, and frankly we couldn’t be bothered to wade through its pretentious complexity. We settled for the 3-course menu option: it was “OK”, but we were left slightly unimpressed by both the presentation and the service. Our waiter was clearly struggling with taking orders in what was. for him, a 3rd language, and had to laboriously write out each order item in full, and the service was a bit untidy/random. After that experience, we decided we would try to find somewhere else to dine.
The solution to eating sat conveniently right next door at The Village Grill … open all day, and specialising in steaks.
http://villagegrill.co.za
A very comfortable setting, with a lovely garden, and jolly good food! The wine ‘by the glass’ actually comes in a little 250ml carafe - a nice touch. Apart from eating steaks, we also enjoyed Roast Pork Belly, Karoo Lamb Chops, and the Linefish of the Day which turned out to be Kingklip http://www.ij.co.za/kingklip/ and was absolutely delicious. Add one more unusual foodstuff to the list
Sadly, with the end of the trip looming, we headed for Reception to check on the taxi fare to CPT. They quoted R1000, Rikki’s quoted R900 by email, and we decided to go with the hotel’s option. “Pick-up at 1500, please.”
…………………………….
Last edited by T8191; Jul 27, 2022 at 4:35 am Reason: "Franschhoek" strikes again!
Dec 21, 2016, 10:50 am
#5
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: JER
Programs: BA Gold/OWE, several MUCCI, and assorted Pensions!
Posts: 32,145
The Journey Home
Sun, 18 Dec 16.
Time to go home
We checked out at 1100, and relaxed in one of the hotel’s Lounges and Terraces until 1445 when we wandered back to Reception. And there was our driver, who had already loaded our cases into his BMW. We were on the road at 1450, and reached the airport at 1530.
CPT-LGW, BA2064, B777-200, G-YMMC (48J)
CW seats 11A/B
A short walk from kerbside to the BA desks in Departures (Desk #s in the mid-30s, and clearly signed), where we exercised our BAEC Gold privileges and headed for the First desk. There we encountered a mournful, unsmiling and dour agent who tagged our bags through to JER, and handed us our BPs for both sectors. From there is was but a few steps to the barriers for entering Security (International on the left, Domestic on the right) which was clearly visible from the Departures area. The queue only took 5 minutes of so to navigate, screening was quick and easy [or, indeed, perfunctory] and was followed by a couple of minutes waiting for Immigration to ensure we were leaving the country. And there we were, in the International Departures area, with the usual collection of shops and Duty-Free sales.
A quick explore of the International Gates area [about 400 yards long] revealed the BA Lounge at the far end, and a Smoking Lounge down one floor at the end we entered … huzzah! A bit of light retail, including some DF cigarettes at R365/200, was followed by a visit to the Smoking Lounge. Now I know this will be of minimal interest to most of you, but for those of us cursed with the addiction it’s important! Not only does it have plenty of seating, it has effective air conditioning, numerous power points and [incredibly] a Bar! It also has a view over the Arrivals area.
Our needs satisfied, we returned to the Gate area and headed for the BA Lounge … which was very nice! A good range of cold and hot food, and a predictably decent Wine selection, and power/USB points in profusion.
Boarding started at 1825 at Gate A3, with a proper barrier area on the right for Priority pax. We followed the solitary wheelchair pax and were quickly installed in 11A/B, relieved to find that it was indeed the proper aircraft as per booking! The sight of a rather active toddler in 11E had us slightly nervous, although it transpired that the little one slept most of the way … at least, we never heard a sound from it.
The PDB was served and consumed, although iWife’s glass was collected before she’d even finished it! Having pushed back at 1908, we enjoyed a manual safety demo, as the IFE wasn’t performing properly [oh, dear, here we go, BA strikes again], and were safely airborne at 1922. At this point iWife discovered her IFE screen wouldn’t stay in the deployed position, whilst my screen kept opening the side menu and wouldn’t actually let me select any entertainment items. The CSD performed some wedge-engineering with a wad of cardboard at 11A, and I just picked up my Kindle in 11B and forgot about IFE altogether. On a positive note, at this stage one of the CC firmly closed and buttoned down the curtain separating WT+ from CW … excellent, I wasn’t wanting a continuous stream of WT+ pax wandering past my seat all night, heading for our toilets!
On the first drinks run, iWife asked for a glass of the Brut Rosé, only to be told “It’s not on the trolley, we’re getting it chilled.” It transpired that the bar trolleys had been left on board in the sun all day, with the inevitable consequences. Oh, well, this is BA after all We watched the sun setting as we climbed to high altitude, and after iWife had cleaned the greasy fingerprints off the window with a splash of my Vodka, I was able to take a ‘pretty photo’.
Time for Dinner, BA-style, which was actually rather better than usual.
