Classy coastal retreat

Published May 8, 2013

Share

Durban - Elton John has been there, and cricketer Shaun Pollock, and, of course, former Miss World Penny Rey, whose home it used to be before the Reys turned it into a guest house and later sold it to be renovated into what is now Hotel Izulu.

 

The luxurious getaway is not only a magnet for its wedding receptions in a large, airy hall with its own boma, under a canopy of trees and shrubs, but is also a haven of tranquillity, and is worth a visit for a relaxing break and for the fine cuisine in its small, elegant Gigi’s Restaurant.

A bonus, if you really want to unwind and have some spare cash to throw around, is to treat yourself to a visit to the small but award-winning Impilo Beauty Spa, situated close to a welcoming pub and comfy lounge.

The spa offers stress-easing therapies for delegates or spouses – corporate, half-day and full-day packages may be arranged on request.

 

My partner and I were treated to a hot-stone massage at the spa on a weekend stay recently and it was bliss.

Each of the five pool-facing, free-standing villas at Hotel Izulu, identical from the outside with their neatly manicured lawns and shrubbery, but individually themed inside, shares a jacuzzi, although the larger Royal Suite, taking up the whole top floor of one villa, and very popular with honeymooners, has its own.

Decorated in subtle tones of silver grey and deep plum, it has a comfy lounge with superb entertainment facilities, its own dining room and a small open-plan bar where light snacks can be prepared. A private courtyard accommodates the private jacuzzi.

The Royal Suite, in Villa Ingelosi (“the villa of angels”), is also offered for the more luxurious executive meetings. The suite accommodates up to 10 delegates.

A stylish blend of Tuscan architecture, African features and Balinese influences, the hotel’s other villas each contain two executive suites and two deluxe suites, a private courtyard and an eight-seater jacuzzi.

There are four deluxe suites with four-poster beds and four that have been converted to optional adjoining rooms.

We stayed in the President’s Suite, which, along with others, was refurbished in 2011 and is now a tribute to Nelson Mandela, with one wall featuring one of Madiba’s shirts in a frame alongside 13 Zapiro cartoons focusing on the former president.

Above the four-poster bed is a large photograph of him and close by is a stand with books about him, and a framed copy of the Invictus poem by Victorian poet William Ernest Henley, which inspired Mandela when he was imprisoned on Robben Island.

The suite, as with others at Hotel Izulu, boasts pure cotton bed linen, silk curtains and grand double baths flanked by marble pillars, with a huge, glass-encased shower nearby.

After a spa treatment, a stroll around the beautiful hotel gardens is a must. They are dotted with tables and chairs, feature topiary, well-lit water features and have some palms strung with hammocks.

 

One can dine at Hotel Izulu in the opulent Gigi’s, with its palette of black, white and silver punctuated with hints of pink, or in the intimacy of your suite, or at a table set in the charming wine cellar.

 

The restaurant is in the original house which also accommodates the reception area, lounge, spa and airy breakfast-lunch nook overlooking the pool.

The hotel cellar stocks many rare South African vintages, and management is proud of the fact that Gigi’s won a Diners’ Club platinum award for its wine list last year.

The hotel recently employed a new chef, Tyronne Sumners, who is back in South Africa after 15 years of working in the UK. His food style is Mediterranean/Italian and is very good, especially as his dishes make use of the large herb garden on the premises.

The herb garden was introduced about four years ago and forms part of the hotel’s green initiatives. Hotel Izulu also has a wormery with 25 000 worms that produce an organic liquid fertiliser that is used in the gardens.

Breakfasts are excellent at Hotel Izulu, served from 7am to 11am, and the Eggs Benedict, three-egg omelette and scrambled eggs with smoked salmon are all worth ordering.

However, I have one big grumble about jugs of juice being left uncovered, with no ice nearby. We went down for breakfast at 10am and all the juices were warm and had two flies buzzing around them – while the large, uncovered yoghurt bowl on the breakfast buffet had a fly in the middle of it. Not very nice.

 

The hotel is owned by English couple Jackie and Owen Williams, who visited KwaZulu-Natal in December 2001, fell in love with it, then bought a home in Zimbali five months later.

Sweeping sea views gave them the feeling they were in heaven and they promptly renamed their home Izulu (Zulu for “heaven”).

With 15 years as owner of two inner-city restaurants in West London, England, as well as running a wine bar on the River Thames, the Williams’s decided to establish a business in South Africa.

After viewing various options they bought the coastal home of the Reys and named it after their Zimbali home.

It’s worth noting that Hotel Izulu is now offering a monthly wine market and there is one there today.

“We feature a different wine estate each month where we do a food and wine pairing. Guests are entertained by a four-member band called Afritude. Tickets cost R175 and kids are very welcome,” says managing director Grant Pringle.

Hotel Izulu has been presented with the Best Hotel award by Federated Hospitality Association of SA. It has also received awards for its spa. - Independent on Saturday

For more information visit www.hotelizulu.com

Related Topics: