It\u2019s been a tough year for South Africans with the ongoing pandemic and people are in dire need of a change of scenery and a bit of a break. While our borders remain closed for international travel, inter-provincial travel for leisure is now allowed and is an ideal opportunity to take a staycation within our beautiful country.<\/p>\n
Here are four reasons to consider a staycation.<\/p>\n
Explore Your City<\/strong><\/p>\n When your focus is on keeping your life under lockdown running, there\u2019s often very little opportunity to stop and take in your surroundings \u2013 beyond the pandemic.<\/p>\n When was the last time you tried one of those amazing small restaurants in your neighbourhood you\u2019ve heard everyone talking about or stopped to consider the history of the place you call home? Or explored your neighbouring province which is filled with hidden gems and beautiful places to explore? A staycation can help you support local small businesses and explore your country with fresh eyes \u2013 and playing \u2018tourist\u2019 could just reinvigorate you.<\/p>\n Slash Holiday Travel Time<\/strong><\/p>\n Tucked away on the southern tip of Africa, South Africa is pretty far from most of the rest of the places you\u2019d normally put on your wanderlust bucket list. The idea of overnight flights overseas, rushed airport connections and figuring out how to get around can easily take the gloss off a trip and leave you feeling more run down than when you started travelling in the first place.<\/p>\n Taking a staycation in your country \u2013 with the small splurge of staying somewhere new \u2013 cuts out all the travel drama and maximises the limited time you have to explore and relax. Staying somewhere near the Waterfront is the ideal base to explore the kind of attractions you\u2019d never visit if you lived in or around Cape Town. Slip away to a state-of-the-art new hotel experience and try stand-up paddle boarding in the Waterfront\u2019s pristine network of canals, learn first-hand history on a guided tour of Robben Island or take that hike up Table Mountain you\u2019ve never done\u2026<\/p>\n International \u2013 and even some regional travel \u2013 can be eye-wateringly expensive. A staycation cuts out the cost of visas and flights \u2013 and also removes the double-digit mental multiplication required before committing to something as simple as buying a cup of coffee in a different hemisphere.<\/p>\n Rather spend the money on experiences \u2013 shake up your surroundings with a hotel stay and commit your cash to expanding your local surroundings. Signature Lux Hotel by ONOMO Sandton<\/a> is right in the heart of Africa\u2019s richest square mile. Steps from Sandton City and Nelson Mandela Square, it\u2019s also within easy walking distance of the Sandton Gautrain station, opening up the chance to explore the Johannesburg CBD or venture into Pretoria in minutes. Catch the City Sightseeing Red Bus from Rosebank Gautrain station and immerse yourself in the history of the reinvigorated Johannesburg CBD \u2013 or take a sho\u2019t left to Soweto. The ONOMO Hotels<\/a> found across the country have implemented strict \u00a0health and safety measures (as you\u2019d expect from a world-class accommodation experience) for when you choose to enjoy a staycation at their hotels.<\/p>\n Support Local Brands <\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s easy to get hung up on designer brands and the ancient architecture of European destinations \u2013 but South Africa is also home to some of the continent\u2019s biggest brands and incredible artisans.<\/p>\n ONOMO Hotel Durban is a flagship example of the brand\u2019s \u2018Africa\u2019s Finest\u2019 philosophy which celebrates the arts and culture of Durban. The hotel supports many local arts centres, which provide unemployed artists and craftsmen with economic upliftment opportunities through supporting their creative efforts. ONOMO Hotel Durban supports these art centres, sourcing many of the property\u2019s d\u00e9cor elements from them. Explore the property and access these centres \u2013 there\u2019s plenty of quality local art that can stand proudly alongside work from the rest of the world.<\/p>\n Connect with Local History<\/strong><\/p>\n The Cape Town CBD is home to some of the hottest restaurants, galleries, clubs and experiences on the continent \u2013 but the historical significance of the Mother City shouldn\u2019t be neglected either.<\/p>\n At over 260 million years old,\u00a0<\/strong>Table Mountain is older than the Andes, the Alps, the Rocky Mountains and the Himalayas. A network of canals dating back to the days of the Dutch East India Company runs below the streets of the city, directing fresh water down from the rivers and streams flowing from the mountain. The city is also home to the oldest churches and mosques in the country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It\u2019s been a tough year for South Africans with the ongoing pandemic and people are in dire need of a change of scenery and a bit of a break. While our borders remain closed for international travel, inter-provincial travel for leisure is now allowed and is an ideal opportunity to take a staycation within our […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7546,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2519,2514],"tags":[5356,5357,5355,2675,3154],"class_list":["post-7547","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-accommodation","category-activities","tag-explore-your-country","tag-onomo-hotels","tag-staycation","tag-tourist","tag-vacation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7547"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7547\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southafricatoday.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}