Zerotwonine

South Africa Scouting Trip – Cape Town, Garden Route, Kruger National Park & Jo’burg

Christine Kaerner was in South Africa on a scouting trip (an opportunity to test out the locations, hotels, restaurants etc) and provided the following report of her experience.

Cape Town

The light is special at the Cape. The rotating cable car took us to the top of Table Mountain where we enjoyed a bird’s eye view of the mother city of Africa. Maja, our guide, points to a beautiful white sandy beach. “Camps Bay,” she explains, “where the in-crowd heads to, and it’s lined with palms, trendy bars and restaurants.”

Accommodation: Twelve Apostles

Surrounded by nature, the hotel offers lots of lovely seating areas, two small pools and first class restaurants. Every room has a panoramic view but if you choose the full ocean view you also have to cope with the noise of the coastal road below. Staying in the garden suite we had a quiet night - much needed after an excellent dinner and a long night in the hotel’s Leopard Bar. The award winning Sanctuary Spa is amazing and if you stay at the 12 Apostles, use is included. The Spa is built into a cave, surrounded by rocks and the rooms are joined by illuminated walkways. Don’t miss the breakfast; it was the very best during our journey. The hotel has its own heliport for those who need to quickly jet off to their next destination.

To read more about the rest of our South African journey, click here

029’s very own, Christian Schwägerl had the difficult and challenging task of visiting the Seychelles. One of the many benefits of scouting the globe for all things luxurious – the opportunity to become better acquainted with the gorgeous islands that make up the Seychelles. 029 invited along one of our Brand Ambassadors, Nikolaus Nicolaus for the experience.

Christian and Nikolaus had the pleasure of staying at the Banyan Tree Seychelles. Located in Intendance Bay on the island of Mahé, this stunning hotel offers 60 exquisite pool villas that effortlessly combine contemporary and colonial décor. Highly recommended by our two travellers, the Banyan Tree is blessed with breathtaking surroundings, impeccably landscaped grounds, gorgeous and well-appointed villas and personnel committed to the highest level of service,  ensuring that all guests feel as though they have found heaven on earth.

Christian and Nikolaus flew with  ZIL AIR (a new heli-service on the Seychelles with brand new Eurocopters) over to Zil Pasyon (Island of Passion) to have a look at a real estate development project taking place on the island. So for those of you who have a few million dollars sitting idly underneath your mattress, 21 luxurious & private villas on Zil Pasyon are on sale for those who are looking to expand their real-estate portfolio with a truly unique acquisition. Completely private, utterly stylish, uninterrupted views – your own piece of paradise for sale. The first houses are currently being built and are expected to be completed by the second quarter of 2010. Whoever said money couldn’t buy happiness was and is obviously mistaken.

Interested in visiting the Seychelles? Want to know what you can/should see & do? Where to rest your head? Charter a yacht? Dive under the sea? Just give us a shout, we’ll help you out.

Check out some of Christian’s pictures here

In collaboration with InterContinental Hotel Group and Middle East Airlines, 029 visited the Lebanese capital at the end of March.  Our purpose was to familiarise ourself with the city and surrounding areas and to visit some spectacular hotels within the InterContinental Hotel Group to expand our Middle Eastern MICE portfolio.  We are grateful for the hospitality we received at InterContinental’s Mountain Resort and Spa in Mzaar, nestled atop Mount Lebanon.

Click here to see pictures documenting our trip.