Mount Nelson Hotel was declared a National Monument: see http://www.mountnelson.co.za/
Mount Nelson Hotel, opened on the 6th of March 1899. It was the fruit of the imagination and determination of shipping magnate Sir Donald Currie.
The hotel was acquired by Orient-Express Hotels, Trains & Cruises in 1988 which led to improvements and renovations in every area of the hotel.
In the 100 years since she first opened her doors in 1899, the Mount Nelson Hotel ('Nellie' to her friends) has hosted an array of royal celebrities, world leaders, and artistic greats, including the Prince of Wales (in 1925), Winston Churchill, Cecil John Rhodes, Joseph Chamberlain, HG Wells, Rudyard Kipling, Agatha Christie, and John Lennon to name but a few. 'Nellie' is shrouded in a sense of history and romance that few hotels anywhere can match.
Sumptuous Cakes for after the tours
Read more at : http://www.trailsclub.co.za/media/Vermiculturebackground.doc
See website: http://www.fullcycle.co.za
Worm Factory on modular shelving – Mount Nelson Hotel, Cape Town
5 star luxury fit for a king...
Garden Tour
Chincherinchee (p.79)
All page references below flower pics refer to: Common Wild Flowers of Table Mountain. Authors: Hugh Clarke & Bruce Mackenzie.
The entrance to The Helmsley Hotel Wing. A unique feature of the Mount Nelson Hotel is its four new 'wings' of luxurious accommodation, all set in private gardens planted with lavender and iceberg roses. These wings - Taunton House, Green Park, Helmsley and Hof Villa - are reached from the main hotel via the leafy Palm Avenue. Guests staying in them enjoy unrivalled serenity and seclusion, and are, of course, entitled to use all the hotel's facilities, including the two heated swimming pools, with their superb Table Mountain backdrop.
Green Park
Here they cremate guest not paying.... Only joking: The laundry rooms and next to it is the wormery.
One of two heated swimming pools
The hotel boasts two heated swimming pools, a body care centre, hair salon, gymnasium, golf practice net, floodlit tennis courts, gift shops, a travel desk, a fully equipped business centre, two restaurants and a bar. Although the Mount Nelson is over a 100 years old, it has managed to keep itself up to date with modern trends and is still the first choice hotel of many overseas visitors to Cape Town.
Librisa Spa building
The history of the estate on which the Mount Nelson is built goes back to 1741. It was called The Garden of Oudtshoorn and adjoined the Company's garden and the Governor of the Cape granted it to a young Dutch Baron Pieter van Rheede van Oudtshoorn. A portion was bought by the Cape Land Company in 1890 to build a hotel for the passengers of luxury mail ships sailing to and from the Cape.
The strongest architectural style is Cape Georgian. The hotel is furnished in keeping with the period with rich woods and beautiful fabrics and has an intriguing collection of memorabilia from the days of the Union Castle Line, when passengers would disembark and rush straight to the comforts of the "Nellie".
Back to lounge area for that Sumptuous Cakes
See Sam's pics at: http://samgrey.atspace.com/Mount%20Nelson%2031%20Oct%202008/index.html
High Tea at the Nellie: Being a five star hotel aimed at attracting the upper end of the market the not so wealthy do not always get an opportunity to visit the Nellie. However there is a way of enjoying time at the hotel by booking for one of the world famous teas offered each day. On offer are cucumber sandwiches and quiches, savoury tarts and cheeses, petit fours, iced cakes, chocolates, fruit tartlets and hot berry compote served with a pot of Earl Grey, China, Indian, Herbal or whatever tea takes your fancy. What a way to spend an afternoon!
"There was a special magic about coming to the Cape which was then the place where Africa met the world through its shipping. I loved my first visit to the hotel. And I loved the sea - it was like coming home. I've stayed at the Mount Nelson countless times since. And I remember the staff were always so good. I have travelled a great deal in the world - I've had to in my life - but my favourite hotel is the Mount Nelson Hotel in Cape Town." Sir Laurens van der Post, writer-explorer and adventurer.
In 1925 the state visit of the Prince of Wales ((later Edward VIII) gave the Mount Nelson the perfect excuse to commission a grand new entrance and palm-tree lined driveway, which was named after His Royal Highness - the impressive ‘Prince of Wales Gate’
