Accomodation Tips

Never been to South Africa myself. Anyone I know who has been mentions crime as a big concern and to avoid Joburg.

Anybody got any tips re accomodation.

If we don't qualify I will go anyway and probably try and do 7 games in 7 days in the 7 venues in and around Joburg. This involves leaving stadiums at 10.30pm after games and driving back in a rented car. Mosty of my tickets seem to be for 20.30 kickoffs.

I was thinking of staying in Pretoria as it appears to be convenient for many venues. Joburg is another option.

Any tips on a safe area with good access to the main motorways.

Would I be better off staying on match night in Polokwane, Nelspruit, Bloemfontain etc. This means I could end up as a different hotel every night. I imagine it will be tough to get hotels in these places on match nights as well.

If we make it obviously I'll plan a trip around our games.

Have been on a few occasions as my sister lived in Joburg for 15 years.Now lives in Zambia.

Joburg is bad but not bad as the media makes out. I have been around most of the country and cape Town and Durban been my fav places.

I have tickets for 3 first round games from different groups and a 2nd round game in durban. As for accomadation i will be talking to my sis over the w/end
and will ask her re.accomadation. She has lots of relations through marriage all over the country. So when i get some advice i will post it here.

If you like gambling dont miss Gold city!!

www.wheretostay.co.za.

Would appreciate any advice

Website looks good. However hard to know what is a good area and how to avoid driving through areas that are best avoided.

Cheap, Safe and good motorway Access are the priorities.

I'm no fan of Jhb or Pretoria (from my couple of work trips) but as Stretch says it's not as bad as the media portrays, you'll most likely stay in upmarket suburbs or in a secure block. Like any visit to a "developing nation" be it Asia, South America or Africa keep your wits about you, don't wander about places you're not sure about and don't wander about after dark unless you're in an area you know to be safe.
www.portfoliocollection.com is a good source for places to stay especially if you are in Gauteng as it will afford you the chance to visit Kruger.

If you plan to visit Cape Town (which you really should if you come all this way) drop me a mail and I'll see if I can suggest some places.

I've gone for a different approach and have got two group matches in Nelspruit and one last 16 in Pretoria, so those three are all up in the corner near Mozambique. I hope to catch a safari or the Limpopo River or even Victoria Falls. Then I have a quarter final at Nelson Mandela Bay (Port Elizabeth), and will try and pick up another quarter or semi in Cape Town.

Basically I'm going to fly into and out of Cape Town and then try and see if I can get an internal flight to Nelspruit and then buses Nelspruit -> Port Elizabeth -> Cape Town, they say trains are better but I'm not sure that route will work.

Hiring a car is a good idea but get an old banger, best not to have too much attention on yourself in a flash car etc. I have a close friend who is from South Africa and have been speaking to her at length about the situation. Although there is crime in SA, it is not as bad as the media makes it out to be. Also bear in mind that a lot of people will be visiting so there is likely to be a phenominal police presence. The government know the importance of the world cup to south africa and know ramifications would / could be huge for the future of the tourism industry if there are problems with crime.

Everyone should take a medical kit though! With syringes, tablets etc. But syringes are key, know your blood type and also if you are diabetic or have an allergy to penicillin etc get one of those bracelets. South African doctors are very good but facilities are not great and you dont want to take risks. And if you head up to the north west make sure you take anti malerials.

As long as you have good travel insurance you will be covered under the private health system here which is top class and on the same level as private treatment in Europe.
I wouldn't stress about medical stuff unless you have a specific problem (eg. astmatha or diabetes) or if you are planning some serious bush walking in the national parks. If you are on an organised safari trip in a lodge you will be well looked after.
Edmundo I would look at flying in and out of JHB, from there it will be easier to get internal flights or get a flight into JHB and back from CPT, internal flights are coming down in price thanks to the new budget airlines here but JHB is the hub for most of them. The train from PE to CPT is supposed to be a nice trip, I wouldn't bother elsewhere as the distances are just too great, that said the drive from PE to CPT is right through the Garden Route and is lovely with loads of places to stop off.

