MyPond Hotel

MyPond Hotel is a 4-star accommodation venue situated on the bank of the Kowie River in Port Alfred.

It is a lovely setting, and the boutique hotel is trendy, vibrant and modern. It boasts an excellent food menu of what the hotel calls “The New South African Cuisine”.

Perhaps most impressive is the business model implemented; it is almost completely run by Hotel Management students and the guests’ used water is utilized to generate the bulk of the hotel’s electricity.

MyPond Hotel Review

The positives of MyPond Hotel:

The rooms are very spacious and comfortable and with modern décor. A Queen-sized bed with a generous amount of quality pillows. The bathroom is also spacious and includes a heated towel rack

There is a complementary welcome package of instant coffees (regular and decaf), tea, milk and refrigerated, bottled water. Although it was well presented I expected a little bit more in the package (such as an information brochure for example) from a four-star establishment.

The view was wonderful; the Kowie River flowing merely meters away, enjoyed by many canoeists, power boats and ducks and geese. The river also has a strict speed limit so there aren’t any speed boats motoring at top speeds to ruin the tranquillity.

Other extras include a programmable Digital safe, flat-screen television with ten channels and complementary wifi services in your room .

The Service of the management staff, maître d’ and waitresses was excellent. The food was undoubtedly the highlight of the stay. The meals were exceptional. We sampled lemon-buttered Prawns and Kudu steak with bacon and cheese rolls. The breakfast of smoked salmon and scrambled egg on a camembert–spread croissant was, in all likelihood, the best breakfast I have tasted anywhere.

The Negatives of MyPond Hotel:

The biggest negative was the water situation:

The tap water was brackish which you can accept at a seaside town and it’s not that big of a problem as they provide you with bottled water.
But the shower was the worst I had had at any accommodation venue. The shower head was pitiful and temperamental. There is no bath so there is no alternative.

While most of the service was excellent, the front of house staff and kitchen chefs lacked the professionalism you would expect at such an establishment. But that could come back to the fact they are students.

Earlier I alluded to lack of the welcome package; I would have expected even just a brochure informing us of what the hotel offered (we had to do some exploring and investigating to find the pool and bar area/tv lounge).

The outside entrance on the arrival side seems a bit dingy and doesn’t do the hotel justice. And the parking lot has no security.

Overall

Overall it was a fantastic place, my only three recommendations to them would be :
Enclose the parking area with attractive gates and walls.
Change out all the shower heads and faucets.
Fence off the sides of the outdoor river restaurant so as not to have people just walking in off the street.

Otherwise it was excellent; go and enjoy.

One Comment on “MyPond Hotel”

  1. Pingback: My 4-Star Weekend

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