Luxury Travel

Review: One&Only Cape Town – the Luxury Travel Expert

March 29, 2023

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Wednesday newsletters at all times characteristic a resort or flight evaluate.

Last February, I loved a chic vacation that I’ll bear in mind as my most epic journey ever: a visit to Cape Town (South Africa) and Antarctica (the seventh Continent). You can learn my journey stories right here:

Review: KLM Boeing 787 Business Class from Amsterdam to Cape Town
Review: One&Only Cape Town, South Africa (as we speak)
Review: The Silo Hotel, Cape Town
Review: Private Airbus A340 First Class flight from Cape Town to Antarctica
Review: Echo Camp by White Desert, Antarctica
Review: Private Airbus A340 First Class flight from Antarctica to Cape Town
Review: KLM Boeing 777 Business Class from Cape Town to Amsterdam

Today: Review of One&Only Cape Town (South Africa)

Taking delight of place in Cape Town’s most coveted location, One&Only is the one 5-star resort within the metropolis to supply a whole resort expertise with its huge scale and world-class facilities. An inimitable vacation spot overlooking Table Mountain, this thriving city oasis speaks to worldwide vacationers and discerning locals alike, proffering tropical seclusion alongside the delicate fringe of a metropolis hotspot for eating, leisure and wellness. Setting an entire new customary for luxurious lodges in South Africa when it opened in 2009, One&Only Cape Town just lately underwent an in depth refurbishment, revealing a brand new design that honours the vacation spot’s ocean, land and heritage in a celebration of contemporary Cape Town.

One&Only Cape Town options in my high 10 listing of the greatest lodges in Cape Town.

Have you ever stayed at One&Only Cape Town? If so, what was your expertise? Leave a remark.

In this evaluate (extra information and images beneath my YouTube video):

PROS & THINGS I LIKE

One&Only Cape Town enjoys a excellent location within the coronary heart of Cape Town. Situated on the entrance to the modern Victoria & Albert Waterfront and boasting panoramic views of Table Mountain, the resort is a tranquil enclave on the doorstep of South Africa’s most vibrant metropolis. The property is inside straightforward strolling distance of the Waterfront’s essential vacationer points of interest, together with the Aquarium (subsequent door), the Museum of Contemporary African Art and the Robben Island ferry, in addition to numerous retailers, eating places & bars, meals & crafts markets, and bars. The property is correct subsequent to the hop-on-hop-off sightseeing bus, which makes it a handy base for vacationers to discover Cape Town and its gorgeous environment. Canals additionally hyperlink the resort with the Cape Town Convention Center, with water taxis offering a straightforward transport possibility between each factors, making the resort a wonderful alternative for enterprise folks.

One&Only Cape Town’s essential resort wing (known as ‘Marina Rise’) is housed in a 7-story constructing, which showcases a stunning design on the within though it might look a bit bland on the surface. In 2022, the resort unveiled an in depth refurbishment, spanning its 131 rooms and suites, in addition to the doorway foyer, Vista Bar & Lounge, and landscaping, with new flooring, fittings, and fixtures. Working alongside design powerhouse Muza Lab, the property’s reimagined interiors take inspiration from shapes, textures and colours discovered within the stunning Cape Town area. Each aspect pulls from town environment, from the topography of the majestic Table Mountain to town’s mythology and the hundreds of indigenous plant species that happen nowhere else on this planet. The total really feel is an elegant, understated design that pays homage to African tradition and remembers the muted tones of Africa’s savannahs whereas retaining the innate ultra-luxury ethos of the One&Only model.

The eye-catcher within the enormous atrium-like foyer – the guts of One&Only Cape Town – is a large, double-story, floor-to-ceiling window which completely frames the gorgeous view of the marina with iconic Table Mountain past. At the middle of the foyer, proper in entrance of the large window, is Vista Bar & Lounge, which comes alive in the course of the day when friends and locals mingle in one in every of Cape Town’s most upscale social scenes (don’t miss the afternoon tea right here). The bar highlights the native Xhosa legend fondly referred to as ‘The Watchers’, the story of the creation of Table Mountain. If legend is to be believed, Table Mountain is definitely “The watcher of the South” , one of many 4 giants created by mom earth Djobela to protect the earth from the menacing sea dragon. Standing tall above the bar show and in excellent alignment with the view of Table Mountain is a sculpture – named The Watchers – which was made by Cape Town-based Kenyan artist, Stanislav Trzebinski.

