One of the travel bloggers to heed our ‘City Escapes’ call was Kaveshan Chetty, online entrepreneur and founder of @RabbitMediaSA and @TheMagnifyingG. Kaveshan also spearheaded @iLuvEastLondon, and with a name like that we knew we had found the perfect ambassador for the seaside city of East London!
So Road Lodge East London invited Kaveshan to be their guest for the weekend, and to use the time to enjoy being a tourist in his own city.
Kaveshan later wrote: “24 Hours in East London with The City Lodge Hotel Group“, where he had the following to say:
“My initial thoughts before writing this post was, “I NEED TO TELL PEOPLE HOW AWESOME EAST LONDON IS!” but I needed to stay grounded because you can’t really read a blog post with all CAPS.”
We love Kaveshan’s enthusiasm!
Let’s now look at the places in East London (EL) that earned a spot on his list of recommendations:
WHEN YOU’RE HUNGRY VISIT…
WHEN YOU WANT TO EXPLORE GO TO…
- The harbour area, called Latimer’s Landing. Boat cruises are available.
- The East London Zoo
- The Lion Park
- The beach – there are 7 beautiful beaches in or near EL.
WHEN YOU WANT ENTERTAINMENT FIND…
THE EAST LONDON ZOO
“Situated close to the East London CBD, the east London zoo has some awesome sights. Make sure to buy some feed for the monkeys as they will beg you for nibbles as you walk past them. The lions and the tiger are an amazing sight. Beware of the white male lion though. If you make eye contact with him, he will charge. The earth literally shook when he did and thankfully there was a fence between us but what an experience.”
THE LION PARK
“After spending close to an hour along the boardwalk, we travelled to the East London Lion Park. On entering we found a HUGE statue of a lion which looked out onto the open land. Here at the lion park you are not only able to play with the lion cubs (when they are around) but you can also check out the Lama’s who are hilarious in their own way. The big attractions though, besides the cubs, are the MASSIVE Lions which are fenced in. It’s a true sight to behold when they feed. All in All A MUST VISIT!”
THE VELVET JAZZ LOUNGE
“Started up recently by Alfredo and Channal Naidoo, The Velvet Jazz Lounge provides a mellow setting for those who are want to just chill out. We sat back on the couches with cocktails and just relaxed to the sounds of jazz music in the background. Drinks are reasonably priced and the atmosphere is mellow yet entertaining.”
NUMBERS DANCE CLUB
“Situated in Beacon Bay, Numbers Dance Club is a true institution of East London. Having been around for over 30 years, a Wednesday, Friday or Saturday night is never complete unless you have a few drinks and dance the night away at the club. The R5 fiesta’s are a must attend night! Entrance at R100 and ALL drinks with mix’s are R5. Let’s just say R50 was well spent on Jack and Coke.”
ROAD LODGE EAST LONDON
“Checking in to the Road Lodge East London on a Friday can sometimes be a bit hectic because they are always busy but one thing you can count on is their awesome service and friendliness. They make you feel like you are at home.
“Going into my room I couldn’t help but notice the work desk. Being an entrepreneur means that you are working 24/7 and having a work desk in your hotel room always helps. The bed was awesomely comfy and the bathroom area super clean.”
FOLLOW KAVESHAN CHETTY
If you’d like to follow Kaveshan on social media like we do then here are his links:
I Love East London (website) | I Love East London (FB) | The Magnifying Glass
His personal profiles: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram