I’m in Cape Town at the moment, which is stunning. I haven’t been to South Africa in about 15 years, so this is my first visit as an adult, and I love it. Cape Town reminds me a lot of Queenstown, New Zealand.
Continue reading: Is This A Hotel Club Lounge Or Restaurant?
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
This same situation happened to my wife and I at the Ritz Tokyo.
They bumped us to club level and the "club" allowed visitors to have full meals at breakfast and lunch as well as (seemingly) unlimited drinks at happy hour. We ended up eating all of our meals there and saving a fair bit of money, and the food and drink were outstanding.
Did you ask the hotel manager? I guess you should get an official explanation if there is a lounge and how it works just to avoid surprises.
This actually happened to me at the Andaman in Langkawi. We got upgraded to a club room, and the club had barely any free food, but a menu.
SADLY, the club lounge, I believe, has closed in the past three years or so
Get out of the hotel and experience Cape Town- it's a fantastic place and goo only have a short stay!
Why on earth would you have dinner in a chain hotel in Cape Town when the city offers some of the finest dining in the world? And, as an aside, that looks expensive for South Africa.
I stayed at a random Sheraton outside of Orlando a few years back that had a similar concept. I didn't have a meal in the lounge but the food looked good.
Personally (especially when traveling on business) i'd rather pay for a restaurant quality meal vs have free crappy food. Especially since they're already comping free 'snacks.'
Get out of the hotel and experience Cape Town- it's a fantastic place and you only have a short stay!
I have to agree with some of the previous comments about getting out of the hotel and experiencing Cape Town. It is a FANTASTIC city. You might be good at stringing loyalty program points together, however IMHO you are coming up short on experiences on the ground. Look forward to reading about what you get up to outside of the hotel! 😉
I stayed there and generally only went to that lounge for the breakfasts, which were included. The breakfasts were spectacular and delicious.
That said, get out and enjoy Cape Town. There's more to the city than a chain hotel dinner. Camps Bay has some terrific restaurants right on the water that are marvelous and very reasonable. Go!
And then go to wine country and drive down to the Cape of Good hope. So much more to see in Cape Town than some boring old (sterile) chain hotel.
I don't get why people spend so much effort traveling to such a far off place....then have dinner at the hotel.
Blows my mind every time,
Agree with the others about dining in Cape Town - go out and pig out! Fantastic food at equally fantastic prices (by US standards anyway).
My #1 tip for the Cape Town area: rent a car and go to Vergelegen winery. There are only a handful of palaces in Europe that match the grounds there. Absolutely stunning.
One of the most awkward questions to ask, for me, in a nice hotel or F class is, "Well, is it free?"
It sounds so classless, but it is often a legitimate question. But that's why we have travel bloggers... 😉
Lay off of lucky and how he spends his time. This isn't a vacation for him. This is his JOB
Guys, Ben's job is to review hotels and airlines! He isn't reviewing places!! That why he spends time in the club lounge and ordered the food. Altough the lounge is a safe and quite place where he is probably working as well. You are doing a great job Ben! Thanks!
As @stvr says, if Ben doesn't go the lounge and try it, how is he going to include it in his review?
I would like to know what's in Westin's club lounge. I'm glad Lucky provided a review.
I have stayed several times here.
The Executive Club on 19 used to be exclusively a lounge but now it is a combination. You just have to tell the host at the entry what you are there for (Plat happy hour or dinner).
Plat Happy hour will get you escorted off to a side room ( still with great Table Mountain views)
When I stayed here in August I got charged for the wine ordered in the evening.
Never had a situation like that, but a couple of times I've ordered room service and ask that it be brought to the lounge. Figure that way, I can augment my ordered food with whatever was available in the lounge.
Weird blast of comments all saying 'get out of the hotel' with almost identical wording. Did this post get picked up by some Cape Town food blog or something?
Anyways, thanks for the review Lucky, and for specifically reviewing the lounge and not a random local restaurant.
Ben: my daughter and I leave for CapeTown this Saturday. We are also staying at Westin. Any chance of meeting you? If not, one more question...I don't have status with SPG, could you help us get lounge access? 🙂 Hey, I had to ask!
Was just there in March, same Plat upgrade but had to ask for it. Had exact same thoughts re the lounge! The wine selection is actually very good. But no food at all except for chips, olives. An overall decent stay, but service could definitely be improved for housekeeping, spa and restaurant downstairs for breakfast. And they should offer some sort of complimentary food in the lounge. PS the cheap prices have nothing to do with this westin, but are everywhere due to the exchange rate.
the Rand is so cheap vs the dollar right now, get out there and eat at some fantastic places in Cape Town. It has a fair number of really well regarded restaurants, at super cheap prices for those paying in $'s.
+1 for thanks for the lounge review.
Lucky, I think it's time for you to post the link to the very good piece you had a while back about your job.
(Hint for those who didn't see it: Lucky does leave the hotel, but leaves those reviews to the many excellent travel bloggers out there. He's found his niche and it's high end flying and hotels. THAT'S what you'll see reviews of.)
Good to know that. I will headed there in January and I traditionally enjoy the lounges overseas than in the USA. I will, however, agree in the that fact thats its confusing to Elite Guests that are use to a certain standard.
WOW...reading about the lounge service or lack of food is perfect timing. We spent several nights in 2018 and food was provided. We tend to pay EXTRA for rooms that include lounge access. This is because we spend the entire day out of the hotel and seeing city sights etc., and include a great late lunch. Returning to the hotel and lounge in the evening is a great way to relax and unwind and what we paid for in our room rate. We just booked tickets to Cape town in early November and I was about to book an expensive Club access room thinking it offered what almost all club lounge's offer around the world. I will still consider booking if the General Mgr will address the reason for this change. Carl M Valenti (Member)