Besides the Marina Rise wing, which homes the foyer, eating places and most rooms, One&Only Cape Town’s resorts grounds additionally comprise two small man-made islands. Lending the resort the ambiance of an elegant and serene oasis inside a big metropolis, these lushly landscaped islands are surrounded by the marina’s picturesque waterways and are connect with essential resort space by a walkway flanked by greenery (it’s solely a 5 minute stroll between each resort areas; buggy service can be offered when wanted). One island homes the spa (extra on that beneath) whereas the opposite island options the pool space, a poolside restaurant (known as Isola) and 40 ‘island’ rooms & suites. Enveloped by swaying palm timber, the free-form pool is actually a show-stopper and the right tropical enclave to calm down a bit after a day of sightseeing. The shapely bends of the pool create separate seating and lounging areas, and several other bigger cabanas can be found, providing further privateness.

One&Only Cape Town options 131 spacious rooms & suites. The bulk of those rooms & suites (91 in complete) is situated within the Marina Rise wing, with views of both Table Mountain or the harbor, whereas the 40 rooms & suites (together with a number of two-bedroom suites) are ground-floor models situated round the principle pool. During my vacation, I stayed in a ‘Marina Table Mountain Room’ on the Marina Rise wing’s third flooring. The elegant bed room with king-size mattress opened to a balcony with a shocking vista of Table Mountain, whereas the ensuite lavatory featured an egg-shaped bathtub, rain bathe and two marble vanities. Perfect mixing modernity with custom, the room design included parts like a curved headboard for the mattress and handmade ceramics in natural shapes, all representing the textures and hues of Table Mountain: the golden yellow of the solar, the inexperienced of the vegetation and the blue of the ocean, and the black floor of the Cape pine timber and silver leaf pine.

Located on the higher flooring of the One&Only Cape Town’s Marina Rise block are two signature suites embodying luxurious dwelling: the Table Mountain Suite and Presidential Suite. Offering world-class amenities and facilities, these signature suites are designed to anticipate something one may have with a sense of ease and a front-row seat at probably the greatest addresses within the nation.
- The Table Mountain Suite is a collaboration of design, nature and luxurious with the view of the well-known mountain in all its glory. The uniquely designed area includes free-flowing lounge, eating and bar areas with nuances of pure tones dotted all through the suite. The master suite is stuffed with pure gentle and magnificence all through. A seemingly inconsequential design aspect of the Table Mountain Suite’s lounge space is a desk held by a duplicate of Table Mountain’s Ghost Frog.
- Just a few doorways down and adorned with each conceivable luxurious, the Presidential Suite options two bedrooms with beautiful views of Table Mountain. The aesthetic and symbolic which means of The Great African Sea Forest might be seen all through the suite, with cool, blue tones of décor complementing the unique artistic endeavors and pictures from South Africa’s most distinguished artists.

Atop One&Only Cape Town rests an huge penthouse, known as Lion’s Head Penthouse, providing unobstructed views of Table Mountain, Robben Island, Devil’s Peak, Lion’s Head, the Cape Town Harbour and the V&A Waterfront. The beautiful, two-story penthouse includes 4 beneficiant en-suite bedrooms, a trendy library, good-looking research with fire, fully-equipped health club and sauna, stunning kitchen and scullery with its personal service entrance and two separate outside leisure areas – each with personal swimming swimming pools, spectacular views and BBQ amenities. The residence is designed in a contemporary up to date model with an open-plan structure and floor-to-ceiling home windows to maximise gentle and body the outlook, and with a powerful artwork assortment adorning the partitions and areas. The Lion’s Head Penthouse is the final word luxurious residence and for the utmost discretion the penthouse might be accessed by a personal entrance and elevator.

One&Only Cape Town is residence to a number of bars and eating places (all however one in every of them situated within the Marina Rise wings):
- The resort’s signature restaurant is the solely Nobu in Africa, serving international famend Japanese-Peruvian delicacies invented by Michelin-starred grasp chef, Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, with a choice of dishes that hero native South African elements.
- Ochre is the resort’s breakfast eating room, that includes a design impressed by South African heritage and native parts. Each morning (from 6:30 to 11 am), resort friends can take pleasure in a decadent breakfast unfold providing scrumptious candy, savoury, native and continental dishes together with a wide range of scorching dishes made to order.
- Famed for its afternoon tea and innovate cocktails, Vista Bar & Lounge is on the coronary heart of the resort, framed by the backdrop of Table Mountain.
- Isola is the one F&B venue situated exterior the principle Marina Rise wing. It gives poolside informal eating to in-house friends, serving Mediterranean and South African delicacies.

