Saxon Hotel, Villas & Spa

You stay at the Saxon Hotel in Sandhurst, five minutes from Sandton, on ten acres of gardens with trees and vines that screen the city. The main building holds suites with private patios facing the gardens; separate villas offer more seclusion. The spa has treatments using Himalayan salt and copper, with hydrotherapy facilities and a manicure bar.

The hotel has multiple restaurants: one serves modern African cuisine with wine pairings selected by sommeliers; another offers light meals by the infinity pool. The bar opens onto a terrace for sundowners. Breakfast and afternoon tea are served in the piano lounge.

Guests arrive through a gated driveway into the property. The gardens are planted with indigenous species, and the vines on the walls give the sense of being deeper in the countryside than you are. The spa is a separate building with water features and treatment rooms.

The hotel is not within walking distance of shops or restaurants, but the concierge can arrange visits to galleries, golf courses, and historical sites in Johannesburg.