Sun City lies on the territory of the former homeland of Bophuthatswana. Bophuthatswana was classified as an independent state by South Africa's apartheid regime.
South African hotel and real estate magnate Sol Kerzner saw nothing but opportunity in apartheid South Africa's zoning structures, so he built Sun City in Bophuthatswana, only a 90 minute drive from Johannesburg.
Thus, Sun City could legally provide otherwise banned and "immoral" entertainment such as gambling and topless revue shows.
The independent state of Bophuthatswana, headed by the corrupt Lucas Mangope, was a law unto itself; millions of people began frequenting what was rapidly nicknamed "Sin City".
Sun City became synonymous with gambling. The result was an empire that has seen Sol Kerzner (known locally as the Sun King) become involved in various international hotel and gambling resorts, one of which is the multi-million dollar Atlantis resort in the Bahamas.
Rebirth of a Lost CityTwelve years after Sun City opened, the Palace of the Lost City was built.This completely decadent five star hotel is said to be the most luxurious in Africa. The hotel was merely the tip of the ivory tower though.
At the foot of the Palace, surrounded by an artfully created indigenous jungle, Kerzner built the Valley of the Waves. This massive waterpark includes a long curving artificial beach and lagoon, various waterslides, and a man-made river that meanders around the park. A mechanised wave machine pumps out the waves, sending body-surfers crashing onto the beach.
Bophutatswana was re-incorporated into South Africa in 1994. Consequently gambling has been legalised, and although some think that this has affected Sun City's long standing position as king of the casinos, the resort is still fully booked over every holiday period.
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