The unique Spa Island options some of the complete and expansive wellness facilities in Cape Town. An oasis of serenity and privateness surrounded by water and greenery, the spa gives 12 therapy suites of which two have personal moist areas for {couples}’ therapies. Two vitality swimming pools complement the comfort areas, sauna and steam rooms, and a leisure lounge providing snacks and drinks. One&Only Spa gives tailor-made therapy plans, making use of highly effective genuine methods, indigenous elements and extremely pure, paraben-free merchandise produced by ESPA. In addition, facial therapies can be found in partnership with French premium skincare model Biologique Recherche, who’ve developed an revolutionary pores and skin evaluation and therapy system utilizing their very own distinctive vary of high-end skincare merchandise.

One&Only Cape Town has an extended historical past of supporting African creatives and expertise, and the resort is privileged to carry a set of art work from esteemed regional artists together with Norman Catherine, Walter Oltmann, Willem Boshoff, Johnny Thwala, Claude Chandler, Stanislaw Trzebinski, Ben Tuge, Deborah Bell, Kevin Brand, Esther Mahlangu and Jeremy Wafer, in addition to being residence to a up to date African Art Gallery. The latter is positioned on the primary flooring of the resort and managed by the Johannesburg-based Melrose Gallery crew. The partnership, which started in 2019, is a showcase and celebration of the work and concepts of pan-African up to date artists. With 4 charming exhibitions every year, the gallery at One&Only Cape Town is open to friends and native residents, supporting African artwork, tradition and creativity. Next to the gallery is a health middle, that includes state-of-the-art health tools from Technogym with personalised exercise packages.

One&Only Cape Town prides itself on personalised service, and making certain their friends see and expertise the very best of what’s vital to them – opening doorways to locations, folks and recollections not at all times accessible to, or recognized by, different guests to town. The resort has conceptualised and curated a variety of experiences obtainable solely to friends. Attention is paid to each element, and high quality is assured. These embrace bespoke wine-tasting experiences, both within the resort’s spectacular wine studio, or out within the winelands themselves, visiting alternative farms and sampling the nation’s biggest creations. Cooking lessons, mixology experiences and outside actions reminiscent of hikes and yoga lessons atop Table Mountain present additional alternatives to get an actual sense of Cape Town and its residents, main friends to rapidly perceive why town holds the hearts of so many.

One&Only Cape Town is constructing on its sustainability efforts, which embrace meals waste options and a whole resort-wide ban on single-use plastic. The resort has additionally launched into conservation partnerships with Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation and the Endangered Wildlife Trust, whereby a portion of the suites’ income goes to each organizations (roughly $300 USD to $350 USD per keep). This contributes to a gradual stream of help for components of South African conservation:
- On Table Mountain, the elusive Ghost Frog is without doubt one of the important focuses of the threatened amphibian program created and run by the Endangered Wildlife Trust. With virtually 30% of the 135 South African Frogs species categorised as threatened, the urgency for motion continues to develop, and the way forward for these animals appears to be like dire. The Endangered Wildlife Trust is the one South African NGO focusing full-time on frog conservation, locked in a battle to guard a variety of amphibians from habitat loss, air pollution, contamination, and local weather change.
- Created in 2009, the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation has rescued, rehabilitated and launched over 800 turtles up to now – actually life-saving efforts on South African shores. Turtles are amongst the oldest and most iconic marine animals, and sadly all seven species are listed as endangered or critically endangered. One of the most important threats to those creatures is plastic, with over 71% of turtle hatchlings rescued discovered to have consumed it upon arrival on the middle.

With 131 rooms & suites, One&Only Cape Town is a pretty massive resort and may really feel a bit busy throughout occasions of excessive occupancy. If you might be searching for a extra intimate luxurious property with a small variety of rooms, it’s best to take a look at Ellerman House or The Silo. That mentioned, One&Only Cape Town continues to be my favourite resort within the metropolis due to its laid-back resort vibe, One&Only ethos and heat hospitality.