Starter … Smoked Tuna Carpaccio, and rather nice.
Main … I went for the pan-fried Namibian hake fillet, which was also very nice, and allowed me to avoid another BA dead steak!
I also checked up on the state of the Club Kitchen, which seemed quite well stocked.
And then I grabbed a few hours sleep, successfully, before being woken at 0300 (is that GMT now?) for breakfast. A cold platter sufficed, as there would be more breakfasts to come today.
Mon 19 Dec 16
It’s dark outside, and undoubtedly colder than I’ve become used to lately, as we land gently at 0440. The aircraft parks somewhere with an airbridge, and off we wander along LGW’s windowless passageways, to arrive at the UK Border at 0500. Which is deserted, except for the 2 pax in front of us who walked slightly faster than us. A Tensa barrier is unclipped, several e-passport gates are open and working, and there we are … land-side in UK again! A quick cigarette or two outside in the cold and dark, then back up to Departures, where we breeze through Premium Gatwick Security with no hold-up at all. The rest of Security seems to be heaving, even at this early hour, and when we enter the main Terminal area it’s packed already … thank heavens for Lounges! We reach the BA Desk at No 1 just after 0600, to be advised that The Clubrooms isn’t open yet - and so slump in The Library. We shall survive, it’s only an hour until the last leg!
LGW-JER, BA2770, A319, G-DBCD [yes, again, the tatty Dove]
CE seats 2A/C
0700 … head for gate 45L and at 0710 hop on the bus. A short tour of the back end of LGW gets us on board at 0718, where we wait for the stragglers on the next bus. And then at 0745 the Captain speaks, saying that there are a couple of No-Show pax, and their bags are being extracted from the hold. How do people manage to do that? Eventually we push back at 0800, trundle round the airport for a 09 departure, and get away at 0820. By 0825 Breakfast is being served, scoffed down quickly as usual, and at 0855 we’re back on terra firma … home at last! From Reclaim we watched the Swissport baggage manglers hurling cases from the hold onto their flat-bed truck, which were then driven the 10 yards to the luggage belt [thud, bang, crash again]. Our 2 cases survived the journey intact, although one bore extensive evidence of a major red wine spillage from someone else’s case … I’m guessing someone didn’t pack their wine purchase carefully enough to survive Swissport Jersey! Fortunately it was only external spillage: our contents were unharmed.
And that was it … taxi home, rescue The Cat, and get back to reality again.
……………
Reflections.
It was an absolutely superb holiday, and our initial reticence about venturing into an unknown country was quickly dispelled. Each of the 3 locations and associated accommodation were interestingly different, and yet all extremely comfortable. I publicly thank my wonderful iWife for her researches in that respect - well done, beloved! The food and drink everywhere was delicious, and sensibly priced … we will start dieting again after Christmas!! And with just one day’s exception, the weather was simply glorious. Clear blue skies and 30şC+. Yes, we would like to do this again, almost identically but perhaps trading one day in CT for an extra day in Stellenbosch.
BA performed as it usually does … inconsistently! The food on the l/h sectors was generally OK, and certainly better than we have encountered recently on l/h TATL. The CC ranged from fairly useless to efficient: the only bright spot was the lady CSD on the way home, who was the only one to welcome us BAEC Golden Oldies by name.. The niggling little failings of the hard product continue to annoy: duff IFE, greasy fingerprints all over a window, inadequate pillows … and of course, no bread plate But it was safe, and punctual, and on this occasion cheap!
That’s it, I think. Thanks for reading!
“Uncle T”
Sun, 18 Dec 16.
Time to go home
We checked out at 1100, and relaxed in one of the hotel’s Lounges and Terraces until 1445 when we wandered back to Reception. And there was our driver, who had already loaded our cases into his BMW. We were on the road at 1450, and reached the airport at 1530.CPT-LGW, BA2064, B777-200, G-YMMC (48J)
CW seats 11A/B
A short walk from kerbside to the BA desks in Departures (Desk #s in the mid-30s, and clearly signed), where we exercised our BAEC Gold privileges and headed for the First desk. There we encountered a mournful, unsmiling and dour agent who tagged our bags through to JER, and handed us our BPs for both sectors. From there is was but a few steps to the barriers for entering Security (International on the left, Domestic on the right) which was clearly visible from the Departures area. The queue only took 5 minutes of so to navigate, screening was quick and easy [or, indeed, perfunctory] and was followed by a couple of minutes waiting for Immigration to ensure we were leaving the country. And there we were, in the International Departures area, with the usual collection of shops and Duty-Free sales.
