Hôtel Le Vendôme under new ownership and management

Hôtel Le Vendôme – the opulent Cape Town 5-star hotel, with its trademark foyer-based Spanish chandelier and that has played host to high profile dignitaries, is under new ownership and management.  The 11-year-old Sea Point-based hotel was purchased in August 2008 by the United Arab Emirates-based Bin Otaiba Investment Group, which also owns the Port Elizabeth-based King Edward Hotel and Blaauwbosch Private Game Reserve and is one of the UAE’s leading investment group of companies.

“We like to describe our style as still being committed to a touch of elegance, charm and tranquility with a hint of sophistication, yet with an entirely fresh approach,” says the hotel’s new General Manager Samantha Annandale, who took up her new position last month.  “Hôtel Le Vendôme has matured gracefully and is more committed than ever to placing foremost priority on nurturing and developing relationships, while also providing friendly, unobtrusive service and we are striving to pay our utmost attention to guests’ individual needs,” she says.

Commenting on plans to extend the hotel’s offering, Annandale notes: “We now also have plans for a very exclusive African Beauty Day Spa, a top class gymnasium facility, boutique shop with exquisite diamonds and pearls, and even an entire floor dedicated to Executive Clubrooms, along the lines of what some airlines now offer.  We are also planning a truly spectacular specialized coffee zone-cum-bistro-cum-bakery.”

She adds that plans are also afoot to implement a responsible tourism programme, starting with staff training and leading up to a full-scale ‘greening’ programme.

Situated in the Mother City’s cosmopolitan Sea Point suburb, at 20 London Road, the hotel  boasts picturesque views of the Atlantic coast and is a mere fifty metre walk from the vibrant Sea Point promenade.  A member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World, Hôtel Le Vendôme is making a bid to become particularly renowned for its South African hospitality.  Ongoing staff training is a top priority for Annandale, who says the 143 rooms and suites are serviced with impeccable attention to detail.

The hotel is presently rolling out with a branding exercise that will see them reaching out over the next few months to valued clients and tourism stakeholders, starting with a housewarming cocktail party by invite on Wednesday 8 July.

“I have been engaging extensively with my staff and suppliers to ensure that we are all on the same page in terms of our commitment not least to being service oriented to the highest global standards of luxurious detail,” says Annandale.

She explains that new value-adding products include the addition of a 3-bus shuttle service between the hotel and the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

The previously alluded to extension plans aside, the hotel’s current characteristics include the following:

•    Dining:
o    Rive Gauche offers fine dining with Cape and international wines (the hotel will shortly announce its new menu compiled by new chef Jonathan Gargan, previously from Ellerman House).
o    Le Cygne is the hotel’s casually elegant restaurant overlooking the pool.
o    Le Salon Chantilly is a classic lounge, the ideal milieu for a lavish High Tea, pre-dinner aperitif or a connoisseur cognac and cigar.

•    Swimming pool, where an outdoor breakfast, light refreshing lunch or sunset cocktail ‘al fresco’ can be served.
•    Private accommodation and venues in exclusive zones within the hotel, catering for all sectors of business.
•    Conferencing facilities:  Le Salon Concorde is a modular state-of-the-art conference and banqueting space, comprising three multi-purpose interconnecting rooms that accommodate up to 220 guests.  Private boardrooms and Global Videoconferencing technology are available and the hotel’s Business Centre offers guests the further convenience of full secretarial services.  The hotel has an in-room internet and facsimile connectivity, plus a Guest Link system with on-screen messaging.  Each room is business ready and an express check-out service is available for those keeping an eye on time.
•    Rooms are fitted out with international adapters, modem points, an in-room safe, refreshments, a complimentary tea and coffee butler station, 24-hour in-room dining, and eighteen television channels, including satellite television.

The hotel is situated a mere 25 kilometres from Cape Town International Airport and the Cape Winelands and Cape Peninsula’s gourmet delights, pristine beaches and indigenous flora and fauna are all within easy reach.  The vibrant V&A Waterfront and Table Mountain are a mere two minutes drive away.

Summing up the “fresh look” ethos behind the team that has at heart and in equal measure the interests of the visitor, new ownership and management, Annandale describes the hotel as “a Mother City must” to see and experience – “a best-kept secret that is now a whole lot more out in the open!” she quips.

For further information, visit the website www.le-vendome.co.za

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