Sun International Hotels to implement South Africa’s safety guidelines when it opens
South Africa’s Sun International hotel says it plans to reopen its resorts, hotels, casinos and restaurants following the further relaxation of the country’s level 3 lockdown rules. According to businesstech.co.za, Chief executive officer, Anthony Leeming says that once the government announces the official return dates, the group will stagger the reopening of its properties across the country.
“Our leisure attractions, golf courses and swimming pools will also reopen subject to necessary regulatory guidance,” he said. While the government has not gazetted the official regulations around the reopening of these leisure facilities, Leeming said that the group has put in place ‘world-class health and safety protocols which are considerably beyond what is required’.
He added that the group’s properties will observe strict headcounts and social distancing rules. “Prior to the lockdown, we had introduced social distancing queue management, while every alternative seat at our casino slot machines and tables was removed to create space between customers. “Our restaurant layouts were also reconfigured to increase space between tables and meet headcount limits,” he said.
Once the group’s resorts reopen, Leeming said that it will conduct temperature tests for all customers at our hospitality, leisure and gaming operations, and all guests will need to complete a medical screening questionnaire on arrival at hotels, and in advance for casino visitors. “For the foreseeable future, only members of our loyalty programme – our Most Valued Guests (MVGs) – will be allowed access onto the casino floor. It will be mandatory for all visitors to wear cloth masks at all times.”
GuidelinesSun International has also published a separate set of guidelines which detail the new rules it plans to put in place in more detail.The guidelines cover a range of topics including casino safety, safety protocols around hotels as well as the new regulations around golf. These guidelines are outlined in more detail below. These guidelines are only applicable to Sun International’s resorts and may change depending on government directives.
Casinos. Employees are required to sanitise their hands before starting their shift, between guest interactions and after handling cash;. All cash desks, card machines and devices, Cash IOs, promo kiosks and MVG desks will be sanitised after each guest interaction;. Hand sanitiser will be made available throughout the gaming floors and at tables, for guests to use;. All tables equipment and furniture will be cleaned on a scheduled basis or between games;. An ongoing chip-cleaning program will be implemented on a rotational basis. Sanitiser will also be available for guests to clean their chips;. Only MVG cardholders will be allowed access to the casino;. Capacity on the gaming floor will be limited to between 33% and 50%;. Every second slot machine will be turned off or locked to ensure a 1.5-meter distance;. Blackjack and American Roulette tables will have a maximum of four seats at each table, while Baccarat tables will have five seats;. Seats, tables and booths will be reconfigured with physical barriers or removed to allow for appropriate physical distancing.
