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Developing new areas for tourism is a delicate operation if the attraction of the place is not to be destroyed. For Bucharest it is a case of restoration of buildings to restore its reputation as the Paris of the East. For Berlin it is the rebuilding of the centre of town, especially the area around the Alexanderplatz. For Cape Town it is a more difficult balance, the growth of environmental tourism is slow, and the attraction for the local tourist of a modern shopping complex is high, and has successfully led the regeneration of the waterfront area.
Victoria and Albert Hotel is housed in the Upper floors of part of the shopping mall development at the heart of the V&A Waterfront
One member of the development team at a major chain asked “why put a shopping precinct in the prime location – so that people can stare in windows with their backs to the sea and the harbour?” But as one Tourism expert suggested to me, “everyone should go to the V&A Waterfront ...for at least a couple of days”.
The area is a noisy chatter of people, with public performances by musicians, outdoor cafés and restaurants, craft markets, ice cream stands and ferry terminals for Robin Island and the seal and whale watching excursions. At the same time it is a working port, and development continues apace, with the redevelopment of the grain stores into an hotel and apartment complex and the last large plot being earmarked for the arrival of a Sol Kerzner special, a ‘One and Only’ hotel and casino complex. The whole area is reminiscent of the redevelopment of Covent Garden in London and has the same buzz.
The integration of hotels with shopping is a trick missed by developers of many UK shopping malls such as Bluewater, but here the Victoria and Albert is fully integrated into the shopping experience. The five star Cape Grace stands aside on its jetty, whilst the newer Sun International Table Bay Hotel stands at the other end of the development. Other hotels in the Waterfront include self catering apartments(Waterfront Village) and a conversion of an historic building into a boutique(the Portswood) as well as budget offerings(City Lodge).
In metropolitan Cape Town there is increasing investment in property, partly driven by European investors who see the city as an alternative to the Bahamas or Malta.
Much of the coast around the Cape is rocky with Camps Bay being the nearest beach. The views are of course spectacular, but location is also about access to attractions and once the pleasure of the retail experience has palled, then a car will be necessary to explore the national parks on the Cape or to travel inland to the beautiful winelands around Franschoek.
Finding locations for new hotels is not going to be any easier here than it is anywhere else. As Mr Hilton said, it’s all about “location, location, location.
 Cape Grace, reputedly one of the best five star hotels in Cape Town (watch for our forthcoming Review of competitor Cellars Hohenort), sits onthe quayside in Albert Basin
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Table Mountain seen from the Waterfront development. The grain silo on the left is scheduled for redevelopment as apartments and hotel.
Sun International's Table bay Hotel seen across the Victoria Basin in Cape Town. The hotel marks one end of the development area
Pedestrian Location map shows the extent of the development. The white space at the bottom is the site for the'One and Only'development
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