If you fancy owning an iconic hotel on the Durban beachfront, now is your opportunity.
The bidding process for new leases on the landmark Elangeni and Maharani hotels opened on Friday.
The 60-year lease by Southern Sun — which operates the hotels — expires in 2025 and the city wants to evaluate new bids in keeping with its strategy to revitalise Durban’s promenade.
Over the years, the luxury hotels have hosted Hollywood stars, royalty, politicians and business tycoons. While the municipality owns the land, the Elangeni and Maharani hotels were built and paid for by Southern Sun, in 1973 and 1983 respectively. They were bult on the site of the old Myhill Mansions and Rialto Court.
The city told the Sunday Times it was inviting proposals from the private sector to redevelop properties where leases are expiring.
City spokesperson Gugu Sisilana said that after upgrading the promenade, the city was looking for partnerships with the private sector to invest in and redevelop beachfront properties on leases ranging from 30 to 50 years.
Earlier this year the city withheld the renewal of leases for the popular restaurants Bike and Bean and Circus Circus Cafe as well as Mini Town, a miniature model of landmark sites in Durban.
Sisilana said the municipality plans to keep the buildings on the promenade operating as hotels.
“The constitution and the law do not allow for lease renewal, as that process would be deemed not to be fair, equitable, and competitive,” said Sisilana.
She said that while the process will be finalised by June 30 next year, it would not affect operations during the festive season.
But Southern Sun, which is owned by Hosken Consolidated Investments, said that if the city accepts other lease bids, it would be disastrous for the beachfront.
Southern Sun CEO Marcel von Aulock said they had “invested heavily” in the Durban beachfront over the past 12 years.
This included R220m in 2013 for the joining and upgrading of the two hotels, the expansion of the Suncoast Casino, the renovation of the Marine Parade and South Beach Garden Court hotels, and the rescue of the Edward Hotel when the Protea group walked away from the lease during the Covid pandemic.
Von Aulock said they were committed to securing the new lease for the land on which the hotels were built.
“We look forward to this process to avoid having to strip the hotels and move our operations to new premises. As one of the city’s largest ratepayers, we are certainly of the view that if they lost these hotels it would be detrimental to the beachfront, similar to the recent removal of the fun rides but on a far larger scale.”
Durban Funworld, a beachfront amusement park that operated on the beachfront for 75 years, closed in May, with owner Nic Steyn saying urban decay in the area had kept customers away and made the establishment unsustainable.
eThekwini DA councillor Sharmaine Sewshanker said she was disappointed when the issue was raised in council, considering the magnitude of the hotels’ importance.
She said the hotels are iconic landmarks on the Durban beachfront.
“I can’t even tell you the feeling and the emotion I felt when this came to council. I spoke on this and said losing these hotels will be bad for our city. The interior of the building belongs to Southern Sun, and that means the new tenant would have to start from scratch.
“We are not even sure what the bidders are going to bring into the city. The worst scenario is when the person winning the bid turns the hotels into student accommodation. We have to be very cautious about how this is done and protect the heritage of the city.”
Sewshanker said many people would lose their jobs, including hotel staff, service providers, drivers and food suppliers.
Brett Tungay, chair of the Federated Hospitality Association of South Africa, said Southern Sun was an experienced operator and had the know-how to run a big establishment.
He said the hotels were iconic brands for Durban, and it would be a blow to the municipality if the properties were taken over by an inexperienced operator or turned into accommodation.
“It’s been a battle for the tourism industry to meet the quality of the beachfront, even though there are issues with the swimming pools and the unavailability of the amusement park. Durban is not only a tourism destination, it’s also a business destination and we have the Durban ICC, Moses Mabhida Stadium, and Durban July. During events, these facilities attract high-end delegates, and you need high-end hotels. Having good operators such as Southern Sun that guarantees guest expectations is important.”
Tungay also raised concerns about the Hilton Hotel Durban, which has been vacant for two years.
The five-star privately-owned hotel, which opened its doors in 1977, closed in 2021, citing Covid-19 restrictions and dwindling tourism numbers.
The Hilton hotel group this week told the Sunday Times it was engaged in discussions regarding its reopening. While no date has been confirmed, they “hope to begin welcoming guests back to the hotel soon”.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.