Can you suggest which area of Cape Town would be the best to stay in Enda?

I'd recommend Safarinow.com

Been to CPT a few times fionnbark.Depends what you want really.

Finbarrk, the stadium is located in Green Point which is close to the V&A waterfront, the CBD and is along the atlantic seaboard, where some of the pricier suburbs (Bantry Bay, Camps Bay, Clifton) are all located along the seaboard.
Sea Point is generally more affordable and close and depending on what you are after there is a good mix of levels from backpackers to 5 star. I am expecting that Green Point will be very busy & expensive (I'm sure Sea point will be too) for a cheap alternative you can try the backpacker places in Cape Town proper, there's a few along long street (there was a tragic fire in one last night where 4 people were killed so maybe not a good time to do research).
If you are planning on hiring a car it could widen your locations to take in southern suburbs & the west coast areas around Blouberg & Milnerton.

http://www.capetown-direct.com/maps.html

Well I'd like to stay where the nightlife is. I have researched that Long St. is the spot for that. I think I'll book a hotel in that area maybe.
I got tickets for a few of the Cape Town games in the first ballot.

I managed to book an apartment in Green Point in Cape Town for 10 days during the first phase of matches. A lot of places seem to be booked out already and the prices that are quoted on websites for high season have doubled for the World Cup. They also seem to look for as much as possible to be paid up front but I managed to negotiate that down to a reasonable amount...let's face it they're not going to be left empty!

I emailed this crowd (http://www.tourismcapetown.co.za) and they found the place for me.

Long St is a good option, there's quite a few decent bars there, including the token Oirsh bar the Dubliner (there's now a second one called CaTu) also Green Point Main road has some decent bars too, they're only a few minutes apart by car/taxi & also close to the waterfront which has some decent restaurants and a couple of good bars.
If you're booked into either Long St or Green point you're in good convienient spots.

OK Enda, might see you there!
Mickey, most of the websites don't take bookings untill 12 months in advance so I'll wait another month or so.

probably only relevant to those of you planning to go irrespective of whether we make it or not.

hotels and B&Bs for June 2010 are available as from 11pm last night on booking.com and presumably on other sites later today.

A few worrying trends

I was watching pretoria - had picked out some places but they more than doubled (three bees) and even tripled their prices from May 2010 to June 2010.

All room appear to be non refundable and you must pay in full now. I had identified places that were fully refundable.

I ended up booking a B&B in Edenvale east of Jo'burg (3 brothers). It wasn't my first choice as I was hoping to avoid the city as much as possible. However they did keep their rates the same as May 2010 although maybe the pretoria B&Bs will be three times better in June than in May next year. :mad:

It was 34 euro per night for single occupancy for a twin room. It will be another 24 euro per night to use as a full twin room but that can be arranged when we have the draw.

4 venues are within an hour's drive. 3 more are driveable from Jo'burg. A 4th - Durban is at a push.

I'd appreciate any info on Edenvale if anybody knows it. The is a local website that says it is a nice quiet area.

Obviously if we qualify and are down south or east then I'll lose out but I'm sure it wouldn't be too hard to sell on.

www.sleeping-out.co.za

Another decent accomodation website, I've used them for booking a couple of things locally.

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Originally Posted by endabob1

www.sleeping-out.co.za

Another decent accomodation website, I've used them for booking a couple of things locally.

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I can vouch for that. I just spent a couple of days looking for accommodation in Durban without much success until I used the broadcast functionality on this website. It basically mails a bunch of places in the areas you want and I had a bout 10 responses this morning (half of which had some availability).

Another site I used that got back to me with an available place was http://www.howyaholidays.co.za

The best accomodation tip is to book now before the draw in 2 hours time.

Just another point, people are moaning about the difference between prices in May & June but the people I know or have asked about the WC have said they are effectively treating it as peak season and are charging peak season rates. Peak season here is December January when the school holidays normally are, next year the schools are also off for the duration of the World Cup so combined with the World Cup this is the justificatino for the second Peak season.
If you compare a week in Jan and a week in June there should be little or no difference.

