29 Sep 2014 | By Sun International
Maritime History – The Victoria II
GrandWest Casino and Entertainment World is a popular Cape Town entertainment destination. Filled with fun, adventure and excitement, this non-stop entertainment hub is the largest destination of its kind in the country. Complete with a casino that would rival the very best in Las Vegas, GrandWest also offers a smorgasboard of restaurants, a cinema, theatre, nightclub and a fantastic family entertainment zone.
While most Capetonians are well aware of the incredible entertainment options available at GrandWest, people tend to overlook the fact that GrandWest is also a fascinating historical treasure trove. In fact, a very large piece of unique maritime history is moored at GrandWest Casino and Entertainment World.
The Victoria II was built at Le Havre in France during the 1950’s as a direct replica of the original Victoria which was built in 1700! Now a permanent attraction at GrandWest, in her past life the Victoria II did active service on the high seas until a fire in the electrical section left her derelict. Following which, destiny intervened and she was bought by the SA Shipwreck Foundation, which is a partnership of 8 salvage divers.
The Shipwreck Foundation lovingly restored the ship for use as a private museum to preserve and host various artefacts and coins collected by the Foundation on previous dives. She then spent a decade at the V&A Waterfront fulfilling the role of a museum before being moved to GrandWest for its opening in 2000.
Did you know? The Victoria II has a cutline of 30m in length by 8,3m in width and her hull weighs a staggering 170 tons!
In addition, her timber ribs were constructed using the finest French oak with planking of mahogany from the Philippines. However, in keeping with Sun International’s proudly South African ethos, all the recent restorations made use of South African pine.
In preparation for her move to GrandWest by road, the keel had to be carefully cut off and the ship lowered onto a special trailer from Johannesburg. Travelling from the V&A Waterfront to her new home at GrandWest, which would normally take less than an hour, took a full 8 hours! Once in place a steel support system replaced her existing perforated wooden spine, while a specially constructed concrete plinth acts as her support base.
Today the Victoria II is moored outside the GrandWest’s Magic Fort. An uncanny recreation of the Fort of Good Hope, the Magic Fort is now home to the awesome children’s entertainment complex.
Built in 1652 and demolished in 1678, the replica of the Fort of Good Hope is the unlikely venue for the coolest kids’ venue in South Africa. Featuring an Olympic-sized skate rink as well as a mini supervised skate rink for skaters under the age of five. The Magic Fort also includes the Magic Bowling alley, fun fair rides, go-karting and bumper cars at the Magic Castle and the Magic Arcade. What’s more, there is even the Magic Party venue available for birthday parties and celebrations.
Parents will also be delighted to know that the Kids Corner Crèche provides kids up to the age of 10 with a supervised, safe and fun environment to enjoy from 11h00 daily.
For more information on the children entertainment complex, follow this link here.