The upcoming 2010 Cape Argus bicycle race will be coming up in just a few weeks, on 14 March to be precise, and those looking for accommodation in Cape Town may well wish to try the southern suburbs of Rondebosch, Newlands, Claremont, Kenilworth, and Bishopscourt for their stay in the Cape. This year bicyclists will be joined by the iconic American cyclist Lance Armstrong, who will participate in the world's largest timed bicycle race. A big thank you too to the owner of Hame Cottages for pointing this out!
According to news about the cycle tour, Armstrong tweeted his decision to enter the race: "Hey South Africa! Excited to come down in March. Bringing your man @darylimpey with me. And yes, we're racing The Argus. Hear gr8 things." Apparently there is also a bit of smack being talked by "the fine folks in Cape Town" about a "twitter ride record", whatever that may mean. To see what Lance Armstrong is saying about the upcoming Argus, follow him on Twitter @lancearmstrong.
Whoever races this year will find no other bicycle race in the world that goes through such extraordinarily beautiful terrain... enjoy the photos of Cape Argus cycle races past!
There are few places more lovely than Cape Town in which to spend the New Year. Excellent wine flowed throughout the evening all about the Cape, and the weather, though a bit cooler than is usual for the season, allowed many to dance the night away without getting too sweaty.
I will not say we will be wishing 2009 a fond farewell, but rather breathing a collective sigh of relief that we have weathered the worst of the global economic storm. And is that not reason enough to celebrate?
Entering 2010 in Cape Town, we find the Minstrel Carnival still going strong, and there's a short clip of the minstrels on YouTube. A celebration to commemorate the freeing of slaves in the Cape Colony back in the nineteenth century, it has become a tradition that looks to keep going into the 21st century.
Enjoy these New Year photos from around the Cape, and we will look forward to seeing you soon! After all, the mountains, and all the rest of the Cape's fabulous scenery, will continue to be here for everyone to see... Remember too that the FIFA 2010 World Cup begins in a mere six months' time, so don't forget to book your accommodation today!
Jess of Hame Cottages kindly shared one of the most detailed photos I have ever seen of Cape Town. Even though our accommodation in Cape Town's southern suburbs is on the other side of the mountain from the Cape Town city centre, all those who live in close proximity to Table Mountain are intimately connected. And besides, most of our establishments are only 10 to 15 minutes drive from the city centre.
I am not posting that photo here, as it would take hours to download, but am providing a link to the photo, which is on VirtualAfrica.co.za. According to their site, this is how they did it:
This photo by VirtualAfrica.co.za is absolutely stunning, and allows one to see the intimate details of life in Cape Town's city centre. Upon seeing that high resolution photo, I decided to post some other photos to this blog of what is arguably the most beautiful city in the world, along with a couple from elsewhere in the Cape. Note especially the photo with panoramic view of Green Point and the new Cape Town Stadium, which was built for next year's Soccer World Cup. I cannot imagine a better way to motivate someone to visit Cape Town, South Africa, whether it be for the 2010 FIFA World Cup or any other time. Enjoy!
FIFA will be here in Cape Town on 4 December 2009 for the draw that will determine who will play whom in the 2010 South Africa World Cup and where. But FIFA does not come to Cape Town without stirring up a bit of trouble.
The FIFA draw for the 2010 World Cup has already caused the Obz Fest, which normally occurs in the first week of December, to be cancelled due to bylaws that were put in place to prevent other events from stealing the 2010 South Africa Football World Cup's thunder. This has even put a damper on a planned march by school children in Salt River to raise awareness of AIDS and HIV, as they can not hold placards during their march, also due to the World Cup bylaws.
Yes, and there's more... and thank you to Paterson House for providing these interesting tidbits! All this relates to business travel. I suppose businesses, besides those who provide accommodation, food, etc. for 2010 World Cup fans, will lay low.
Volume of Travellers expected
The 2010 Soccer World Cup will be approximately 15 times bigger than the 1995 Rugby World Cup. The media contingent that will attend is estimated at 30 000. Business travel is disrupted purely due to the volume of supporters.
