Responsible Tourism:

• The Cellars-Hohenort has a living and growing compost heap. All the garden refuse is dumped here and turned into compost. This compost is then used to feed the amazing nine-acre gardens
• All three swimming pools are salt based. No chlorines and acids are used
• The Cellars-Hohenort recycles all paper via Nampak. In addition, all refuse is separated into cardboard, glass, plastic, metal and food waste, which goes to a local pig farmer
• All pruned branches are chipped and used as mulch. This aids water retention
• There is an active borehole in place for watering the garden
• Installation of irrigation systems and timers to ensure minimal evaporation by watering at dusk and dawn
• Energy saving light bulbs are used throughout The Cellars-Hohenort
• All geysers have been set to 55 degrees to reduce heating and re-heat costs. Vacant geysers are switched off to conserve electricity. In addition each geyser on the property has been fitted with a geyser blanket
• All restaurant fridges have been fitted with fridge curtains
• All kitchen oil is recycled
• The Hohenort pool is covered every evening. This means that less electricity is required to heat it
• All wood-burning fireplaces are being replaced with gas
• Implementation of a towel reuse policy. This has reduced the amount of detergent used in the laundry and helped to conserve water
• All cleaning chemicals are from Eco-Lab and they are all bio-degradable
• The Cellars-Hohenort is proudly non-smoking
• Renovated bathrooms have all be fitted with Hansgrohe faucets & shower roses. These have built-in water-saving devices. In addition, toilers are fitted with Geberit dual-flush mechanisms.
• Everyone is encouraged to "turn it off" when it's not being used.

• James House - a home to orphaned, abused and neglected children - is the official Community Project of The Cellars-Hohenort. Apart from donating a variety of products and funds, The Cellars-Hohenort has visits from the James House children and members of staff regularly visit James House
• The Cellars-Hohenort also supports the Catholic Welfare Development (CWD)
• Plumstead High School - donation of gift vouchers for fund raising initiatives
• Wynberg Boys' High - donation of gift vouchers for fund raising initiatives
• Ambleside School of Hout Bay - donation of gift vouchers for breakfasts
• Numerous staff appointments from the SOS Children's Village
• A number of school children join us for job shadow
• Providing seeds for a local vegetable garden in conjunction with the Relais and Châteaux
• Assisting St. Luke's Hospice with prize donations for their annual on-line auction. This raises much needed funding for this charity
• Donations to the Western Cape Firefighters Association.

• Once a year The Cellars-Hohenort welcomes the people of Cape Town to tour the award-winning gardens, followed by tea and scones on the terrace. This costs just R45 per person and all money raised goes to the St. Luke's Hospice
• Feed-Em: The National feeding programme - Feed-Em - is proudly supported by The Cellars-Hohenort. All left-over food not able to be used by the Hotel is donated to operation Feed-Em
• Red Cross Children's Hospital receives an annual donation from The Cellars-Hohenort
• SOS Children's Villages receives an annual donation from The Cellars-Hohenort
• HOPE receives donations - from The Cellars-Hohenort - in the form of meals and accommodation to be used as prizes
• The Cellars-Hohenort supports the Adele Searll 100 Club. Jean Almon is an active member.

The Hotel is proud to have an employment and promotion policy based on focusing on non-white applicants, woman and internal applicants. Achievements with current team members:

• Assistant General Manager - A non-white SA woman.
• One Duty Manager - A non-white SA female.
• Executive Chef in the Cape Malay Experience - non-white SA woman.
• Executive Chef in The Conservatory - A white SA man.
• Head gardener - a white SA woman.
• Head Porter - a non-white SA man.
• Regional Manager - A white SA woman.
• Rooms Division Manager - A white SA male.
• Front Office Manager - a white SA female.
• Executive Housekeeper - A non-white SA female.
• PR Manager - a white SA woman.
• Owner - a white SA woman.

25% of staff have been with Mrs. McGrath for five years or longer.