Airports - Get There Early!

Solomon Makgale, communications manager for ACSA (Airports Company South Africa), has urged passengers to get to airports early during the coming holiday season as they expect passenger volume to increase by 10% to 9.5 million passengers over the next three months. Read the report here.

It is well and good asking people to arrive early but I do hope that the various airlines and ACSA have also employed more people to handle the extra pressure. Having competent people at check-in desks and helping passengers find their way around will go a long way in preventing frustrations.

I was recently at OR Tambo International in Johannesburg at a particularly busy time of the morning and waited in the very long queue to get through the security check. Only two gates were open. From what I can remember there are at least another 4 that could have been opened had staff been available. It is this kind of forethought that will help ACSA regain some lost confidence from the flying public.

A good experience at the airport relies on many factors but I do hope that in light of Mr Makgale's word, ACSA will play their part as well!

PS - Anyone flying into, out of or around South Africa on Christmas Day? I would love to post your experience on this blog. Leave me a comment and I will contact you!

French Visas Needed . . .

With the Springbok rugby team having reached the semi-finals of the Rugby World Cup, the French Consulate has reported a massive increase in the number of applications for visas from South Africans wishing to visit France.

Why the sudden interest? Did rugby fans not have faith in the team that they would progress this far in the tournament? It seems that the biggest demand has come from travel agencies - surely this is a little late in the day to be organising group tours?

The French Consulate in Johannesburg has the following disclaimer on its website - Due to technical reasons or busy circunstances, the Visa Section could be closed without prior notice, either forced to limit the number of applications daily accepted.

I suggest that if you would like to travel to Saint Denis for the final (whether or not the Springboks are playing), you start making application for your visa today!

Blue Train Colour - Does It Matter If Its Yellow?

For the past 70 years the Blue Train has travelled the breadth of South Africa giving those who have travelled in her memories of five-star luxury that is regarded as one of the most luxurious train journeys in the world.

However this post is not designed to expound the virtues of this magnificent train - to download a brochure to read all about the Blue Train click here; for a PowerPoint slide show click here.

I came across a news article about a passenger, Ian Crowhurst, who lodged a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority because the locomotive which pulled the Blue Train on his journey happened to be orange!

Now I will agree that the iconic image of the Blue Train is spoiled by the sight of an orange locomotive, but to lodge a complaint with the ASA just seems a step too far! Quite correctly the ASA responded by saying that the complaint was illogical as this logic would imply that the Green Truffle restuarant would have to serve green truffles and Blue IQ would have to prove that its consultants have Blue IQ's!

What I do not agree with though is their contention that because the customer is paying for the experience of travelling in the Blue Train, the colour of the locomotive is immaterial. Of course it matters! The Blue Train is an icon of South Africa and the sight of the blue locomotive speeding through the Karoo is part of the South African experience. If I had forked out R10 000 to travel from Cape Town to Pretoria I would want the full experience which includes the iconic blue locomotive.

The Blue Train should be pulled by a blue locomotive - period. When this does not happen, a letter expressing disappointment should be sent to the train operators. If enough travellers write to the operator, to travel magazines and other tourism publications, the negative publicity will begin to ensure that the train operator begins to think again before changing the colour of the locomotive.

For a visual experience of this magnificent train, take a look at this DVD :

New Blog Of The Week - #5 - Escape Gauteng

Following on from my post about the Pilanesberg Game Reserve, I have decided to award this week's "New Blog Of The Week" to Scapeout. The intention of this blog is to give those of us who live in Gauteng information about breaks away from the city which will refresh and recharge.

The writing style is informal and makes for easy reading. The personal anecdotes from each place remind the reader that these are personal recommendations not just a list from a tour guide.

There are plenty of pictures to give the reader a sense of the place reviewed. A very helpful feature is the box giving travel directions to the attraction.

I would love to see this idea being expanded into other cities around South Africa. Any takers?...

Pilanesberg Game Reserve - Family friendly and fun

One of the joys of living in Johannesburg is the proximity of some of the country's finest game parks. Just a 2 hour drive away in the North-West Province is the Pilanesberg Nature Reserve. Situated right next door to Sun City, this peaceful, well-run park is a joy to visit.

This past weekend we packed up the motorhome and headed out to the Pilanesberg. Arriving on Friday morning we spent time setting up the caravan site in the Manyane Resort, had lunch and headed out into the park for some game viewing. We were able to spot rhino, giraffe (right next to the car), hippo, warthog, impala, a number of bird species and wildebeest. It did take some time though to find all these animals and I was terribly disappointed not to find any elephant or predators. Still it was a great way to spend an afternoon.

The permit to enter the park cost us R100 - that included entrance for 2 adults, 2 pensioners, 2 children under 5, the entry cost for the vehicle and a park map. The permit was valid for 2 days. This seemed a reasonable cost to me. Bearing in mind that the camp site cost was R100 per day, this is a very reasonably priced family get-away.

The Manyane camp and caravan park is a lovely family-friendly resort to have as base camp while visiting the reserve. The facilities are clean and well-maintained. The ablution block we used was cleaned regularly by friendly staff who also were on standby to assist with the setting up of tents and so forth. There is also a mini-golf course and walk-in aviary on the property. Unfortunately on Saturday morning there was nobody manning the mini-golf course so my 4-year old and I just enjoyed a morning stroll!