All indications are that approximately 220 000 long haul visitors will attend, 180 000 visitors from Africa and an average of 150 000 local supporters. On any match day it is envisaged that 100 000 travellers will need to use a travel commodity i.e. flight or road / rail transportation.
An additional 2 000 buses have been imported (overload on road transport) to carry these supporters. It is predicted that supporters will watch their team play every 3 or 4 days. When their teams are not playing, supporters will frequent the Fan Parks or embark on tours within the city of their choice.
So... I suppose it will be even more crowded in Cape Town than it is during the usual holiday season... a good thing for accommodation providers here.
Fan Parks
Fan Parks are situated in central areas so that general public can watch all the games. Entrance to the Fan Parks is free and it is expected that these Fan Parks will attract a lot of visitors. In Germany 2006 one Fan Park attracted 500 000 spectators to watch one game. To avoid large transport infrastructure expense, training venues will also double as public viewing sites.
Fan Parks in the Western Cape
The Grand Parade Somerset West Road
Stellenbosch Bellville Velodrome
Swartklip Atlantis
Khayelitsha Nomzamo Yethu (Hout Bay)
Training Facilities in the Western Cape
Newlands Rugby Ground UCT Rugby Ground
UWC Soccer Field Bellville Rugby Ground
Stellenbosch Rugby Ground Athlone Stadium
Now, I find this interesting. Does that mean that Newlands Rugby Ground will also double as a fan park? Also, in conjuction with this, there was an article in the Cape Times about the informal traders on the Grande Parade and elsewhere that will be affected by Cape Town's World Cup bylaws. I hope they figure out a way to compensate these traders. Really, why not let them trade? Informal trading is a part of what Africa is all about!
Flights
To date no airline has released any prices or strategies for the World Cup period.
On pre- and post- match-days flights into and out of the venue cities will be overbooked. Due to the sheer volume of travellers, huge delays can be expected.
World Cup teams will use charter aircrafts and plan to use 2nd tier airports however their supporters will use the general airports. These airports will focus on scheduled international and domestic flights.
This is going to be hairy... hope I don't have to go to the airport in June or July next year!
All the major hotel brands within South Africa have contracted with MATCH at a pre-defined room rate and therefore the normal Corporate rates will not be available during this period.
According to FIFA there is an approximate shortfall of 18 000 rooms for the World Cup. This supply and demand scenario allows B&B’s / Guesthouses to offer rooms at a premium.
It is most likely that all car rental companies will go on “stop-sale” for the period of the World Cup and rental cars will be scarce.
Road Closures
It is indicated that there will be limited access and in some instances complete road closures in the areas surrounding the stadium and fan parks. This will make it difficult for travellers to move freely between offsite meetings.
Critical Date
The next critical date for the WC2010 is the 4th December 2009 when the Pool draw is completed. This draw will indicate where the teams will be based and where their supporters will be spending most of their time.
And this critical date is coming up soon here in Cape Town.
Fixtures
The match schedule will be updated after the draw on the 4th December 2009. Games will be played at: 13h30, 16h00 and 20h30. Travellers need to allow for traffic congestion both at the stadium and the Fan Parks. It is advisable to allow 2hrs lead time if travelling to / from these areas.
Here are some recommendations for business travelers during this period:
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TRAVEL DURING THIS PERIOD:
Do not travel during these periods unless it is critical to travel.
Plan your trip well in advance, changes to a ticket over this period will be extremely difficult and very expensive.
Try to make appointments at a location that is in the opposite direction of a stadium / fan park.
Take flights during the times when the games are being played. Games start at 13h30.
Allow for a minimum of 2 hours to get to the airport in Cape Town and possibly 3 hours for Johannesburg. The congestion on the roads both to and from the airports is going to be chaotic. Plan for delays.
Parking at the airport will be virtually impossible and it is advisable to get someone to drop / collect you from the airports. Transfer companies will be busy with tourists and will also be very expensive.
