After spending the first few days of our Cape Town vacay in an Airbnb apartment in the Bellvue area, my friends and I went our separate ways. Jannae and Coribbia ventured off to do a 2-day safari, while I opted for some solo time.

I was curious to see what luxury in Cape Town looked like, so I spent the next few days exploring Camps Bay, one of the wealthiest areas of Cape Town. I checked in at the Twelve Apostles Hotel & Spa, a highly recommended luxury hotel in the area that also seemed to share my passion for sustainable living—here’s my review!

WATCH MY VIDEO (and continue reading below for my review)

Top 5 Things I Loved

1. SUSTAINABLE VALUES

First and foremost, this blog is about more than just globetrotting and luxury living. It’s about how we can enjoy life thoughtfully. So, I want to acknowledge this hotel for its role in sustainability, which is something that’s important to me (and hopefully you too).

You can read here about their commitment to sustainability, but I’ll sum it up. The Twelve Apostles Hotel & Spa is part of the Red Carnation Hotel Collection, which is a family-owned company with a focus on supporting local communities and the environment. This hotel participates in sustainable community projects, practices energy efficiency, conserves natural resources, uses environmentally responsible products, and recycles.

They also support the prevention of youth violence and the empowerment of underprivileged youths in townships to contribute to their communities (watch my video about what township life is like).

2. SECLUSION + NATURE

Rarely do I ever roll up to a hotel that is completely isolated. But that’s exactly what happened. One minute I was cruising in my Uber ride along the coast, and the next we were turning into Twelve Apostles Hotel & Spa, situated in what seemed like the middle of nowhere. You know what that meant? Silence.

Instead, it was surrounded by nature. Mountains, trees, and the ocean. They have walking trails, so I’d wake up and go on a walk to get some fresh air every morning. I’m not even a morning person.

3. LUXURY ROOM

So I got the luxury room, which had both mountain and beach views. It wasn’t one of those sweeping landscape views that’s going to get you reposted on some hot shot Instagram account (hopefully you’re not into chasing those kinds of headaches anyway), but it was a beautiful view I certainly appreciated. I would often go out on the balcony whenever I had work to do. The sounds of the ocean waves in the distance, coupled with the nearby waterfall were calming. Sounds cheesy, I know, but I loved it!

The design of the room was rustic and even had some pops of color in there. The robes weren’t stereotypically white, but rather had cute blue patterns to them. I’m a visual person, so that was a delight for me. Above all else, a nice bathroom is what always does it for me, and this one was pretty fab. The towels were plush, there was both a shower and tub, and the lights were fancy. #winning

4. SHUTTLES TO NEARBY SPOTS

I like saving money. No. I love saving money. Even though Uber and taxi rides are cheap, I appreciated every South African rand I was able to save due to the shuttle service the hotel offered.

The evening I got there I used it to visit Camps Bay Beach, and y’all….it was there that I shot my favorite drone sequence of the entire trip. The views from this area were PHEN👏🏽 OM 👏🏽 EN 👏🏽 AL! I think Instagram agreed, because it was my most popular video clip I posted from the South Africa trip. Take me back! *wistful sigh*

5. LUXURY + ADVENTURE

I like any place that combines luxury with adventure—and the Twelve Apostles Hotel knows you don’t have to choose one over the other. You can have both! Personally, I love going out on big adventures and then retreating to nice, comfortable accommodations afterwards. Here, you have the luxury accommodations, but you also have a concierge team who is always ready to arrange some outdoor fun for you. They even put together an “adrenalin factor” rating system.

Now I will admit—I arranged my own adventures, but the concierge did stop me from making a bad choice. I was leaving the hotel to go hike Lion’s Head the day I got there (Watch: Lion’s Head Hiking Tips), and they informed me it was way too dangerous to hike that late. They were absolutely right. There’s no way I would have made it up by sundown and hiking down in the dark would have been awful. So instead, I did a sunrise hike the next morning, and I couldn’t have been happier.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, please share it 🙂

xoxo,

Ashley

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

My blog focuses on sustainable travel and lifestyle, and going forward I’ll be ending each post with icons that identify which sustainable development goals (SDGs) are supported in my article. SDGs, aka global goals, are a worldwide call to action developed by the United Nations to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity. Click on the icons in my posts to learn more about that particular goal.

GLOBAL GOALS ADDRESSED IN THIS POST:

 

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Other Posts in my South Africa Series:

Best Coffee in the World is in South Africa

6 Things to Do Along South Africa’s Cape Peninsula

How to Beat the Crowds at Table Mountain National Park

South Africa’s Cape Winelands Will Take Your Breath Away

South Africa Video Playlist: