The Ritz Hotel, in the heart of Sea Point, opens it’s doors today after a R120-million revamp. An icon of the city’s skyline since the early 1970s, over the decades this once-stylish address slowly lost its lustre until, in 2016, the Ritz Hotel Management Company (Pty) Ltd or RHMC saw an opportunity to revitalise – and reimagine – this faded star of the Atlantic Seaboard.
“It’s a beautiful piece of local architecture that desperately needed a new lease on life. We had a very clear vision of what we wanted to create, and what Cape Town needed,” says, Lisa Carey, marketing & pr manager for The Ritz.
The 23-story building now boasts a sleek look of steel and glass, a fitting introduction to the glamorous lobby of golden palm trees and gleaming white marble.
The décor is only half the allure of a stay at the hotel, every room boasts panoramic views of both the city and the Atlantic Ocean. At the very top on the 23rd floor is the hotel’s flagship restaurant.
The Ritz has long been famous for its revolving restaurant – the only one of its kind in the Western Cape. Top of The Ritz revolves giving you a 360 degree view of the city, and provides a perfect location for a refined dining experience.
One floor below on the 22nd, is the Champagne Lounge, a seductive space ideal for pre-dinner bubbles and sundowner cocktails, with local DJs spinning laid-back beats from late-afternoon every day. And on the 21st floor, a Cigar Lounge is similarly set to become an address for after-dinner digestifs and late-night cocktails.
CASA Restaurant & Cabanas brings a touch of Miami South Beach glamour to Sea Point, with all day al fresco dining that ranges from brasserie-classics to sushi and wood-fired pizza.
This grand dame of the Atlantic Seaboard has certainly seen a lot since the doors first opened in 1971 and now it moves gracefully into the future with it’s upgraded look.
The Ritz reopens tonight, 15 December 2017.