One of the most interesting trends in the hospitality industry in recent years has been the increasing emergence of smaller, boutique hotels. The main difference between a chain hotel and a boutique hotel is that no two boutique hotels are alike. There are many benefits to be had in choosing to stay at a boutique hotel, particularly when travelling abroad. Boutique hotels are more likely to offer their guests a more authentic cultural or historic experience, in keeping with country they are visiting.
Boutique hotels are smaller and are often privately owned. They are warmer and more intimate in atmosphere than chain hotels. Offering a smaller number of rooms allows guests to be treated to personalised attention, often integrated with the destination. Taking care of fewer guests permits boutique hotel to bring more exclusive, often luxurious, touches to making their guests feel extra-special.
No two boutique hotels are the same. Each boutique hotel strives to have its own unique personality. Not having to hold fast to the standard branding found in chain hotels means that each hotel has the freedom to create its own distinctive style. Several boutique hotels in Cape Town and surrounds are housed in historical buildings, bringing a wonderful charm that cannot be replicated in more modern buildings. Boutique hotels that are of the more modern variety are jam-packed with personality – with themes that range from being contemporary or hip and trendy, to romantic or quirky. Some boutique hotels choose to theme each hotel room differently, making each room one-of-a-kind.
Boutique hotels are able to offer far higher levels of personal service, creating the ambiance of being a personal guest in a private home. With a higher staff to guest ratio boutique hotel staff can concentrate on the details – devoting more time to hands-on personal attention, making each guest’s stay memorable through exceptional service. This may extend to providing gorgeous designer bath products, a free bottle of wine upon check-in, or offering to advise and facilitate personalised dining and activity recommendations.
No matter what your personal preferences may be, when it comes to choosing a holiday accommodation there is likely a boutique hotel to meet your needs. In Cape Town and surrounds you can choose between seaside, mountain, vineyard, upmarket leafy suburbs or city centre locations. There are boutique hotels housed in historical buildings, modern architectural masterpieces, mansions, villas and even in caves or old converted prisons.
Surrounded by mountains, Hout Bay Manor is a luxury boutique hotel developed around an old world historical manor house, original built on Kronendal Estate in 1871. Hout Bay Manor is a 5- minute drive from Hout Bay beach and the quaint working harbour, and it is a 30-minute drive from most of Cape Town’s iconic tourist attractions making it a great base from which to explore the Cape Peninsula and enjoy some of the most spectacular scenery Cape Town has to offer – not to mention getting to grips with local culture to really get under the skin of your destination.
We hope you’ve enjoyed exploring the advantages of a boutique hotel with us…
