The Emoya Luxury Hotel and Spa near Bloemfontein, South Africa offers a Shanty Town for guests who want to live the “unique” slum“experience” without any of the hassle. What better way is there to trivialize the dire living conditions of 1/8 of the world?
The luxury hotel includes a dozen shacks made from scrap wood and corrugated metal; they include a long-drop toilet and an outdoor fire to heat water for added verisimilitude. According to their site:
“Now you can experience staying in a Shanty within the safe environment of a private game reserve. This is the only Shanty Town in the world equipped with under-floor heating and wireless internet access!”
Staying there costs roughly $84 per night, which is a pretty good deal, unless you’re poor in South Africa — then it’ll cost you roughly half of your one-month salary.
They advertise themselves as a spot “ideal for team building, braais, fancy theme parties and an experience of a lifetime.” Amenities include under-floor heating, electricity, and donkey geysers (we don’t know what they are, either).
Fortunately, a stay doesn’t include crime, disease, or the depression that comes with knowing you’ll likely be forever trapped in a cycle of debilitating poverty.
One reviewer on TripAdvisor slammed the hotel, as their spa offered bathrobes and slippers that appeared “10 years old.”
The hotel’s average review, from those insensitive enough to stay at such a place and then publicly review it, is 4.5/5 stars — not bad for a “slum.”
