Discussion
I'm currently in the process of arranging accomodation in South Africa (Johannesburg) for when I travel there in December as part of a gap year/volunteering year.
A random search of dates in early december through up a few hostels costing around £40 for 5 nights. Then just below these was a five star hotel at THREE POUNDS A NIGHT. This place to be exact http://www.africandreams.net/hotels/michelangelo.h...
I aren't even sure if I will be there at this time but 5 nights for £14, I have booked it anyway.
Now I'm wondering where I stand if this has been a mistake on the travel agents part. It was booked through STA Travel
That is going to be some five days if I turns out to be legit
Edit - At any other time, 5 nights there comes to about £1500
A random search of dates in early december through up a few hostels costing around £40 for 5 nights. Then just below these was a five star hotel at THREE POUNDS A NIGHT. This place to be exact http://www.africandreams.net/hotels/michelangelo.h...
I aren't even sure if I will be there at this time but 5 nights for £14, I have booked it anyway.
Now I'm wondering where I stand if this has been a mistake on the travel agents part. It was booked through STA Travel
That is going to be some five days if I turns out to be legit
Edit - At any other time, 5 nights there comes to about £1500
Edited by lord-of-creation on Sunday 23 May 18:58
V8mate said:
Cremation or burial, Sir?
I can't imagine why anyone would want to go such a godforsaken place.
Unsure what you mean by that. It was either that or staying in a hostel, which is what i'll be doing the rest of the year. Will be something a bit different for 4 or 5 days. It's only a stop gap between arriving at joburg and then travelling down to Port Elizabeth where I'm volunteering in a game reserve for 4 weeksI can't imagine why anyone would want to go such a godforsaken place.
V8 is referring to Jo'burg's rep - notably stuff like "Advice to women drivers: do not stop at red lights!" and the prevalence of FLAMETHROWER anti-car-jacking defence systems and pistols in gloveboxes.
It's not Somalia, sure...but it makes Brixton look like Chelsea!!!
I'd not visit Jo'burg or Pretoria, but have both Cape Town and Durban on the list (and the Garden Route in-between).
So...have you any requests for a eulogy or epitaph?!?
It's not Somalia, sure...but it makes Brixton look like Chelsea!!!
I'd not visit Jo'burg or Pretoria, but have both Cape Town and Durban on the list (and the Garden Route in-between).
So...have you any requests for a eulogy or epitaph?!?
lord-of-creation said:
V8mate said:
Cremation or burial, Sir?
I can't imagine why anyone would want to go such a godforsaken place.
Unsure what you mean by that. I can't imagine why anyone would want to go such a godforsaken place.
Was reading an article about SA in this morning's Sunday Times. 1 in 4 women in SA have been raped. 1 in 4!
And the prosecution rate? 1%.
Like I said: I can't imagine what possibly attracts you to go there.
Edited by V8mate on Sunday 23 May 21:24
Hmmm, might have to change my plans then
I'm starting out in Thailand on a 12 week scuba diving course and the plan was then to volunteer at the game reserve in SA before travelling over to Australia for a bit more volunteering and then some travelling/working hopefully
However, I might scrap SA now and perhaps select a different volunteering project in Asia, maybe Malaysia and then head on to Australia. This will save a fair whack on airfair too.
Doesn't sound worth the risk heading to South Africa
I'm starting out in Thailand on a 12 week scuba diving course and the plan was then to volunteer at the game reserve in SA before travelling over to Australia for a bit more volunteering and then some travelling/working hopefully
However, I might scrap SA now and perhaps select a different volunteering project in Asia, maybe Malaysia and then head on to Australia. This will save a fair whack on airfair too.
Doesn't sound worth the risk heading to South Africa
I wouldn't go quite as far as to avoid SA altogether. I would avoid JoBurg and Pretoria though but Durban and Cape Town are both decent places. I have a lot of family in SA and yes the ones living in JoBurg have been carjacked etc, but the ones living near Durban have never had a problem and it is a stunning area too!
Cape Town is a great place, as is Port Elizabeth, Niznar (sp?) has a very pretty inland lagoon
Durban is a dump, or at least it was in 2000 when I was there. (but wasn’t any better in 2007, when my brother was there)
Jo'burg, is, well let’s put it this way, I had a disagreement over a parking space at a mall on a trip over there, I was there 1st, he had a hand gun.....he got the space.
As for the roads, more poeple die on there roads in the summer holiday peroid, then the for the whole year in the UK.
Wildlife and Scenary however are stunning.
Durban is a dump, or at least it was in 2000 when I was there. (but wasn’t any better in 2007, when my brother was there)
Jo'burg, is, well let’s put it this way, I had a disagreement over a parking space at a mall on a trip over there, I was there 1st, he had a hand gun.....he got the space.
As for the roads, more poeple die on there roads in the summer holiday peroid, then the for the whole year in the UK.
Wildlife and Scenary however are stunning.
£14 for 5 nights at the Michelangelo? Excellent value!
