After almost a year of extensive renovations, the hotel reopened to the public in November 2020, looking fresher than ever. The public spaces of the hotel were completely remodelled and rearranged to create a lighter and brighter space that neatly flows into a huge terrace overlooking the bowling greens of the neighbouring sports club.
From the rooms to the lobby all the decor was renewed, with light wood and soft blues, creams and whites aiming for a neater Scandinavian feel. Sports are still very much an important part of the hotel and now paintings inspired by sporting events hang in the rooms and in the lobby is an eye-catching statement chandelier with bronze gymnasts in motion. Cricket fans of course can also look forward to the possibility of spotting local cricket stars hanging out at the bar, Protea legend Makhaya Ntini is known to be a regular.
The hotel has a total of 230 rooms set over seven floors and the higher up you go in the building the more impressive the views become, until such point that you can see almost right down into the stadium itself. The Scandinavian minimalism is reflected in the rooms which come with King sized beds as standard, plus Smart TVs for streaming all your favourite sports and no shortage of plug points. Guests staying for longer than seven nights are usually upgraded to the deluxe rooms which also come with a sleeper couch (handy for those travelling with young kids). Another Protea hotel bonus for families is that kids under 12 eat breakfast for free at Protea properties.
Dining at Protea Hotel Wanderers
The hotel's Big Apple restaurant and bar has an expansive deck giving the option to eat indoors or out, with a classic buffet breakfast and a la carte lunch and dinner. The Deli Bar is the hotel's more casual option with a choice of on-the-go meals such as packaged salads, wraps and croissants for those times when you just need to grab a snack and then go catch up on your sleep. The prime spot for an afternoon drink is one of the couches or sun loungers down by the swimming pool or the more formal seating on the shady deck that looks right onto the treed views over the suburbs. The pool deck also has its own 'live kitchen' open on weekends, where guests can watch the chefs busy cooking for 'Stir Fry Fridays' or 'Sushi Saturdays'.
Events and meetings at Protea Hotel Wanderers
The hotel has a range of high-tech brand new purpose-designed meeting rooms on the ground floor, as well as a more informal private meeting room that is designed for private functions like dinners. There's also now a function space for hire on the deck too which comes with its own bar that can be completed separated from the rest of the venue to host a private party.In 2021 the hotel takes over management of conferencing and events at the neighbouring Wanderers Sports Club. The sports club has huge conferencing and events facilities and the new partnership with the hotel will create one of the biggest conferencing facilities in this part of the city, capable of hosting events for more than 800 delegates (depending on the latest Covid regulations).
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