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Originally Posted by endabob1

Just another point, people are moaning about the difference between prices in May & June but the people I know or have asked about the WC have said they are effectively treating it as peak season and are charging peak season rates. Peak season here is December January when the school holidays normally are, next year the schools are also off for the duration of the World Cup so combined with the World Cup this is the justificatino for the second Peak season.
If you compare a week in Jan and a week in June there should be little or no difference.

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Thanks Endabob but there does seem to be quite a bit of profiteering going on as well. I could understand a peak rate being applied and would be happy if this was the general case. I just enquired about a 3-star B&B in Durban and was quoted US$500 a night for one room - there is no way that is anywhere near the January rate!

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Originally Posted by EastTerracer

Thanks Endabob but there does seem to be quite a bit of profiteering going on as well. I could understand a peak rate being applied and would be happy if this was the general case. I just enquired about a 3-star B&B in Durban and was quoted US$500 a night for one room - there is no way that is anywhere near the January rate!

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Tell them to shove it! Durban should be one of the better served cities and I'm sure if you shop around you'll get a better deal.
People are clearly letting greed take hold

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Originally Posted by endabob1

Just another point, people are moaning about the difference between prices in May & June but the people I know or have asked about the WC have said they are effectively treating it as peak season and are charging peak season rates. Peak season here is December January when the school holidays normally are, next year the schools are also off for the duration of the World Cup so combined with the World Cup this is the justificatino for the second Peak season.
If you compare a week in Jan and a week in June there should be little or no difference.

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Prices are well above the January rates in Jo'burg, Pretoria and Durban.

There is blatant and worrying profiteering going on.

GSpain

I don't doubt that it will happen I'm a bit surprised at how widespread it seems to be and in cities where there should be sufficient accomodation. All 3 cities you mention have track records of hosting big events like I said to EastTerracer tell them to shove it, I don't think you will get stuck without a bed in any of those cities.
I would expect a bit more profiteering in Bloem, Rustenberg, Nelspruitm, Polokwane, PE where it's a very limited supply of beds, but it's sh!t if it's happening everywhere becaue it will just deter people from coming, the flights from Europe are already 2/3 times the normal price.

I'm half thinking of going out for the week of the 2nd round and basing myself in Jo-berg. I found this place which is outside of the city but seems like a nice place to relax. They are offering match transfers too which takes the hassle out of renting a car.

http://www.ekala.co.za/accommodationsoccer.html

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...g.html#REVIEWS

Also, I can't seem to post on the World Cup tickets thread for some reason. What would be people's thoughts be on getting tickets for these matches at a reasonable price?

Potential games if things go to form would be:

1B (Argentina) v 2A (Uruguay) in Soccer City
1G (Brazil) v 2H (Chile) in Ellis Park
1F (Italy) v 2E (Denmark) in Pretoria

Also 1C (England) v 2D (Serbia/Ghana/Oz) is reachable in Rustenberg but with a capacity of 42,000 I can't see myself picking up a ticket at a good price.

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Originally Posted by endabob1

GSpain

I don't doubt that it will happen I'm a bit surprised at how widespread it seems to be and in cities where there should be sufficient accomodation. All 3 cities you mention have track records of hosting big events like I said to EastTerracer tell them to shove it, I don't think you will get stuck without a bed in any of those cities.
I would expect a bit more profiteering in Bloem, Rustenberg, Nelspruitm, Polokwane, PE where it's a very limited supply of beds, but it's sh!t if it's happening everywhere becaue it will just deter people from coming, the flights from Europe are already 2/3 times the normal price.

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I think it will deter a lot of people from travelling. We've already had a dropout due to the cost of B&Bs and the feeling he'd be ripped off at every turn.

I booked on June 30th at 11pm at the normal rate but they shot up the next day. They want silly money now to put an extra person in the room.

I'm only short a bed for 1 night but one of our group (of 3) will be short for quite a few nights. We don't arrive until England head south and will be heading home if they come back north for the 2nd round so I'm not too cocnerned with finding a bed but hope they drop the prices.

You could have flown from Dublin for just over €1K before the draw with 1 stop and £750 ex London via Nairobi or Tripoli though so 2 stopovers from Dublin. Not cheap but not too bad - that was for the first round only - gets worse as you go on in the tournament. A friend did get Swissair for €900 ex Dublin for the whole tournament back in September.

Rental cars are still at the regular price and no problems booking 1 despite the reports of a shortage.

Internal flights are a total ripoff but must come down.

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Originally Posted by Ari Gold

I'm half thinking of going out for the week of the 2nd round and basing myself in Jo-berg. I found this place which is outside of the city but seems like a nice place to relax. They are offering match transfers too which takes the hassle out of renting a car.

http://www.ekala.co.za/accommodationsoccer.html

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...g.html#REVIEWS

Also, I can't seem to post on the World Cup tickets thread for some reason. What would be people's thoughts be on getting tickets for these matches at a reasonable price?

Potential games if things go to form would be:

1B (Argentina) v 2A (Uruguay) in Soccer City
1G (Brazil) v 2H (Chile) in Ellis Park
1F (Italy) v 2E (Denmark) in Pretoria

Also 1C (England) v 2D (Serbia/Ghana/Oz) is reachable in Rustenberg but with a capacity of 42,000 I can't see myself picking up a ticket at a good price.

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I don't think tickets will be a problem except of course for England. Brazil in Ellis Park might be an issue too.

We'll most likely have spares at face value for 1st round games in the previous few days. It will take a few days to work out who is going where.
We have no 2nd round tickets.

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_i...3854615C855993

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An upmarket Clifton property has smashed rental records in South Africa, with an international celebrity leasing the luxurious pad for the duration of the World Cup for a staggering R7.5-million - or R250 000 a day.

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The worlds gone mad

I've a game in Joburg on 27 June at 20:30, then the next day in Durban 28th June at 16:00, then the next day in Pretoria 29 June 2010 at 16:00. What's the best way of getting between the 3, flying is looking like £200 return - which is not ideal, the buses dont seem to go at ideal times, so a 5 - 8hr drive might be needed.

Failing that how likely do you think I'd be able to swap the Durban game (probably Holland v Paraguay) for someone else's Ellis Park game (runner up of Brazil/Port/IvoryCt vs Swiss/Chile)?

Also does anyone know how the tickets are picked up ? Is it all in one go when you arrive or on a match by match basis?

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Originally Posted by cfdh_edmundo

I've a game in Joburg on 27 June at 20:30, then the next day in Durban 28th June at 16:00, then the next day in Pretoria 29 June 2010 at 16:00. What's the best way of getting between the 3, flying is looking like £200 return - which is not ideal, the buses dont seem to go at ideal times, so a 5 - 8hr drive might be needed.

Failing that how likely do you think I'd be able to swap the Durban game (probably Holland v Paraguay) for someone else's Ellis Park game (runner up of Brazil/Port/IvoryCt vs Swiss/Chile)?

Also does anyone know how the tickets are picked up ? Is it all in one go when you arrive or on a match by match basis?

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Tickets will most likely be all in one go. That was the case in Germany.
Apparently Jo'burg airport (OR Tambo International) will be one of the pickup points.

Apparently it is a tough drive to durban - min 6 hours each way.

The flights might come down as they are not selling.

Swopping your ticket might be tough but there is still a good chance of getting a ticket for the game in Ellis Park. However if it is Brazil it will be that bit tougher.

The drive itself wouldnt concern me, apparently it would be about 5 hours and the roads are good. The main issue is that even the cheapest rental car (VW Combi truck thinggy) would be R1700 (base fee R1000 + R700 for the excess mileage) which is not that much cheaper than the air costs. I agree that the flights don't seem to be selling, hopefully they'll come down in price. It seems the Dutch will be involved in the Durban match (assuming they win their group) - I'm already going to a Dutch match so hopefully I could sawp the tickets with one of them who has a ticket for the Ellis Park match.

