TSOGO SUN CELEBRATES FIVE DECADES OF HOSPITALITY ON THE DURBAN GOLDEN MILE

DURBAN – With seven hotels and two resorts from Umhlanga in the north to uShaka Marine World in the south, as well as the area’s leading entertainment destination, Suncoast.

Tsogo Sun, which this year celebrates its 50th birthday, has an unrivalled presence in Durban.

Collectively offering 1 958 rooms, 13 restaurants, eight bars, and a myriad of other facilities and amenities, the group’s nine properties have been creating memories in Durban for five decades.

When South Africans think of holidays, Durban is the top of mind city – and Tsogo Sun’s hotels have continued to tick all the boxes for ideal accommodation, the best ocean views, the finest restaurants, and the easiest access to the city’s beautiful beaches.

Tsogo Sun’s Durban heritage began with the opening of the Beverly Hills in Umhlanga by Sol Kerzner in 1964. From this, Southern Sun was born in 1969, and in 1971 the group’s first new hotel was built, The Elangeni, on the Durban beachfront, which was followed by the iconic five-star Maharani.

In 1981 Umhlanga Sands Hotel was bought and the Southern Sun Timeshare concept was launched, which subsequently included Cabana Beach Resort. Garden Court Marine Parade opened in 1985 with a distinctively art deco feel, and then Garden Court South Beach, previously Malibu Hotel, joined the family.

In 2002 the group invested a further R1.4 billion into the Golden Mile – the single largest investment by any private company – with Suncoast Casino, Hotels & Entertainment, adding two hotels (Suncoast Towers and SunSquare Suncoast) and an array of entertainment, retail, gaming, fast-food and restaurant options.

The ninth hotel, Garden Court Umhlanga, opened in 2010, and in 2013, Tsogo Sun transformed two of its beachfront hotels into the massive 734-room Southern Sun Elangeni & Maharani hotel.

Ravi Nadasen, COO of Tsogo Sun hotels, said, “We are proud of our position as a key role player in the Durban economy. Our continued investment into our local properties is a reflection of our strong confidence in the area as an attractive leisure and business tourist destination, and in the eThekwini Municipality’s significant efforts to ensure the beachfront promenade is a world-class attraction for local and international travellers”.

Source: BUSINESS REPORT ONLINE