CONS & THINGS TO KNOW

While the Marina Rise rooms provide spectacular Table Mountain views, their balconies face north and are within the shade for a lot of the day. But frankly, why would you need to spend your time in your resort balcony in a metropolis like Cape Town? And in case you are in want of tanning or stress-free within the solar throughout the resort grounds, you may at all times retreat to the pool space, which is situated by itself little island and which enjoys sunshine from dawn til sundown.

The waters across the resort and the personal, man-made island are lined by residential condos, which partly block the Table Mountain views from the rooms on the resort’s decrease flooring. If an unobstructed view of Table Mountain is what you might be searching for, make certain to e book a room on one of many increased flooring.

One&Only Cape Town gives world-class resort amenities (particularly for a metropolis resort), however what may make an already glorious property even higher can be the addition of a scorching tub close to the pool in addition to a hearth pit on the deck in entrance of the foyer (for the extra chilly days and evenings). I assume it could be an superior expertise for friends visiting in the course of the colder winter months to calm down in an out of doors scorching tub or take pleasure in coziness round a hearth pit whereas having fun with the fabulous views of Table Mountain.

One&Only Cape Town’s swimming pool is heated, apart from the winter months (May to September). However, alternate preparations might be made by the resort if you wish to make use of a heated pool in the course of the colder winter months.

One&Only Cape Town enjoys the right base to discover town, particularly for first-time customer, on account of its location close to the V&A Waterfront, which is a tourism hub. However, IMHO, the true fantastic thing about Cape Town is discovered on its Atlantic shore, the place among the world’s most stunning seashores are situated (Camps Bay, Clifton, Landudno). Although these seashores can simply be reached by taxi, it could have been superior if seaside shuttle service was offered by the resort in the course of the summer season months, providing its friends the likelihood to calm down on the seaside and to take pleasure in the very best sunsets on this planet (hereby bringing the Atlantic Coast seashores a bit nearer to the resort, becoming the property’s resort vibe). Complimentary shuttle service between the Atlantic Coast (Camps Bay) and the V&A Waterfront is obtainable by a number of lodges on the Atlantic facet of Cape Town, however sadly not by the lodges within the V&A Waterfront, and it’s positively one thing that would additional differentiate the resort a bit from its high-end rivals within the space.

With 131 rooms & suites, One&Only Cape Town is a reasonably massive resort, and may really feel a bit busy throughout occasions of excessive occupancy. If you’re searching for an intimate luxurious property with a smaller variety of rooms, it’s best to take a look at The Silo Hotel or Ellerman House. That mentioned, One&Only Cape Town continues to be my favourite resort within the metropolis due to its laid-back resort vibe, One&Only ethos and heat hospitality.

MY VERDICT

Location: 9/10
Design: 9/10
Pool: 8/10
Rooms: 9/10
Food: 8/10
Breakfast: 9/10
Spa: 7/10
Service: 9/10
Value for cash: 8,8/10
Overall expertise: glorious 8,8/10

TIPS FOR FUTURE GUESTS & SAVE MONEY

Save cash: get complimentary VIP perks when reserving by way of Virtuoso (e.g. improve, day by day breakfast, early check-in, late check-out, and $100 USD meals & beverage credit score).

Save cash: learn right here my suggestions for getting the very best deal at a luxurious resort like One&Only Cape Town (and/or obtain many free perks).

Save cash: I like to recommend to e book a room with a good looking view of Table Mountain.

Read my suggestions for making ready your journey in time.

BEST TIME TO VISIT

Cape Town’s scorching, dry summer season months run from late October to early April. Temperatures attain their peak between December and February, and that is typically seen as when to go to Cape Town for the very best seaside climate. During the winter months (June to September), the climate might be moist, chilly and overcast (limiting outside actions).

HOW TO GET THERE

One&Only Cape Town is a 30 minute drive from Cape Town International Airport. The latter is served by sevral main European, American, Asian and African airways. Check the Wikipedia web page of Cape Town International Airport for a repeatedly up to date listing of airways that supply direct flights to Cape Town.

PHOTOS

Below is a choice of my images of One&Only Cape Town. To view extra images (together with breakfast in addition to dinner at Nobu), click on right here.