Castle Kyalami
Encyclopedia
Castle Kyalami is a castle located in Kyalami
in the province of Gauteng
, north of Johannesburg
, South Africa
. Formerly a tourist attraction
and hotel
, the castle was purchased by the Church of Scientology
in March 2008.
millionaire and architect
Demos Dinopoulos, who had intended it to be status symbol for his extended family. Located in the northern Johannesburg suburb of Kyalami
, the castle is set on 22 acre
s. The 64000 square feet (5,945.8 m²) castle has an Arthurian style, and contains a spa, 24 suites, a luxury hotel, a restaurant, a conference centre and its own helipad
.
In the guidebook Lonely Planet: South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland, Fitzpatrick et al. describe the "mock castle" as "one of Jo'burg's true oddities". When the castle was still a tourist attraction, Abigail Wills of the publication Conference & Incentive Travel recommended it for those visiting the area: "Former private residences such as Ballito Manor, 50km from Durban, The Castle in Kyalami and the Saxon in Johannesburg are ideal for exclusive use."
The castle was the site of the "Ika East Meets Africa" fashion show on August 13, 2003, and has been used in the past for business conferences. Prior to being purchased by the Church of Scientology the castle functioned as a hotel, and as of July 2006 the castle was the flagship for Planet Hotels.
The purchase was part of an expansion into South Africa by the Church of Scientology, which purchased buildings in Cape Town
, Port Elizabeth, Durban
and Pretoria
around the same time. The Castle Kyalami is the Church of Scientology's 66th global acquisition to their international property holdings. According to Scopical, "It is believed that the new property will be used as a central base for the organisation's expansion in Africa."
Kyalami
Kyalami is a motor racing circuit located in Midrand, Gauteng province, South Africa. The circuit has been used for Grand Prix and Formula One races and has hosted the South African Grand Prix many times. In recent years, the area surrounding the circuit has developed into a residential and...
in the province of Gauteng
Gauteng
Gauteng is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. It was formed from part of the old Transvaal Province after South Africa's first all-race elections on 27 April 1994...
, north of Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. Formerly a tourist attraction
Tourist attraction
A tourist attraction is a place of interest where tourists visit, typically for its inherent or exhibited cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, or amusement opportunities....
and hotel
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
, the castle was purchased by the Church of Scientology
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...
in March 2008.
Background
Castle Kyalami was built in the 1990s by GreekGreece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
millionaire and architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
Demos Dinopoulos, who had intended it to be status symbol for his extended family. Located in the northern Johannesburg suburb of Kyalami
Kyalami
Kyalami is a motor racing circuit located in Midrand, Gauteng province, South Africa. The circuit has been used for Grand Prix and Formula One races and has hosted the South African Grand Prix many times. In recent years, the area surrounding the circuit has developed into a residential and...
, the castle is set on 22 acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s. The 64000 square feet (5,945.8 m²) castle has an Arthurian style, and contains a spa, 24 suites, a luxury hotel, a restaurant, a conference centre and its own helipad
Helipad
Helipad is a common abbreviation for helicopter landing pad, a landing area for helicopters. While helicopters are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fabricated helipad provides a clearly marked hard surface away from obstacles where a helicopter can safely...
.
In the guidebook Lonely Planet: South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland, Fitzpatrick et al. describe the "mock castle" as "one of Jo'burg's true oddities". When the castle was still a tourist attraction, Abigail Wills of the publication Conference & Incentive Travel recommended it for those visiting the area: "Former private residences such as Ballito Manor, 50km from Durban, The Castle in Kyalami and the Saxon in Johannesburg are ideal for exclusive use."
The castle was the site of the "Ika East Meets Africa" fashion show on August 13, 2003, and has been used in the past for business conferences. Prior to being purchased by the Church of Scientology the castle functioned as a hotel, and as of July 2006 the castle was the flagship for Planet Hotels.
Purchased by Church of Scientology
In March 2008, the castle was purchased by the Church of Scientology for an undisclosed amount. Paul Sondergaard, National Director of the Church of Scientology's Public Affairs Office, stated that the grounds will serve as a Scientology retreat: "We were looking for a building big enough for these purposes, that had some character and was out of the city rush". In a Scientology press release, Sondergaard also said that Scientologists would conduct advanced spiritual training at the castle: "For all African Scientologists, this is a dream finally come true ... It means a lot to the future expansion of the Church in Africa."The purchase was part of an expansion into South Africa by the Church of Scientology, which purchased buildings in Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, Port Elizabeth, Durban
Durban
Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
and Pretoria
Pretoria
Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive and de facto national capital; the others are Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital.Pretoria is...
around the same time. The Castle Kyalami is the Church of Scientology's 66th global acquisition to their international property holdings. According to Scopical, "It is believed that the new property will be used as a central base for the organisation's expansion in Africa."
See also
- List of castles
- List of castles in Africa
- Church of Scientology InternationalChurch of Scientology InternationalThe Church of Scientology International, Inc. is a Californian 501 non-profit corporation. Within the worldwide network of Scientology corporations and entities, CSI is officially referred to as the "mother church" of the Church of Scientology....
External links
- The Castle Kyalami, main website
- The Bastion at The Castle restaurant, website of restaurant based in the castle