The Michelangelo is in Sandton, one of SA's safest areas and in a pedestrianised zone which is well patrolled.
If the booking is honoured, definitely go there!
However, Joburg's sprawl means that you might be many hours from where you are supposed to be
The Michelangelo is in Sandton, one of SA's safest areas and in a pedestrianised zone which is well patrolled.
If the booking is honoured, definitely go there!
However, Joburg's sprawl means that you might be many hours from where you are supposed to be
I Spent 10 weeks in SA in Jo'B, Cape Town, Durban and Kreuger 12 years ago when it was apparently worse... Had a great time and would go back in a flash, even getting picked up by the police and given a lift back to the hotel for being "a mad touristy b
d" was fun (apparently it isn't wise to walk through alone at 3am, as well as being threatened with a gun in a Cape Town nightclub for talking to the ex gf of some mad git
d" was fun (apparently it isn't wise to walk through alone at 3am, as well as being threatened with a gun in a Cape Town nightclub for talking to the ex gf of some mad git Puggit said:
£14 for 5 nights at the Michelangelo? Excellent value!
The Michelangelo is in Sandton, one of SA's safest areas and in a pedestrianised zone which is well patrolled.
If the booking is honoured, definitely go there!
However, Joburg's sprawl means that you might be many hours from where you are supposed to be
How was that managed when its R5000 for a normal room per night, that is not £3The Michelangelo is in Sandton, one of SA's safest areas and in a pedestrianised zone which is well patrolled.
If the booking is honoured, definitely go there!
However, Joburg's sprawl means that you might be many hours from where you are supposed to be
Dupont666 said:
Puggit said:
£14 for 5 nights at the Michelangelo? Excellent value!
The Michelangelo is in Sandton, one of SA's safest areas and in a pedestrianised zone which is well patrolled.
If the booking is honoured, definitely go there!
However, Joburg's sprawl means that you might be many hours from where you are supposed to be
How was that managed when its R5000 for a normal room per night, that is not £3The Michelangelo is in Sandton, one of SA's safest areas and in a pedestrianised zone which is well patrolled.
If the booking is honoured, definitely go there!
However, Joburg's sprawl means that you might be many hours from where you are supposed to be
lord-of-creation said:
Dupont666 said:
Puggit said:
£14 for 5 nights at the Michelangelo? Excellent value!
The Michelangelo is in Sandton, one of SA's safest areas and in a pedestrianised zone which is well patrolled.
If the booking is honoured, definitely go there!
However, Joburg's sprawl means that you might be many hours from where you are supposed to be
How was that managed when its R5000 for a normal room per night, that is not £3The Michelangelo is in Sandton, one of SA's safest areas and in a pedestrianised zone which is well patrolled.
If the booking is honoured, definitely go there!
However, Joburg's sprawl means that you might be many hours from where you are supposed to be
You may want to check and make sure they are not going to cancel it due to website error
No it was just the most basic room they do, which I'd guess is fairly decent
It's no longer available what so ever on the STA website so it must have been an error of some sort. Not yet decided whether i'm going to go yet but will contact them to see if it is legit if I do end up going
It's no longer available what so ever on the STA website so it must have been an error of some sort. Not yet decided whether i'm going to go yet but will contact them to see if it is legit if I do end up going
lord-of-creation said:
Hmmm, might have to change my plans then
I'm starting out in Thailand on a 12 week scuba diving course and the plan was then to volunteer at the game reserve in SA before travelling over to Australia for a bit more volunteering and then some travelling/working hopefully
However, I might scrap SA now and perhaps select a different volunteering project in Asia, maybe Malaysia and then head on to Australia. This will save a fair whack on airfair too.
Doesn't sound worth the risk heading to South Africa
Don't listen to the naysayers. South Africa can be an amazing place and you can have a good time there for sure. Head north into Mozambique too if you want amazing beaches and a great atmosphere.I'm starting out in Thailand on a 12 week scuba diving course and the plan was then to volunteer at the game reserve in SA before travelling over to Australia for a bit more volunteering and then some travelling/working hopefully
However, I might scrap SA now and perhaps select a different volunteering project in Asia, maybe Malaysia and then head on to Australia. This will save a fair whack on airfair too.
Doesn't sound worth the risk heading to South Africa
I was in Joburg for 2 weeks without a problem. Sure, you have to watch your back, but that is part and parcel of the place. It is part of what makes it exciting. Only the most certified limp wristed wimp would pull out because of safety fears.
Plus, Sandton (where your hotel is) is out of the city centre and the most plush area of Joburg. It is pretty damn safe around that part.
Just take precautions and you will be fine.
(This doesn't mean that Joburg is a good place to visit. It is a s
t hole - a massive version of Basildon). Head for the other places that any good guide book mentions. It is a massive country with a wide array of landscapes, cultures, things to see etc. You're supposed to be exploring the world. That includes visiting Joburg and other places. Don't be a sop and only visit the world wide tourist equivalents of Tenerife and Kos.Edited by Shay HTFC on Tuesday 25th May 20:58
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