Your guide to accommodation in Port Elizabeth

Where to stay in Port Elizabeth, where the accommodation options are as varied as the Friendly City itself.

Secluded romantic getaway? Family holiday on the beach? Wifi-connected business pad? History, luxury and pampering? Edgy, hip urban adventure? Big 7 bush getaway? There are any number of reasons to find yourself in PE, and places to stay that suit just about any need and budget.

PE used to be dubbed the 10-minute city and although its burgeoning growth means this is stretching to more like 15 or 20 minutes these days, it’s still a really easy and compact place to get around, except possibly in the twice-daily “rush minute”.

This means you can have a leisurely breakfast overlooking the waves in your beachfront hotel, and still make your meeting in the gritty industrial areas without breaking the speed limit; or bed down in the vibey, historic Richmond Hill and be on the freeway heading out for a day’s game-viewing in five minutes flat.

The other really great thing about the Bay is that it offers all the amenities of a big city – shopping malls, business centres, connectivity, artisan bakeries and breweries, restaurants, nightlife and so on – with a good solid dose of small-town friendliness and hospitality, genuine interest that visitors have all they need and are enjoying the place enough to want to come back.

The Port Elizabeth beachfront is the obvious – but definitely not the only – choice. If you’re in town for a convention at The Boardwalk, you’re likely to find yourself in their brand-new colonial-themed 5-star hotel with loads of good restaurants in striking distance. Here you can have a flutter in the casino who compete with sites in New York, indulge in a spa treatment, sample fine dining at Kipling’s or network with the city’s wheeler-dealers in the cigar bar.

When the conference budget isn’t quite five-star, there are several of the well-known, more budget-conscious accommodation chains in the vicinity, with sea views, comfortable rooms and easily accessible restaurants and entertainment.

For a touch of real history with contemporary comfort, the four-star Beach Hotel with its veranda that makes you feel as if you’re perched right on the beach, and the gourmet cuisine at its Ginger Restaurant, can’t be beat for business or leisure stays.

Five- and four-star hotels, boutique establishments and guesthouses abound on the holiday, dining and nightlife mecca of the PE beachfront. For cosmopolitan glitz there’s the shiny landmark Radisson Blu, while the Ahoy Boutique Hotel does it in slick nautical style, and No 5 Boutique Art Hotel offers whisper-discreet five-star seclusion in magnificently restored Art Deco surroundings.

From high-rise holiday apartments to simple self-catering, families and those on a budget have an array of accommodation choices in Port Elizabeth, while the surfers and barefoot travellers will find themselves right at home in any number of back-packers – a stone’s throw from legendary surf spots.

For fun-filled family getaways in PE, head a few minutes from the beachfront to the “wild side” and the Willows Resort. Literally a stone’s throw from your chalet or campsite is a playground of rock pools, fishing spots and hidden beaches.

If shopping and restaurants don’t do it for you, get away from it all even further west along the coast. A 15-minute drive from the city, seaside hamlets like Kini Bay, Seaview and Beachview offer B&B’s and guesthouses with magnificent views of wild seas and bush. Go for long walks, find a country pub, go on a game drive, soak up the views and maybe even spot a whale or a dolphin or two.

This area also boasts several luxury country hideaways, many with accompanying wedding and conference venues, like the chic La Provence.

The Coega Industrial Development Zone with its deepwater port is a hive of industrial activity. It’s a short spin along the N2 highway, with plenty of guesthouse and B&B accommodation in the nearby seaside area of Bluewater Bay ideal for those on a business visit or relaxed seaside stay.

The area around the PE airport abounds in reasonably-priced B&Bs and guesthouses catering to business visitors on a flying visit, a quick hop onto the freeway or into the city.

The well-heeled leafy suburbs of Walmer and Mill Park offer many stately homes converted into warm and welcoming guesthouses, as well as more modern luxury lodges focused on the connected business visitor, all close to shopping centres, coffee shops, hospitals and the growing business areas of Walmer, Newton Park and Greenacres.

