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- This is part of the Around the World 2015 Mega Trip
- Etihad Business and First Class Lounge Washington DC
- Etihad Business Studio – IAD to AUH
- Review: Etihad Arrivals lounge and Etihad Chauffeur experience
- Grand Hyatt Dubai
- Hyatt Capital Gate Abu Dhabi
- Etihad Business and First Class Lounge Abu Dhabi, AUH
- Etihad Pearl Business Class – AUH to JNB
- Intercontinental Johannesburg Sandton Towers
- Blue Train Johannesburg to Cape Town
- Queen Victoria Cape Town
- Chitwa Chitwa Sabi Sands Luxury Game Reserve Kruger National Park
- Royal Chundu Zambezi River Lodge – Victoria Falls
- Intercontinental Johannesburg Airport
- Review: S(h)ongololo Lounge JNB
- Cathay Pacific Business Class – JNB to HKG to HND
- Ritz Carlton Tokyo
- Japan Airlines First Class Lounge Tokyo, NRT
- American Air Flagship First Class – NRT to LAX
Review: Queen Victoria Hotel Cape Town – Luxury Room
The Queen Victoria is a luxury boutique hotel located across Dock road from the Victoria & Albert Waterfront. Incredible location. It has 32 rooms, 3 suites and Miles and I were extremely impressed with the hotel. Prior to taking the trip we had been interested in the Cape Grace and the One & Only, but after experiencing the Queen Vic, I wouldn’t want to stay anywhere else. As a matter of record, this was all part of a package we had booked through Icon Expeditions and Bianca Johnstone. It started with The Blue Train and ends with a flight from Victoria Falls to Johannesburg. Unfortunately, no points were used.
Posh without the Hob Nobbery.
Bianca Johnstone from Icon Expeditions hooked us up with the hotel, and boy did she ever kill it on this reservation. After spending the last 28-30 hours aboard The Blue Train we were excited to see what lies ahead. From the moment we arrived at the hotel we were met with the ever present and ever accommodating staff. But this place isn’t stuffy, arrogant, or snobby, it’s just professional and well tuned. Being on a 24 day trip around the world we weren’t exactly traveling light, and this luggage cart was comical =)
The Hotel’s website pics don’t do it justice.
The lobby is beautiful, contemporary, and ensconced in white and black marble. The atrium is a juxtaposition of grandeur and intimacy not easily attained. I think the website fails to embody the feel this hotel gives in person. In fact I thought it seemed dated on the website, not the modern and rich hotel you experience in the flesh. The lobby features a wrap around staircase that accentuates the all glass elevator next to it. To top it off there is a rustic wood table with fruit infused water. The entrance looks straight through the lobby to the restaurant where breakfast is served in the morning.
A little hiccup, but nothing to to stress about.
Not everything was flawless. There was a little hiccup at check-in with our credit card getting authorized and it took about 10 minutes to resolve. Ultimately management was able to circumvent the problem and we were in our rooms shortly thereafter. Dave, Miles, and I were splitting a luxury room with a view of Table Mountain, while my parents were in one of the 1 bedroom suites with a balcony. The rooms were huge. The hotel doesn’t list the size but I’d have to say they were at least 50% bigger than what we had at the Intercontinental Sandton Towers which was roughly 300-350sqft
Obsessed
With the bathroom shower and towel rack. It was heated. Yes, heated. While it wasn’t “cold” in Cape Town, getting out of the shower with a HOT towel waiting to wrap yourself in is…decadent. The type of decadence I could easily work into my everyday life. I was definitely not expecting this sort of attention to detail prior to coming to the hotel. The towels and bathsheets were thick and plush, something I absolutely love about high end properties. The shower. Man o Man the shower. Over-head feature and a hand sprayer with TREMENDOUS pressure.
Attention to detail. Attention to experience. Attention to je ne sais quoi
It is that Je Ne Said Quoi that makes a hotel special. The Queen Vic had it. For starters, every day/time housekeeping tended to our room, they swapped out the water bottles for new ones. This is such a LITTLE thing to do, and so many 4 and 5 star hotels overlook the positive impression it leaves and unfortunately for them…charge you for water. What a bad residual impression it leaves. It’s the same when hotels charge $10 or $15 for WiFi ( which the Queen Vic also provided free of charge ) to make some extra revenue. In actuality, that fee is encouraging guests to look for commensurately priced hotels that offer that service free of charge. It’s also what customers bitch about, instead of raving about how good the heated towel rack is. Well, thank you Queen Vic for just getting it. You left a HUGE positive impression on me. You also knew our names. Every time. Are. You. Serious?!?
I mean, maybe, put the twin beds a little further apart? HAHA!
Table Mountain seemed to hide every day but one.
The Suite:
The suite was on the top floor, directly across the hall from our room, and worked out perfectly for us. I think whenever you’re traveling in a group it’s nice to either do a club floor, or for one of the couples to book a suite. This provides a place for everyone to gather and hang without having to climb on a bed, etc. In this situation it clearly made more sense for my mom and dad to have more space, and then Dave and I could come over when need be. It was very spacious, and like the rest of the hotel, swathed in marble.
The Food:
We were on a a breakfast inclusive package. This meant that we could eat at the Queen Vic or any of the Newmark properties in the area. There are 3 within a 5 minute walk. The Queen Vic, Dock House ( which is in the same building complex as the Queen Vic) and the Victoria and Albert hotel. We ate at the Queen Vic twice and the Victoria and Albert once for breakfast. Personally, my fave was the V&A because the selection is much bigger on the buffet and the view is really cool right on the V&A harbor. Nevertheless, if you only ate at the Queen Vic the entire time you would be very satisfied as the food was excellent and the service, superb.
We ate at the restaurant one of the nights we were in Cape Town. The food was outstanding. The thing about Cape Town and this hotel’s location in particular, is that there are soooooo many incredible restaurants within walking distance. The waterfront is a great place to go and grab a bite. BUT, this review is about The Queen Vic, and if you decide to dine, you won’t be disappointed. 
The Verdict
I could have written a whole section on the location. It’s perfect. A short walk from the spot you wanna be if you’re coming to tour: right by the V&A waterfront. We ate at a waterfront restaurant every night except the night we ate at the hotel. It’s very central for any tours that you’ll ultimately take.
If you like personal, attentive, “know your name” service… then this hotel is for you. However, if your ideal hotel is one built for conventions, where you can blend into the masses, and not be noticed…I’d go a different way. One thing that I would recommend is that you don’t use the hotel for booking excursions. This isn’t to say that we didn’t enjoy the company they provided us with, but Bianca’s company Icon Expeditions works with Rhino Tripping for tours. We had the pleasure of having Graham Bell as a driver and we really enjoyed his disposition and style and we made a mistake by not booking him for all our tours.
A little side note about Cape Town and specifically this hotel. My mom fell ill the second day we were there and the hotel arranged for a doctor to come to her room. It was super quick and easy, and was ultimately very affordable even if we didn’t have travel insurance. The very next day she stumbled in the room, fell, and broke her arm. We ended up in the emergency room for several hours. Not knowing a lot about the medical industry and situation, we feared the worst. As it turned out, both her illness and the broken bone were handled in an extremely professional and dignified way. The hotel helped coordinate things for us and the hospital was a reality not seen in the states. Without insurance the entire bill with X-rays, multiple doctors, and a specialist setting her arm…amounted to a couple hundred bucks. What a shock! Needless to say, I would go back to Cape Town in a heartbeat and would love to stay at this property again as well.
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
60k Points after $4k spend in 3 months
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 60k points after $4k spend in 3 months
- Worth $750 in Chase Travel℠ and way more if you maximize transfer partners
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex℠and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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