I recently contacted a hotel in Cape Town's southern suburbs to find what kind of price they would charge for accommodation. In particular, I was interested in knowing what sort of prices they would charge during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Now, this was not an upmarket hotel at which I enquired by any means, but one that seemed to offer mid-priced accommodation in Newlands. I was taken aback when they stated that the price would be R1195 per day... for the room only. Further, they told me that they had no accommodation available over the 2010 World Cup, as it had all been bought up for package deals.
It was then that I realised just how reasonable some of the small accommodation providers in the area were. Offering both bed and breakfast and self-catering options, these smaller providers offered more for a person's money. Most of them are set in idyllic settings, offering an intimate yet private place at which one can lay their head, and more. They offer something that no hotel can offer: a home away from home. Many of these smaller accommodation establishments in Rondebosch, Newlands, Claremont, Kenilworth, and Bishops Court offer accommodation for less than half of what hotels offer! So why would anyone wish to stay anywhere else during their stay in Cape Town, whether it be for business, pleasure, or to follow their favourite World Cup soccer team.
Lucille of Ivydene passed along some information about a local artist, Lesley Charnock, who has a studio in Newlands at Montebello Design Centre, just off Newlands Avenue and within minutes of many accommodation providers in the southern suburbs of Cape Town.
Lesley Charnock has painted a number of pieces in tribute to workers who are building the new Cape Town Stadium in Green Point, which will be used for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and which I have taken the liberty to display on this blog. She says this about her work:
Our home is close to the site of the 2010 Stadium in Green Point and I am surrounded by the excitement and activity of the construction workers, road diggers and cable layers. Driving across Cape Town to my studio every day I see street sweepers, the ‘The Big Issue’ vendors and the car guards. I find these vibrant groups of men and women at work to be wonderful subjects to paint... I have empathy for the construction worker’s quest to realise their deadlines. The Stadium will soon be complete and the workers will move on. Their contribution will be a memory that I have sought to record in some of these paintings, a part of the progression towards this momentous event planned in 2010.
Lesley's art can be found at her studio in Newlands at the Montebello Design Centre. Her work will also be appearing at The Cape Gallery on Church Street in Cape Town throughout most of November 2009.
Mel's Place owner Mel, who knows Lesley personally, also commented on Lesley's work: "She is the BEST example of self marketing I know! Her experience and skill has soared and I really do admire her. She is also a very chatty, friendly person and her gallery is well worth a visit."
It is interesting too how people meet each other in the accommodation business in Cape Town, South Africa, and how such chance meetings can change the course of people's lives. Trish of Paterson House describes how she met Lesley:
I met Lesley when she arrived on the doorstep of Paterson House asking if I had any accommodation for her. It turned out that she was looking not for a bed, but for a space to paint and store her canvases while she was between houses.
She rented my pottery studio for a few months and we became friends. Without realizing it she gave me, through her own zest, positive energy and work ethic, the idea to expand my business.
I decided to build a studio cottage in the very large Paterson House garden, in a space where a vine and apple tree were growing …. and so was born AppleVine Cottage. Her studio is a delight, as is she, and the whole ambiance of Montebello lends itself to creative thoughts.
The upcoming 2010 Cape Argus bicycle race will be coming up in just a few weeks, on 14 March to be precise, and those looking for accommodation in Cape Town may well wish to try the southern suburbs of Rondebosch, Newlands, Claremont, Kenilworth, and Bishopscourt for their stay in the Cape. This year bicyclists will be joined by the iconic American cyclist Lance Armstrong, who will participate in the world's largest timed bicycle race. A big thank you too to the owner of Hame Cottages for pointing this out!
According to news about the cycle tour, Armstrong tweeted his decision to enter the race: "Hey South Africa! Excited to come down in March. Bringing your man @darylimpey with me. And yes, we're racing The Argus. Hear gr8 things." Apparently there is also a bit of smack being talked by "the fine folks in Cape Town" about a "twitter ride record", whatever that may mean. To see what Lance Armstrong is saying about the upcoming Argus, follow him on Twitter @lancearmstrong. 
Whoever races this year will find no other bicycle race in the world that goes through such extraordinarily beautiful terrain... enjoy the photos of Cape Argus cycle races past!