A visit to PE isn’t complete without a trawl around the historic Central and Richmond Hill areas where the city’s urban renewal initiatives have transformed previously seedy areas into a hive of parks, public art, trendy restaurants and buzzy coffee shops, and quirky off-beat shops run by the city’s hottest young design talents.

Don’t miss a walk on the city’s “balcony” of the Donkin for views over the harbour, a climb up the lighthouse followed by a snack in the eco-friendly coffee shop, interesting public art installations by local artists along Route 67, and a winding walk down to the legendary Phoenix Hotel and the Stage Door (where they pride themselves on great pub food at cheap prices, and bad service that isn’t actually bad at all).

Locals refer to Richmond Hill’s Stanley Street as “The Strip”, but the only bright-lights-resemblance to Vegas is the fairy lights in the trees strung along this buzzy hub of bars and restaurants catering to all tastes – artisan pizzas, high-end sushi, fusion cuisine, gourmet tapas, pub burgers, you name it. Wander down there on a weekday evening or weekend morning and you may well find a bustling community market on the go, or a wine show hosted by the friendly wine bar, For the Love of Wine.

Accommodation in the area includes small, comfortable B&B’s and guesthouses in restored historic buildings, where they’re happy to order you a take-away from the nearby restaurants, serve your breakfast in bed or recommend the current hot spot for breakfast.

Backpackers are well catered for in the Central area of PE, with friendly hosts and international roamers all happy to share tips on where to go and what to do.

One area where the city lacks is in township stays – these are more informally arranged rather than widely advertised, but specialist tour operators like Calabash Tours take visitors on township tours in PE and areas further afield, incorporating the award-winning iconic Red Location Museum, art studios, taverns and traditional jazz hangouts, and could also advise and assist on accommodation.

The benefits of this 15-minute city extend beyond the city limits. Amazing, luxurious, personally-tailored Big 5 – and even Big 7 – game-viewing options, in malaria-free country, are within an hour’s drive, making for an easy day trip. But the possibilities of tented safari camps, sprawling comfortable farmhouses or tree-top camping are tempting reasons to stay the night.

The Greater Addo National Park at the heart of the Sundays River Valley now stretches from the Karoo and the Zuurberg mountains down to the Alexandria dunefield and the islands of Algoa Bay in the south, making this one of the most biologically diverse regions in the world. Well-known as an elephant reserve, the inclusion of the coastal area, with whales and sharks, makes the park one of the rare Big 7 destinations internationally.

Visitors have the option of staying in a range of reasonably priced self-catering accommodation in the park, including tented camps, hikers’ huts, secluded forest tents and chalets. If you prefer comforts even better than home with your game-viewing, the park has several five-star lodges operating under concession in different areas of the park, such as Gorah’s luxury tented camp or the Darlington Lake and Kuzuko lodges which also offer small conferencing facilities.

Accommodation in the park is in high demand, but the entire Valley abounds with diverse accommodation options hosted by knowledgeable and friendly folk who can often trace their history in the area back several generations. Many offer organised game-viewing tours into the park, but it is easy enough to do your own thing too.

On Addo’s doorstep, the Zuurberg Mountain Inn is an Eastern Cape country institution, holiday spot for farmers and easy drive for Sunday lunch for the city-dwellers too. Nearby Camp Figtree offers colonial-safari splendour in keeping with the property’s ownership by the Fitzpatrick family – it was once the stomping ground of Jock of the Bushveld author Sir Percy.

Bordering on the park, Shamwari is the pioneer of the private, luxury game reserve experience in the area. Visitors book out their own private game lodge, and also have the option of total get-away-from-it-all wilderness trail and camping experiences. Shamwari prides itself on being a leader in conservation and responsible tourism. To better better be prepared against insects and spiders you may run in to the way, visit campingfunzone.com for their vast information about camping, insects and animals.

There are countless more accommodation options in Port Elizabeth – from cosy B&Bs to secluded luxury getaways to homely farmstays on the many private game farms and citrus farms in the area.