North End aerial

Aerial photo showing the North End area with the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium and North End Lake next to it.  The city centre and beachfront is in the background.

Chess in the Bay

The battle of the brains starts today at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth. The tournament brings together more that 2000 participants from across South Africa in the annual South Africa Junior Chess Championships.
Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism marketing manager Titus Chuene says the city of Nelson Mandela Bay is proud to host one of the biggest Chess events in the country.
Chess Grandmaster Susan Polgar is also expected to visit the chess tournament in the city.

Glorious Sevens

Great games, outrageous outfits, fabulous fun, and wonderful weather, rugby's biggest party was right here in the Bay.
Even with the Blitzbokke's hair-breadth loss to the All-blacks, the rugby crowd was in frenzied support of all the teams that graced the magnificent Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. With more than 40,000 spectators at the stadium, the atmosphere was amazing.
Nelson Mandela Bay will host the IRB 7s for four more years, promising bigger and better tournaments in the next few years.

Rugby's Biggest Party

It's party time here in Nelson Mandela Bay. Rugby's biggest party kicks off this morning at the magnificent Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. The South African leg of the IRB Sevens Rugby World Series, the third in the series, is set against the backdrop of South Africa's friendliest city, the pristine beaches of Algoa bay, the best national anthem singing crowd of spectators and a rugby party fever like no other.

The games are fast paced and electrifying, just as the atmosphere in the bay is. If you haven't got your ticket yet, there is no better time to do it than NOW. Today (Friday) evening will also feature a great concert by Dr. Victor and the Rasta Rebels, DJ Ready D, and the amazing Goldfish. I can't wait to get this party started.

Chess Grandmaster to visit Nelson Mandela Bay

Chess Grandmaster Susan Polgar will grace the South African Junior Chess Championship to be held in Nelson Mandela Bay from 12 to 22 December.
The championship, to be held at the NMMU sports centre, will bring together about 2000 players from around the country.
“It is truly special for our city will host such a notable personality in the chess world. Polgar has many records under her belt and her presence in the friendly city will inspire many young players in South Africa,” said Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism marketing manager Titus Chuene.
Grandmaster Polger was the first woman to qualify for the “men’s” World Championship and earned her Grandmaster title in 1991. She became the world number one woman chess player at the age of 15 and remained in the top three for nearly 23 years. She has won ten Olympic medals and four Women’s World Championships.
She is also the only Grandmaster in the history of the game to win the Triple Crown; Rapid, Blitz and Classical World Championships.
The tournament in Nelson Mandela Bay will feature the best of provincial teams from around the country.
The tournament is being hosted by the Port Elizabeth Chess fraternity, which has in recent months been working at developing the game in schools around Nelson Mandela Bay.

Many Reasons to Love Nelson Mandela Bay

With a forty kilometer coastline of long pristine golden beaches and the wild beauty of magnificent wildlife, Nelson Mandela Bay sits on a rugged coastline with jagged cliffs, nearby estuaries and sandy shores lapped by the warm waters of the Indian Ocean.

There’s so much to love about the friendly city. It has often been described as an ideal family fun holiday destination, with a mix of entertainment, incredible beaches, abundant wildlife, historic heritage, shopping, tranquility, and countless water sport activities.

Tourism month in September is surely the best opportunity for locals and visitors alike to experience its splendour, beauty, culture, the spirit of freedom, and the friendliness that has become the hallmark of Nelson Mandela Bay.

Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism CEO Mandlakazi Skefile says it’s all about getting people to love their city.

Even more exciting is the launch of the ‘I Love Nelson Mandela Bay’ campaign, which seeks to create a ‘patriotic buzz’ amongst the people of Nelson Mandela bay.

The initiative is all about loving the bay and talking about those things that you love most about the city. I’m particularly excited that I get to choose my icon for Nelson Mandela Bay.

In the same way that Cape Town is famous for its Table Mountain and Paris for its Eiffel Tower, Nelson Mandela Bay needs to identify its own distinctive city icon. You and I get to be part of that adventurous journey of finding an icon for our city. Join the “Nelson Mandela Bay – South Africa” page on Facebook to participate.

The whole of September promises to be very exciting, with many activities lined up for tourism month including the Red Location Jazz Festival on Sunday September 11 at the Red Location Museum.

St George's Park towards the PE Harbour aerial

Following on yesterday's aerial picture of St George's Park, this one also features St George's Park in the foreground but looks across Central towards the Port Elizabeth Harbour and Algoa Bay beyond.