There is something very special about being away from the city and communing with the bush. It is almost as though the worries and stresses of daily life are lifted as you enjoy taking it all in.

This is a great weekend get-away. We will be going back regularly!

Audio Tour Guides For Cape Town

Whenever I have travelled to a foreign city for longer than one day, I have always taken along a guide book such as the Eyewitness Travel Guide I used in London. This has entailed packing yet another item into an already full backpack. Now things are changing ... Just pack your iPod or other MP3 player into your kit with previously downloaded audio tours already installed.

This way you can listen to a friendly voice guide you around the city at your own pace. These audio tours can be downloaded from a variety of sources. I happened to come across a company that has tours for Cape Town in their inventory. The tours cost about R70 to download and range from 22-49 minutes in length. There is also a free introductory tour available as soon as you register - no cost for registration either.

This is a marvelous resource even for those who live in Cape Town. It is a city so full of interesting things to see that even the locals can miss out if not guided. An added bonus is a map which becomes available for you to download and print once you have downloaded your mp3 file.

Tour guides from a particular city are able to sign up with Tourcaster and produce their own tours in their areas of expertise. At present the only South African city represented on Tourcaster is Cape Town. I am sure there are plenty of tour guides in our other cities to produce some outstanding audio tours - come on guys....

Just so that those up north don't feel neglected, I also managed to find this iPod guide to Johannesburg!

Now if only I could find my car keys . . .

Making A Point In The Cape

The drive from the Southern suburbs of Cape Town around Cape Point and along the coast to the city is one of my favourite drives in South Africa. Depending on the season, you will encounter whales, baboons, quaint antique shops, penguins at Boulders Beach, lighthouses, farm stalls selling delectable eats, camel rides at Imhoff Farm, glorious sea views and so much more.

It is truly a delightful way to spend an afternoon with the family. I was thrilled to see the website Cape Point Route which gives locals and visitors more than enough information to keep them busy. With accommodation, sightseeing, activities, travel guides and more, this site should be the first port of call for anyone wanting to tour around this part of the Cape.

The site is neatly laid out and has excellent navigation. Icons guide your accommodation decision-making and the sightseeing guides are well-written and very useful.

Cape Point Route now boasts its own blog - unfortunately it only has two posts! The last one dated 1 June 2007. I really do hope this blog is updated regularly. It would be a wonderful companion to a truly well-run site.

Next time you're in Cape Town and want something to do with the family, take a look at this site - you'll be glad you did!

Go!

A new kid on the block in the travel magazine genre arrived on our shelves about a year ago. Its aim was to provide another choice to those who enjoy an outdoor lifestyle and travel. This magazine was aptly title Go!

For many years the Getaway magazine was the definitive mag in this genre. I know of people who collected these magazines as reference sources and make no mistake, it remains an outstanding magazine. (Subscribe to Getaway here) However it is quite something when a newcomer takes the honours as the Best Travel Magazine at the ADVantage Admag Awards.

The Go! magazine however is a breath of fresh air. It has an easy-on-the-eye layout and typeface and the content is fresh and informative. It has become my mag of choice for information on travel in South Africa. A great aspect of the mag has been its recent focus on some of the smaller towns in SA. These are the small towns we so often bypass as we hurtle along the National Roads.

I highly recommend the Go! magazine and wish the publishers, editor and staff well as they continue to grow from strength to strength.

The magazine is currently running a competition for new subscribers :

Subscribe to Go! now and

WIN A 7-DAY SELF-DRIVE GARDEN ROUTE HOLIDAY FOR 4!

2 night's accommodation (B&B) at:
* The Point Hotel, Mossel Bay
* Diaz Strand Hotel, Mossel Bay
* House Hammond, Knysna
* Visit Tsitsikamma Adventure for a Tree Top Canopy Tour and lunch at the Trees Restaurant in Storms River
* Full Trunk-in-hand programs at the Elephant Sanctuary, The Crags, Plettenberg Bay
* Free car rental for 7 days, compliments of Williams Hunt
* Return airline tickets to and from the Southern Cape
* R5 000 pocket money

R113 – 6 issues
R226 – 12 issues
R452 – 24 issues
R678 – 36 issues
R904 – 48 issues
R1 130 – 60 issues

Subscribe now!

Table Mountain etc.

One of my favourite cities in South Africa is Cape Town. I grew up there and moved to Joburg when I was only 23 years old. It is a city with a rich history, incredible vistas, wonderful people and a place where life just seems more peaceful.

I was therefore delighted to find Cape Town as one of the cities featured in the global City Daily Photo Blog group.

The blog is called Cape Town Daily Photo and is a fantastic way to engage with the city without being there yourself. Some of the pictures are a little arb but that is the beauty of this site - you are drawn into the day to day of the city, engaging with the everyday people busy with everyday tasks. Each photo is accompanied by a short description and explanation of the shot.

This site is a real labour of love and I commend the site authors, Kerry-Anne and Paul, on their efforts.

Now if only I could afford to visit more often . . .