7 Best Hotels in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal and Durban

This massive luxury hotel adjacent to the International Convention Centre, that underwent a multimillion-rand face-lift in 2016, is a short taxi ride from the city center and beachfront and is favored by businesspeople and conference-goers. The rooms are well appointed for the business traveler and tastefully decorated in light wood and neutral tones, with African touches, and have either beach or city views. If you're staying in an executive room, you're invited to the large club room with business facilities on the ground floor, where guests can get breakfast and free Internet access. Sweeping public areas are graced with marble pillars. The Big Easy Wine Bar + Grill by Ernie Els and buffet restaurant Vasco's on-site offer exciting dining options. Impeccable service makes it one of the top Hilton hotels in Africa. Rates can vary significantly, often relating to what's on at the convention center.

You can't beat the location of this pleasant hotel midway between South and North beaches and only a five-minute drive from the city center. Rooms are on the tired side, each with a small sitting area. All face the sea, but request an upper-floor room for the best views. Views from the pool deck on the 30th floor are superb.

Four converted Victorian homes comprise the city's most intimate boutique hotel, a contemporary European-style property that's been reinvented with a colonial African makeover. Rooms feature mahogany furniture, crisp, white linen, damask-covered beds, and sunken tubs in luxurious bathrooms. Many of the rooms have small verandahs facing onto Florida Road, with its swaying palm trees and sometimes busy traffic, but double-glazed windows help to dull the noise.

Overlooking North Beach along the Golden Mile, this combination of two adjacent high-rise hotels is a two-minute drive from the city center and attracts a mix of business, conference, and leisure travelers. Due to the amalgamation, the hotels collectively offer two business centers, three pools, two gyms, and eight restaurants. The Maharani's rooms are in better condition, with a recent refurb, and the contemporary on-site restaurant, Vigour & Verve, does a commendable breakfast and lunch. Though most rooms have views of the ocean, request a room on an upper floor to take advantage of a full sea view. The Elangeni houses one of the few Japanese restaurants in the city, as well as the Lingela buffet-style restaurant. A minimum three-night stay is required during peak season.

This hotel mostly attracts businesspeople and gamblers, but it's a stone's throw from the beach and has some great sea views. Like the adjacent casino, it's designed in the art-deco style of the 1930s, which is in keeping with some of Durban's architectural heritage. The rooms are rather small, but elegantly minimalist with furnishings in pastel shades. The sea views from the higher floors are spectacular (it's worth the slightly higher price for a sea-facing room). Indian cuisine is a speciality at Jeera and will be a highlight of your stay (book ahead for their unique afternoon tea), and cocktails are de rigueur at Lounge Bar. The 36 suites in the towers are more luxurious than those in the hotel.

Built in 1939 in classic colonial style, the Edward is one of Durban's oldest hotels. Although it's been restored almost to its former elegance, it seems to have lost a little of its soul in the process. Nevertheless, service is excellent, and the stylish cut-glass chandeliers, molded ceilings, and subtle art-deco details bring to mind a more refined past. Rooms are tastefully furnished; 10 have balconies overlooking the sea, and the others have bay windows with sea views. The hotel faces beautiful South Beach.

The superior, and quieter, of the two Quarters boutique hotels, Quarters on Avondale offers rooms in Edwardian style with a modern twist. Luxurious sunken tubs dominate plush bathrooms with fluffy white towels. Boudoirs are tastefully decorated, with white linen and damask draping generous beds. Each room has a small veranda overlooking Avondale Road. A scented garden is being established.