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BusinessDay
VOTED BEST MAGAZINE SUPPLEMENT
November 2010
MOTORING • Three super cars, three super roads • Bugatti’s new Veyron Super Sport • Range Rover’s ‘downsized’ Evoque
LOCAL BEAUTIES
We break open the jars of SA’s top skincare products
FOOD WINE DESIGN Look no further than your back yard
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WHERE TO STAY
SUITE LIFE
After 15 years as one of the country’s most exclusive boutique hotels, The Saxon has upped the ante yet again with its latest upmarket development, Villa Suites, writesMatt Morley
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here is something admirably reckless about creating an independent deluxe hotel of less than 30 rooms in a market such as Johannesburg. Build a similarly sized property on a desert island and you can at least be sure of your guests staying for breakfast, lunch and dinner; indulging in spa visits; signing up for excursions and splashing out in the boutique. But in an urban context like this one, there are simply far too many other distractions nearby for that to be realistic, which puts huge pressure on the rooms to generate revenue. The only possible solution is to blow the competition out of the water by creating a space nobody ever wants to leave, which is what owner Douw Steyn did when he opened The Saxon back in 1990, winning a loyal following of dignitaries, VIPs and celebrities in the process. They came (and stayed) for the generously sized rooms, contemporary African interiors, plush garden setting, impeccably trained staff and the privacy — above all, the privacy. Ensuring that guests feel as safe and secluded in their hotel as they do at home is a service worth its weight in gold. Or R7 500 plus, if The Saxon’s new Villa Suite price list is to be believed. After a R210m investment, the room stock was more than doubled in time for the soccer world cup, with a total of 29 new suites spread across three detached villas, linked to the main complex via a suspended walkway that winds centipede-like through a canopy of trees. MD George Cohen suggests that the secret to the villas’ appeal is that they are, in essence, three small, selfcontained hotels. “This allows our corporate and other highprofile clientele to book out an entire villa for their stay if they wish,” he says. “In addition, the high level of service associated with The Saxon has here been increased by providing each villa with its own security, team of butlers, chef and manager,” which is probably as many staff, if not more, than most of his guests have at home. Several dedicated entrance gates lead directly into the villas’ new 170-vehicle car park, underground lifts spill out onto each villa’s communal lounge area and enough security guards are on hand to pass guests baton-like all the way from car, to butler, to en-suite check-in. The entire process takes less than five minutes and there’s little chance of
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Arguably, it is the art collection that adds the final cherry to the interior cake, as a total of 220 original art works were commissioned from 11 local artists
bumping into another resident along the way either, so it feels almost like having one’s own private residence. Each of the three villas has slightly different interior finishes, although there is obvious shared DNA between them and the main building itself. Designer PJ de Kock of Blacksmith Interiors was careful to remain faithful to the original, while also moving things forward — always with a view to improving the guest experience. He explains: “Great care was taken to design everything from the ground up, using South African expertise. That meant South African design, art, objects and fabrics as well as an emphasis on texture rather than a particular print to avoid giving it that generic ‘African’ feel.” Villa One is a single-storey block comprised of seven suites, whereas Villas Two and Three are both double storey, with views of the city’s skyline from the upper deck. All three have their own private plunge pools, sun terraces and smatterings of tables that allow for outdoor dining as a third alternative to room service and the main restaurant. According to Cohen, it is precisely that sense of space that makes these villas so appealing. “Not only did the trees need to be well cultivated to entice the bird life, but the landscaping and water features had to allow guests to relax in the middle of a Johannesburg suburb and still feel like they were in a natural South African habitat … as opposed to a concrete jungle.” Similar principles apply to the interiors, where a symphony of tonal beiges, browns and taupes are matched with natural woods, silks and sustainable weaves. All furniture within the villas was made using South African materials and craftsmen, while traditional design touches have been incorporated “in a collage fashion, not so much as standalone pieces”, according to De Kock. The result is a rich, warm, relaxed ambiance that steers clear of unnecessary ostentation. Arguably, it is the art collection that adds the final cherry to the interior cake, as a total of 220 original art works were commissioned from 11 local artists. Owner Steyn, an avid art collector himself, wanted pieces that “evoked rather than depicted Africa and this was a great opportunity to promote not only South Africa’s established artists but its emerging ones too”, notes Cohen. Everything from oil paintings to woodcuts, lithographs, etchings and sculptures are on display from artists such as Hannes Hars, Amalie von Maltitz, Dirk von Meerkotter and Sandile Zulu among others. The latter’s fascinating burnt, scorched and singed canvases appear in a series entitled the Milky Way Galaxy, which stands out as especially eyecatching, as do the wonderfully well-observed photographs of natural rock formations in Errol Westoll’s series of photographs. Pristine maple-wood furniture is used as a neutral backdrop for many of these pieces, creating a look of earthy elegance. Prominent four-poster beds in maple and cherry wood add a note of exuberance to the centre of each suite, while the Crestron handheld touch-panels controlling the lighting and entertainment look good and work even better. Laptops are provided in every room, along with an HD LCD television, Blu-ray Disc player and surround-sound stereo.
All three villas have their own private plunge pools and sun terraces
The spa treatment room on the upper floors of Villa Two
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The bathroom area has walk-in two-person Hansgrohe showers, as well as over-sized stand-alone bathtubs and colourfully scented amenities courtesy of Molton Brown. In addition, a cordless phone assigned to each room means there is no need to miss a call, even when chest-deep in bubble bath. These may be minor details, but add them all together and you’ve got a superlative room product, one made all the more appealing by the presence of a spa treatment room on the upper floors of Villas Two and Three, thereby negating the need to trudge back across the suspended walkway clad in nought but a towelling robe and slippers. Even better, this is quite some treatment room. Smaller than a full-size hotel suite but still considerably larger than most two-bed massage rooms, the minimalist all-white interior spills out onto a private outdoors terrace where flame heaters cast a bewitching light back in through the windows after dark. Top tip: book your treatment to coincide with dusk to get the full effect. In true Saxon style, spa manager Margarita Ioannou has gone one better than the rest by creating her own in-house signature African treatments, such as the Elemental Massage Therapy using organic oils in a combination of different techniques, movements and pressures, each reminiscent of 30 NOVEMBER 2010, WANTED
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Why bother with the traffic when you can stay at the hotel and have your meetings come to you instead? the four elements (air, fire, earth and water). From deep, gliding strokes through to shorter, heatgenerating movements and even the occasional waft from a gently billowing muslin cloth, the only drawback to this massage is that its slightly schizophrenic personality leaves the body unsure of whether to head to bed or hit the town! There are no rasul, sound therapy or water treatments available in the villas but all villa guests are offered a complimentary 15-minute head or foot ritual as a way to
introduce them to the upstairs spa suites. For those who book one of the top-floor presidential suites, it’s merely a question of popping next door, so there really are no excuses. Spread across Villas Two and Three, these eight spacious units are the no-expense-spared option for those who insist on having more space than they will ever likely use. An en-suite kitchenette and 10-seater dining table remove the bother of having to eat downstairs in the lounge, while also ensuring that important business meetings can take place in complete privacy. The Bang & Olufsen entertainment system is upgraded here, and Amalie von Maltitz stoneware sculptures have been brought in to give the main living area a talking point. All of which has the effect of persuading villa guests that it may, in fact, be easier to stay at the hotel and have their meetings came to them. Why bother with the traffic when everything is already at your fingertips? Cohen was promoted from general manager to managing director of the hotel a few years ago; if he succeeds in keeping his top guests on site, thanks to these new villas, he’ll have more than earned the title. Saxon Boutique Hotel, Villas and Spa (011) 292 6000