Luxury Hotels Atlas / The Maison / One&Only

One&Only hotels

Private retreats follow their setting, from gorilla forests to islands, mountains and city skylines.

One&Only brings a personal, attentive approach to very different settings, from a Maldivian island and a Rwandan gorilla-trekking base to a Dubai tower and a Montana mountain lodge. Kerzner’s flagship gives each resort its own architectural identity, with the destination shaping the experience and residences extending the sense of a private retreat.

18 One&Only hotels in 12 countries on the Luxury Hotels Atlas (4 not open yet), each placed on the six LHA Tiers.

• Owned by Kerzner International
• Worldwide: 19 open resorts and private-homes destinations across 14 countries as of mid-2026 — spanning the Maldives, Mauritius, South Africa, UAE (×3), Mexico (×2), Malaysia, Rwanda (×2), Montenegro, Greece (×2), and the United States — with five confirmed pipeline properties due 2027–2030
• On the atlas: 3 Apex Luxury, 10 Grand Luxury, 4 High Luxury, 1 Core Luxury

History

Sol Kerzner wanted each One&Only resort to feel closely tied to a particular place. Architects including Jean-Michel Gathy, Rick Joy, Tom Kundig, and John Heah gave that ambition different forms across islands, forests, and mountains. Partnerships with chefs such as Anne-Sophie Pic and Tetsuya Wakuda added another individual layer to the experience.

Timeline

• 1962 — Sol Kerzner (then a Johannesburg accountant) buys his first hotel, the Astra in Durban; within seven years he has built South Africa's first five-star property.
• 1969 — Kerzner forms Southern Sun Hotels in partnership with South African Breweries.
• 1975 — Sol Kerzner opens Le Saint Géran in Mauritius, his first hotel outside South Africa and the founding property of the eventual One&Only portfolio; named after the French ship that sank nearby in 1744 and inspired Bernardin de Saint-Pierre's novel Paul et Virginie, the book that first romanticised Mauritius for European readers.
• 1979 — Sun City opens in Bophuthatswana; Kerzner's expertise in destination mega-resorts is established.
• 1992 — The Lost City at Pilanesberg opens, Sol Kerzner's US$300 million South African flagship, a direct precursor to Atlantis.
• 1993 — Kerzner incorporates Sun International Hotels Ltd. in the Bahamas and acquires the Paradise Island complex from Merv Griffin's Resorts International for US$125 million, his first major project outside South Africa, setting the stage for Atlantis.
• 2002 — One&Only launched as the unified identity for Kerzner's luxury resort collection, initially bringing together five properties: the Ocean Club (Bahamas), Le Saint Géran (Mauritius), Le Touessrok (Mauritius), Royal Mirage (Dubai), and Palmilla (Los Cabos).
• 2004 — Kerzner takes management of One&Only Palmilla in Los Cabos, the 1956 Baja resort founded by Abelardo Rodríguez Jr., and positions it as the brand's Americas flagship.
• 2005 — One&Only Reethi Rah opens in North Malé Atoll, Maldives, fully designed by Jean-Michel Gathy of Denniston Architects; its hammock-net suspended above the ocean becomes one of the most copied design elements in Maldivian resort history.
• 2009 — One&Only Cape Town opens 4 April at the V&A Waterfront, Sol Kerzner's personal homecoming project and the brand's first urban property, at a cost of approximately R1.1 billion; architecture by dhk Architects and Ruben Reddy; interiors by Adam D. Tihany.
• 2010 — One&Only The Palm opens 10 October on Palm Jumeirah as the island's only boutique hotel; architecture by DSA Architects International; Yannick Alléno's first Dubai restaurant (later to earn a Michelin star as STAY).
• 2014 — Sol Kerzner retires as chairman of Kerzner International.
• 2017 — One&Only Ocean Club Bahamas rebadges to The Ocean Club, A Four Seasons Resort, when property owner Access Industries terminates Kerzner's management agreement, effective 30 November. One&Only Le Saint Géran reopens after a US$55 million renovation by DSA Architects International with interiors by dsgn (South Africa).
• 2018 — One&Only Nyungwe House opens in Rwanda on a working tea plantation at the edge of Nyungwe Forest National Park.
• 2019 — Hayman Island, Australia relaunches as Hayman Island by InterContinental, property owner Mulpha Australia installs IHG after a A$135 million refurbishment; One&Only exits. One&Only Gorilla's Nest opens near Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda.
• 2020 — Sol Kerzner dies 21 March in Cape Town, aged 84. One&Only Mandarina opens 1 November on Mexico's Riviera Nayarit, designed in its entirety by Studio Rick Joy. One&Only Desaru Coast opens 6 September, the brand's first Asia property, designed by Kerry Hill Architects.
• 2021 — One&Only Portonovi opens May in Montenegro, the brand's first European resort, designed by Jean-Michel Gathy (Denniston Architects) with interiors by HBA.
• 2022–23 — Brand's Private Homes programme expands across Mauritius, Mexico, Montenegro, Greece, Montana, and Dubai as a standalone residential sales platform.
• 2023 — One&Only One Za'abeel opens 1 January in Dubai, the brand's first vertical urban resort; its Link sky bridge is certified by Guinness World Records as the longest cantilevered building on earth. One&Only Aesthesis opens 11 November in Glyfada, Athens. One&Only Half Moon Bay, Antigua announced December.
• 2024 — One&Only Kéa Island opens May, 63-villa all-villa Cycladic resort (architect John Heah) and the brand's second Greek property.
• 2025 — One&Only Moonlight Basin opens 18 November in Big Sky, Montana, the brand's US debut and first alpine property, designed by Tom Kundig of Olson Kundig Architecture. One&Only Nacula Island, Fiji and One&Only Hudson Valley, NY announced. One&Only Jeddah announced November as part of a SR7.6 billion joint venture.
• 2026 — One&Only Courchevel 1850 announced May, transforming the historic Courcheneige Hotel into the brand's first French Alps property, due 2030. Forbes Travel Guide 2026 awards confirm five-star status across 19 One&Only hotels, spas, and restaurants worldwide.