For those who go be prepared its a beautiful country.
Its a lot bigger than you think and air travel may be a good option to get around country.

Re recent African events taking thread title seriously should ensure pistol under pillow & be armed at all tiimes when out would be good tips.

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Originally Posted by historynut

For those who go be prepared its a beautiful country.

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Very true, probably the mose scenic place I have ever been.

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Originally Posted by historynut

Its a lot bigger than you think and air travel may be a good option to get around country.

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Also very true, Cape Town to Jhb 2 hours flying time 13/14 hours driving time, Cape Town to Durban 1,800kms similar to driving from Dublin through the UK and down through France to the Cote D'azur

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Originally Posted by historynut

Re recent African events taking thread title seriously should ensure pistol under pillow & be armed at all tiimes when out would be good tips.

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I've lived here twice, for a year in 02/03 and now since September 08 and I've never carried a gun and never will. Be aware of your surroundings especially at night, don't act like a dumb tourist and you'll be fine.

Regarding its beauty recall when last visited (early 90's) sitting in Cape Town airport, thinking I had a problem in that the more times I may go (was due a further visit, that did'nt materialise) I might not want to return home.
Another accolade recall when Rugby World Cup was staged there, watching a game being televised and being enticed into the backdrop of the Hottonnots(?) mountains to the rear of the stadium at Stellenbosch, as opposed to the action on the pitch.

SA investigates World Cup airline price-fixing, whether anything comes of it or not is another story but at least they look like they are doing something about it.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8487099.stm

Does anyone know anything about Lanseria Airport, I think it's the second airport of Joburg, to the North West. I arrive there from Durban fairly late at night (23:30 ish) and will be looking to get from there to, ideally, Pretoria (assuming I can book decent accom. in Pretoria), how much would a taxi be and would I be able to get one that late at night ?

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Originally Posted by cfdh_edmundo

Does anyone know anything about Lanseria Airport, I think it's the second airport of Joburg, to the North West. I arrive there from Durban fairly late at night (23:30 ish) and will be looking to get from there to, ideally, Pretoria (assuming I can book decent accom. in Pretoria), how much would a taxi be and would I be able to get one that late at night ?

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I'm flying to Cape Town and back from there on the 21st.

All I know is that it is quite small and in North Jo'burg so the right side for Pretoria but I'd imagine a taxi would be expensive even outside of the World Cup. Why not stay nearby in northern Jo'burg which is apparently the best part of the city to stay in.

Other option is a rental car.

BTW although most guesthouses haven't yet dropped their prices you will get deals if you email a few and negotiate. Check the May 2010 prices and email a few of them saying you are looking for accommodation but at a price close to your normal level of XYZ Rand. You might pay 50% on top of this price but better than the 300-1,000% increases.

Cheers, thanks for the tips, I'm probably going to stay near OR Tambo Airport in Joburg (match on 27th), then Pretoria for 2 nights (28th, when I've done a day trip to Durbs, and 29th in Pretoria) from what I've read a cab from Lanseria to Pretoria should be around 350 rand (approx 35 euro), (http://www.bellemodel.biz/property/Gauteng_taxi.html), but things to note are that there is (apparently) no taxi rank at Lanseria and the hire car offices are not open outside of the usual 9-5 hours, a girl I know used to work for Kalula (one of the budget airlines) and they will usually call up a cab for you if you want and it will be there waiting for you at the arrivals hall.

It's about 10 years since I last did serious driving (save the occasional 6 mile trip to the supermarket every other month or so) so I am a bit reluctant to hire one out there. Also if anyone does hire a car out there, from what I've read you need to be a bit careful at night at junctions. Make sure there is a lot of room in front of your car so if the situation gets sticky at a red light you can just swerve out and drive off.