A quick explore of the International Gates area [about 400 yards long] revealed the BA Lounge at the far end, and a Smoking Lounge down one floor at the end we entered … huzzah! A bit of light retail, including some DF cigarettes at R365/200, was followed by a visit to the Smoking Lounge. Now I know this will be of minimal interest to most of you, but for those of us cursed with the addiction it’s important! Not only does it have plenty of seating, it has effective air conditioning, numerous power points and [incredibly] a Bar! It also has a view over the Arrivals area.
Our needs satisfied, we returned to the Gate area and headed for the BA Lounge … which was very nice! A good range of cold and hot food, and a predictably decent Wine selection, and power/USB points in profusion.
Boarding started at 1825 at Gate A3, with a proper barrier area on the right for Priority pax. We followed the solitary wheelchair pax and were quickly installed in 11A/B, relieved to find that it was indeed the proper aircraft as per booking! The sight of a rather active toddler in 11E had us slightly nervous, although it transpired that the little one slept most of the way … at least, we never heard a sound from it.
The PDB was served and consumed, although iWife’s glass was collected before she’d even finished it! Having pushed back at 1908, we enjoyed a manual safety demo, as the IFE wasn’t performing properly [oh, dear, here we go, BA strikes again], and were safely airborne at 1922. At this point iWife discovered her IFE screen wouldn’t stay in the deployed position, whilst my screen kept opening the side menu and wouldn’t actually let me select any entertainment items. The CSD performed some wedge-engineering with a wad of cardboard at 11A, and I just picked up my Kindle in 11B and forgot about IFE altogether. On a positive note, at this stage one of the CC firmly closed and buttoned down the curtain separating WT+ from CW … excellent, I wasn’t wanting a continuous stream of WT+ pax wandering past my seat all night, heading for our toilets!
On the first drinks run, iWife asked for a glass of the Brut Rosé, only to be told “It’s not on the trolley, we’re getting it chilled.” It transpired that the bar trolleys had been left on board in the sun all day, with the inevitable consequences. Oh, well, this is BA after all
We watched the sun setting as we climbed to high altitude, and after iWife had cleaned the greasy fingerprints off the window with a splash of my Vodka, I was able to take a ‘pretty photo’.Time for Dinner, BA-style, which was actually rather better than usual.
Starter … Smoked Tuna Carpaccio, and rather nice.
Main … I went for the pan-fried Namibian hake fillet, which was also very nice, and allowed me to avoid another BA dead steak!
I also checked up on the state of the Club Kitchen, which seemed quite well stocked.
And then I grabbed a few hours sleep, successfully, before being woken at 0300 (is that GMT now?) for breakfast. A cold platter sufficed, as there would be more breakfasts to come today.
Mon 19 Dec 16
It’s dark outside, and undoubtedly colder than I’ve become used to lately, as we land gently at 0440. The aircraft parks somewhere with an airbridge, and off we wander along LGW’s windowless passageways, to arrive at the UK Border at 0500. Which is deserted, except for the 2 pax in front of us who walked slightly faster than us. A Tensa barrier is unclipped, several e-passport gates are open and working, and there we are … land-side in UK again! A quick cigarette or two outside in the cold and dark, then back up to Departures, where we breeze through Premium Gatwick Security with no hold-up at all. The rest of Security seems to be heaving, even at this early hour, and when we enter the main Terminal area it’s packed already … thank heavens for Lounges! We reach the BA Desk at No 1 just after 0600, to be advised that The Clubrooms isn’t open yet - and so slump in The Library. We shall survive, it’s only an hour until the last leg!
LGW-JER, BA2770, A319, G-DBCD [yes, again, the tatty Dove
]CE seats 2A/C
0700 … head for gate 45L and at 0710 hop on the bus. A short tour of the back end of LGW gets us on board at 0718, where we wait for the stragglers on the next bus. And then at 0745 the Captain speaks, saying that there are a couple of No-Show pax, and their bags are being extracted from the hold. How do people manage to do that? Eventually we push back at 0800, trundle round the airport for a 09 departure, and get away at 0820. By 0825 Breakfast is being served, scoffed down quickly as usual, and at 0855 we’re back on terra firma … home at last! From Reclaim we watched the Swissport baggage manglers hurling cases from the hold onto their flat-bed truck, which were then driven the 10 yards to the luggage belt [thud, bang, crash again]. Our 2 cases survived the journey intact, although one bore extensive evidence of a major red wine spillage from someone else’s case … I’m guessing someone didn’t pack their wine purchase carefully enough to survive Swissport Jersey! Fortunately it was only external spillage: our contents were unharmed.
And that was it … taxi home, rescue The Cat, and get back to reality again.
……………
Reflections.
It was an absolutely superb holiday, and our initial reticence about venturing into an unknown country was quickly dispelled. Each of the 3 locations and associated accommodation were interestingly different, and yet all extremely comfortable. I publicly thank my wonderful iWife for her researches in that respect - well done, beloved! The food and drink everywhere was delicious, and sensibly priced … we will start dieting again after Christmas!! And with just one day’s exception, the weather was simply glorious. Clear blue skies and 30şC+. Yes, we would like to do this again, almost identically but perhaps trading one day in CT for an extra day in Stellenbosch.
