The best hotel room in South Africa costs R86,000 a night – this is what you get for the price
The Nelson Mandela Platinum Suite at the Saxon Hotel was recently voted as the best hotel suite in both the country and the continent.
The accolade came from the World Travel Awards, which highlighted several South African accommodations as outstanding on the continent.
The Nelson Mandela Presidential Suite is one of the offerings at the Saxon Hotel in Sandhurst, which was named the leading boutique hotel in Africa.
The hotel is a five-star luxury accommodation, spread across ten acres of gardens to ensure a private and peaceful experience for guests.
The Saxon has 53 rooms, with the presidential suite being its flagship for luxury. The suite is approximately 400 square metres and can accommodate two to four people.
The room is named for its history as the venue where Nelson Mandela wrote his autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom.
Unlike other rooms at the Saxon Hotel, the Nelson Mandela Suite has no price listed on its website, but third-party booking agencies list it at least R86,200 per night.
Some of the suite’s amenities include a 24-hour butler service, complimentary meals and drinks, and a bottle of French champagne on arrival.
A VIP airport transfer service is also included with a presidential suite booking for international visitors staying at the hotel.
The room itself comes with a king-sized bed, a fully equipped butler’s kitchen, high-speed Wi-Fi, and a fully stocked minibar.
The amenities are spread across two bedrooms, a dedicated workstation, a lounge area, and an entrance via a glass-enclosed elevator.
The suite’s balcony looks out over the Saxon Hotel’s gardens, providing privacy from the surrounding city.
“The Nelson Mandela Platinum Suite is defined by African décor and a sense of history, having been the room where Nelson Mandela edited his autobiography,” Saxon describes on its website.
Staying in the Nelson Mandela Presidential Suite also gives guests access to the hotel’s spa, which offers several features, including hydrotherapy.
Signature spa packages cost R3,500, while other services from the spa can cost up to R6,000 per person.
The Saxon Hotel
While the presidential suite is the Saxon Hotel’s most expensive and affluent offering, the hotel offers several other luxury rooms.
The cheapest rooms offered by the hotel are approximately R13,000 per night, with these suites still offering king-sized beds and marble-designed walls.
These rooms are, however, smaller and do not offer some of the luxury amenities of the Nelson Mandela Suite, such as complimentary French Champagne.
The hotel itself also has several restaurants for guests and day visitors, ranging from a piano lounge to more casual outdoor dining.
Qunu is one of the Saxon’s most prestigious restaurants and has been awarded a star by EatOut and two plates in the Jenny Handley Gourmet Guide 2025.
The restaurant is overseen by Chef Scott Dressel and offers three-course meals, gourmet tasting menus, and wine pairings.
The Saxon describes the restaurant on its website, saying “every dish is a masterpiece, meticulously crafted from the finest ingredients to create an extraordinary gastronomic experience.”
The hotel itself was founded in 2000, before which it was a residential property owned by billionaire Douw Steyn.
Steyn then converted the property into a boutique hotel, which has since expanded to include its several restaurants, a spa, and 53 rooms.
Steyn founded BGL Insurance, an insurance company based in the UK which currently serves millions of clients.
He was highly regarded for his contributions to both the business world and philanthropy, and was known as a good friend of Mandela.
Photos of the Nelson Mandela Presidential Suite
Photos of the Saxon Hotel
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