Leading South African hotel chain and casino destination, Sun International has taken the decision to temporarily shut down all its hotels and resorts, including Sun City and Wild Coast Sun, following the announcement of the new level 4 lockdown restrictions.
However, an update monitored on businesstech.co.za, reveal that Sun International stated that two of its properties; namely The Table Bay hotel in Cape Town’s V&A Waterfront, and The Boardwalk in Gqeberha will remain open during the lockdown restrictions.
While hotels and similar facilities are still able to operate under the restrictions announced by president Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday, the closure of casinos, restaurants and alcohol sales under the regulations will make it difficult for many places to keep operating.
Graham Wood, group chief operating officer for hospitality at Sun International said that the restrictions on Gauteng in particular – with a ban of travel in and out of the province – exacerbates the issue.
“The new regulations require our casinos and restaurants to close – but given the new restrictions on leisure travel into and out of Gauteng, alcohol, and the curfew, our hotels and resorts will struggle to operate, so we have taken a decision to temporarily close them too,” he said.
“We are mindful that the government is concerned about the risk of transmission and the need to curtail the rise in new infections.
“However, these restrictions will have a further negative impact on our tourism industry, the thousands of people employed and the surrounding local communities,” he said.
He said that hotels and resorts would re-open if restrictions subside after the 14-day assessment period.
Until then, all of Sun International’s restaurants and casino properties will be temporarily closed from Monday (28 June).
Existing hotel reservations that are scheduled for arrival up to and including 15 July 2021 can be changed to an alternative date for stay by 30 November 2021 or cancelled at no charge.
All deposits will be refunded in case of cancellation. Similarly, Sun Vacation Club reservations can be postponed to a future date or space banked.
Sun International’s online SunBet sports betting platform will continue to be operational.