BA performed as it usually does … inconsistently! The food on the l/h sectors was generally OK, and certainly better than we have encountered recently on l/h TATL. The CC ranged from fairly useless to efficient: the only bright spot was the lady CSD on the way home, who was the only one to welcome us BAEC Golden Oldies by name.. The niggling little failings of the hard product continue to annoy: duff IFE, greasy fingerprints all over a window, inadequate pillows … and of course, no bread plate
But it was safe, and punctual, and on this occasion cheap!That’s it, I think. Thanks for reading!
“Uncle T”
Last edited by T8191; Jul 27, 2022 at 4:37 am Reason: Photobucket pulling the plug on posting images
Dec 21, 2016, 12:37 pm
#9
Join Date: Dec 2001
Posts: 3,181
You were very smart in your planning.
We spent 1 week in Cape Town and regretted not spending 6 and adding a few days to Franschoek and Stellenbosch + 1 night in Hermanus.
We only spent a day and loved it. We want to go back. We met a few people who go back to South Africa. It's gorgeous.
Were you able to go up Table Mountain? We could not due to the wind.
I also admire how you picked beautiful hotels which were not too expensive.
We spent 1 week in Cape Town and regretted not spending 6 and adding a few days to Franschoek and Stellenbosch + 1 night in Hermanus.
We only spent a day and loved it. We want to go back. We met a few people who go back to South Africa. It's gorgeous.
Were you able to go up Table Mountain? We could not due to the wind.
I also admire how you picked beautiful hotels which were not too expensive.
Dec 21, 2016, 1:03 pm
#10
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: London
Programs: BAEC Silver, Vietnam Airlines Lotusmiles Platinum
Posts: 2,375
Glad you enjoyed...
I am so pleased that you enjoyed your visit to my homeland! Thank you for a beautiful trip report! It will help me with my planned coming visit to Cape Town!
I am though much troubled by these eye wateringly extortionate prices of these hotels! Its absolutely unbelievably high to me, but then I am not familiar with Cape Town, Durban being my hometown!
I am though much troubled by these eye wateringly extortionate prices of these hotels! Its absolutely unbelievably high to me, but then I am not familiar with Cape Town, Durban being my hometown!
Dec 21, 2016, 1:06 pm
#12
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: JER
Programs: BA Gold/OWE, several MUCCI, and assorted Pensions!
Posts: 32,145
You were very smart in your planning.
We spent 1 week in Cape Town and regretted not spending 6 and adding a few days to Franschoek and Stellenbosch + 1 night in Hermanus.
We only spent a day and loved it. We want to go back. We met a few people who go back to South Africa. It's gorgeous.
Were you able to go up Table Mountain? We could not due to the wind.
I also admire how you picked beautiful hotels which were not too expensive.
We spent 1 week in Cape Town and regretted not spending 6 and adding a few days to Franschoek and Stellenbosch + 1 night in Hermanus.
We only spent a day and loved it. We want to go back. We met a few people who go back to South Africa. It's gorgeous.
Were you able to go up Table Mountain? We could not due to the wind.
I also admire how you picked beautiful hotels which were not too expensive.
I agree that she did a wonderful job on this one, and even the Cullinan turned out to be miles better than we were expecting from a large City hotel.
I passed on Table Mountain, largely because I suffer from vertigo and the cable car ride would probably kill me! I had enough trouble with our 28th floor room in HNL ... I used to walk onto our little balcony holding on to the chairs
Last edited by T8191; Dec 21, 2016 at 1:11 pm
Dec 21, 2016, 1:10 pm
#13
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: JER
Programs: BA Gold/OWE, several MUCCI, and assorted Pensions!
Posts: 32,145
I am so pleased that you enjoyed your visit to my homeland! Thank you for a beautiful trip report! It will help me with my planned coming visit to Cape Town!
I am though much troubled by these eye wateringly extortionate prices of these hotels! Its absolutely unbelievably high to me, but then I am not familiar with Cape Town, Durban being my hometown!
I am though much troubled by these eye wateringly extortionate prices of these hotels! Its absolutely unbelievably high to me, but then I am not familiar with Cape Town, Durban being my hometown!
xxx
Dec 21, 2016, 2:17 pm
#15
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: North of Carlisle
Programs: BAEC Silver
Posts: 1,538
Great report as always, it was definitely worth the wait. I would love to go but the other half isn't so keen on SA. Maybe that's an excuse to go on my own tho. The food looked amazing, a couple off those plates had huge portions. Is that a standard portion size ?