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About
4.5
#20 of 117 hotels in Cape Town Central
Location
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Value
Situated in the historic Malay Quarter on Signal Hill - just steps away from the city centre - with views over the city and harbour and Table Mountain. Upperbloem Guesthouse & Apartments is an oasis in the city - quiet with a large saltwater pool & pooldeck, and garden to relax. We are only 5 -10 minutes walk away from the city centre, Greenmarket Square, Longstreet, many cafes and Restaurants, and shops. It is a 10minutes drive to the beautiful Camps Bay and Clifton beaches. Guests have free Wifi, secure street parking. We are a family run guesthouse with a personal touch and an emphasis on privacy - so you can have a relaxing holiday. Ask us about tours and recommendations, we are always happy to help.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Mountain View
Quiet
Languages Spoken
English, Spanish, German, Xhosa
Location
8 Upper Bloem Street, Cape Town Central 8001 South Africa
Upperbloem
360 reviews
Getting there
Good for walkers
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travellers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
I stayed at Upperbloem for about 9 days, and during my stay everything went smoothly. I arrived at the airport a bit later than I expected, and I was worried I would miss my check-in, but they made sure someone stayed behind to give me the keys. My room was very clean and I was very hungry when I arrived so I was pleasantly surprised to find some milk in the fridge. They also had muesli, an energy bar, and everything you need to make coffee or tea. The views of the city and Table Mountain from my room was amazing. The staff was very friendly and made sure I had everything I needed. If you need to shop for groceries or get lunch, everything is close by. The city center is 10 minutes away by car. I highly recommend using a car to reach the hotel because it is up on a hill and the incline is incredibly steep.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: May 2022
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We enjoyed four nights at Upperbloem and found the spacious mountain view apartment was perfect for our needs. We were able to cook our supper. It is a very steep hill up to the guest house, but despite being in our 70's my sister and I took it slowly and managed fine. We walked back from the bus station for the hop on hop off bus, and once from the Waterfront, but most people probably use Uber. Katrin was a gracious host welcoming us with coffee, crackers and fruit, and offering us wine/beer or soft drinks one evening which was much appreciated. She also gave me a sewin kit when I needed to mend something. We did not try the pool, as we got in just in time to cook dinner, play scrabble and go to bed each evening. There are not two beds, but one of us slept on the couch with an extra duvet which worked well. South Africa has a "load shedding" system in place right now, which is rotating power cuts, so you may have no power for a couple of hours at a time... it happened some evenings at the all accommodations we stayed at. Katrin warned us via email. Our room had a table on a little patio with a view of the mountain over the wall.
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Date of stay: February 2020
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Room Tip:The two upstairs apartments probably have the best view.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Well appointed and spotlessly clean apartments in a quiet neighborhood, yet just a few blocks from shops and cafes. The views are phenomenal. Katrin was always on hand to help, and creates a warm and welcoming environment. I'm looking forward to my next visit! Highly recommended.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: December 2019
Value
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Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
good location, good place, nice balcony, good view, just perfect. Walk into the city very short, even a swimmingpool, which we forgot to use. The location is fun, the maleisian aerea, safe during the day, take a Uber back.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: November 2019
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Great view at the Table Mountain as well as the ocean and downtown. The bed was very comfortable and the kitchen well equipped. Bathroom could be bigger but the view was also stunning! The contact with the owner was prompt and the airport transfer perfectly arranged.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: October 2022
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Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
perfect location, excellent guesthouse. All you need for a pleasant stay in Cape Town. Nice rooms. Good pool. Very nice part of Cape Town ( Bo-Kaap). Breestraat near by. Laundry service on demand. pleasant host ! Long story short; value for money
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: December 2022
Value
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Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The accommodation was a fair price and in a great location. It had a wonderful bath and an incredible balcony overlooking the city. I would highly recommend staying here. My only criticism would be extra bedding for winter months and instructions for the heater which I could never get to function. Hosts were very friendly and accomodating. Room service was fantastic.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: May 2023
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Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
After reading the reviews about the safety and convenience of the location and we were disappointed, on our arrival in the afternoon, to find that it was neither.
As a local South African, I can tell you that this area is not safe. You cannot walk around around at night as there are all sorts of questionable characters roaming the area, and town is only accessible down an incredibly steep hill which I would not want to try walking up after a long day of walking around Cape Town city. The city is highly accessible on foot. There is no need to hire a car to get around town, but to stay at this guest house, hiring a car is not optional. We had not planned to hire a car so this would have been an unwelcome expense and worry.
After staying in Greenpoint the week before where we were able to walk freely and safely at night, for a cheaper price, we were unimpressed by this location. Even though you need to hire a car to stay here, there is no designated parking. The only off the street parking available, is in front of the garage but you can't park there as the garage gets rented out (which we didn't know for there was no sign).
We decided to leave the guesthouse on the evening of our arrival and stay elsewhere so that we could enjoy our stay and not worry about leaving a hired car outside on the road, and to where we would be able to go out in the evening safely. So we didn't even get to try the (according to the other reviews) fantastic breakfast.
The room itself was nice with a good sized bed and private bathroom. The intern was very helpful. I did not meet Katrin but she seemed lovely as well. If she ever decides to move her guesthouse to a safer area, I would consider staying there but as it is, I would not take my family or friends there for safety concerns and inconvenience of location.
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Date of stay: November 2012
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
the guesthouse is lovely, katrin was a great host and even the security person was friendly. The room looked exactly as described. The location's good, situated near to the main tourist attractions (such as waterfront, table mountain etc) and we definitely felt safe during our stay. Really enjoyed it there and would recommend it to everyone
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Date of stay: April 2017
Value
Rooms
Service
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
In Cape Town for a few days, we booked Upperbloem because of its great reviews and location. Overall, and despite Katrin being really friendly and helpful, I was left very disappointed. I'll start with the positive and then explain why two big negatives resulted in my rating.
Firstly, it is close to Kloof and Long streets and overall the location is very convenient. It would be unwise to walk around after dark (as stated previously), but it is cheap to catch an uber or other taxi. Secondly, Katrin was extremely helpful, flexible and communicative. She was a very good host, and nothing was too much trouble. She even helped us with loading some luggage! The room we were in had a decent kitchen, with some nice coffee, muffins and cereal for breakfast. It was a nice touch.
Now, for the disappointments. Firstly, we had specifically chosen this location because they had stated there was Wi-Fi. As we were travelling and doing much research and booking online, this was kind of essential. However, there was no Wi-Fi in our room and I landed up standing awkwardly in the passage way to the pool late at night trying to book our next stages on the trip. I think that on the whole, Wi-Fi is an essential tool for travellers. What made me a little disappointed was that we had specifically wanted Wi-Fi. Secondly, we had a rental car and having had a break-in in the past, secure parking was important for me, especially in this area. However, there was none. I had thought that safe parking was mentioned, but if not then this is my fault for not researching more thoroughly. That said our car was safe and we had no problems, though we were warned to make sure to leave nothing inside the vehicle. Thirdly, we were woken at 5:30am every morning by the nearby mosque. Ok, not much to do about that, but it is something to consider about this area. Lastly, the website and other reviewers make mention of spectacular view. I guess we landed up in the room at the back, with no view at all. Again we had to go to the pool area, which wasn't what we expected. The "balcony" on the room was just a few meters extra of passageway.
Overall, while I liked Katrin as a host and wish her much success, I think a guest house should be careful with expectations its sets for visitors. We were left wanting to like the experience, but were just totally disappointed at not finding our "haven" from which to arrange the rest of our trip. I doubt we would be back, and somewhat unfortunately I couldn't recommend this to others unless you phone and specifically mention what you need.
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Date of stay: April 2015
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:Avoid room at street side of property as there is no view, no wifi and no atmosphere.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Early Check in is possible, but subject to availability. You can always come here straight from the airport, drop your luggage, have a coffee by the pool and a swim or a shower and relax or go sightseeing. We will have your apartment ready for you as early as possible, latest by 12.
There are more places to choose from in the Cape Town Central area.
PRICE RANGE
C$88 - C$103 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
South AfricaWestern CapeCape TownCape Town CentralSchotsche Kloof
NUMBER OF ROOMS
7
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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