South Africa – Sun City
Sun City is probably the most famous place in this province – a gambling mecca and venue for golf tournaments and concerts with star casts. Not far away is the Pilansberg Game Reserve, the oldest protected area in this province. A little further south are Rustenberg and the Rustenberg Nature Reserve on the Magaliesberg, which is a habitat for antelopes and other wildlife as well as rare birds of prey (black eagle). Other places worth seeing are Klerksdorp and the old university town of Potchefstroom.
If the cities of South Africa are too hectic for you and the nature reserves too quiet, an experience of a completely different kind awaits you in Sun City. Here, in the middle of an extensive savannah landscape, lies the Las Vegas of southern Africa. The sprawling entertainment complex was once part of the now-defunct homeland of Bophuthatswana.
The independence of the homeland made it possible to offer an extensive range of games of chance and nude shows in close proximity to the conurbations of Johannesburg and Pretoria, all activities that were forbidden in Calvinist South Africa at the time. But Sun City has long since lost the smell of the forbidden. Today, the name stands for luxurious hotel complexes, beautifully landscaped water gardens, excellent golf courses, imaginative gambling halls, exclusive casinos and first-class entertainment shows. The latest jewel in the series of various casino complexes is Lost City.
The complex in the style of a sunken, legendary African city is fantastically located and extremely imaginatively designed. So it’s no wonder that Sun City attracts more than 25,000 visitors every day. When the multimillionaire Sol Kerzner began the construction of the Sun City complex, all gambling was still prohibited in South Africa. In the semi-autonomous homeland of Bophuthatswana, however, the lucrative source of income was recognized and construction was permitted. Just 180 kilometers north of Johannesburg, a sprawling amusement park with an artificial oasis was built in several stages, in a desolate landscape south of Pilanesberg.
It all started with a luxury hotel with a casino, an artificial lake in the desert and an excellent golf course designed by Gary Player. The best thing to do after checking in is to sit comfortably on the balcony of your hotel room, take something cool to drink (Sun City lives up to its name, it is warm to hot and always sunny) and study the map that is available in the rooms, and which you urgently need to settle in mentally. Well rested and with the map as a companion, you should simply wander through the complex, take a walk and take a look at the range of leisure activities. Inside is what is probably the most luxurious hotel in Africa, which is only accessible to people on a tight budget.
In the King Tower, the highest tower, is the Kings Suite, for which you have to shell out about 3,200 euros/night. The suite is paneled with maple, offers a bar, library, dining room, several bedrooms and a wonderful panoramic view and everything you need. A really stark contrast to the poverty raging outside. From Johannesburg it is about 1700 kilometers to Sun City. There are daily planes from Johannesburg Airport and several buses from downtown Johannesburg to the entertainment paradise every day. On weekends, there are also some buses between Pretoria and Sun City.
