Gorgeous George

Many visitors to Cape Town never spend a night in the old city centre, choosing the Waterfront or the Atlantic seaboard instead. Gorgeous George makes the case for the old city grid. It opened in April 2019 inside two adjoining heritage buildings on St George's Mall, one Art Deco, one Edwardian, joined together in the 1940s and reworked by Urban Citizen Architecture. The interiors are by Tristan du Plessis, who kept the raw concrete and steel and set them against Victorian mouldings, brass and a great deal of local art. There are 32 rooms and suites plus a penthouse, and the rooms carry hand-painted art by David Brits.

The centre of the house is Gigi, the rooftop bar and restaurant. Its pool is small and glass-sided, split in two by a stuccoed folly painted with botanical murals, and it is built for cooling off rather than swimming lengths. Breakfast is served on the sixth floor from seven, rooms come with a Marshall speaker, and a yoga kit is available on request for anyone who wants to stretch on the roof before the city gets going.

Most of what the centre offers lies within walking distance. Company's Garden, the museums, Greenmarket Square and the coffee shops of Bree Street are a few minutes away on foot, and reception will tell you which streets to use. The V&A Waterfront is about fifteen minutes' walk. After dark, take a cab rather than walking.