The houses to know

1. One&Only Mandarina, Riviera Nayarit, Mexico — The world-ranked treehouse resort that redefined Latin American ultra-luxury.
2. One&Only Gorilla's Nest, Kinigi, Rwanda — The lodge provides a base close to Rwanda’s mountain gorilla habitat.
3. One&Only Portonovi, Kumbor, Montenegro — The Adriatic Riviera's sole Forbes Five-Star, and a serious wellness destination in its own right.
4. One&Only Palmilla, Los Cabos, Mexico — The original Baja legend: nearly seven decades of uninterrupted ultra-luxury.
5. One&Only Le Saint Géran, Pointe de Flacq, Mauritius — The founding mother: Sol Kerzner's 1975 peninsula that put the Indian Ocean on the luxury circuit.
6. One&Only Reethi Rah, North Malé Atoll, Maldives — The private-island blueprint that defined a generation of Maldivian luxury design.
7. One&Only Nyungwe House, Gisakura, Rwanda — The lodge sits on a tea estate above Nyungwe’s biodiverse rainforest.
8. One&Only The Palm, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — The Palm Jumeirah retreat is home to a two-Michelin-starred French restaurant.
9. One&Only Royal Mirage, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — The Moorish palace that established Dubai's beach-resort vernacular before the Palm existed.
10. One&Only One Za'abeel, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — The brand's vertical urban revolution: a sky concourse above a live highway.

Newest openings

• One&Only Kéa Island — Kéa, Cyclades, Greece — opened May 2024 — Sixty-three all-villa cliffside resort on a 65-hectare beachfront site on the west coast of Kéa, the Cyclades' first ultra-luxury resort, designed by architect John Heah (also responsible for Four Seasons Sayan Bali and The Connaught London); every villa has a private infinity pool; speedboat 30 minutes from Athens' Lavrio Port, 15 minutes by helicopter from Athens Airport; Condé Nast Traveler Hot List 2024; Greece's first freehold branded residences (40 Private Homes across the bay)
• One&Only One Za'abeel — Dubai, UAE — opened 1 January 2024 — The brand's first vertical urban resort: two towers connected at 100 metres above a live four-lane highway by The Link, a 230-metre sky concourse certified by Guinness World Records as the longest cantilevered building in the world; 229 rooms and suites; architecture by Tokyo firm Nikken Sekkei; interiors by Jean-Michel Gathy of Denniston Architects; 12 restaurants including La Dame de Pic (Anne-Sophie Pic, Michelin One Star, 2025), Sagetsu by Tetsuya Wakuda, Qabu by Paco Morales, and StreetXO by Dabiz Muñoz; Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star; Condé Nast Traveler Hot List 2024

Opening next

• One&Only Half Moon Bay — Half Moon Bay, Antigua — expected 2027 — under development; US$465 million project on a 132-acre UNESCO-recognised beach on Antigua's southeast coast adjacent to a protected national park; groundbreaking confirmed for Q2 2026 by Prime Minister Gaston Browne; the brand's first Caribbean property, to include guest rooms, suites, villas, and One&Only Private Homes
• One&Only Hudson Valley — Hyde Park, New York, USA — expected 2028 — confirmed; 61-key resort (standalone cabins, guestrooms, and suites) on a 21-acre site within the Culinary Institute of America campus, developed with Nolan Reynolds International; includes a Longevity Hub by Clinique La Prairie and two CIA-affiliated culinary dining venues; 90 minutes from Manhattan
• One&Only Nacula Island — Nacula Island, Yasawa Archipelago, Fiji — expected 2029 — confirmed; 40-room resort on a 127-acre site in western Fiji, developed with BSP Life Fiji; 20 One&Only Private Homes on sale from November 2025; 30-minute seaplane from Nadi International Airport; the Yasawa Islands were largely closed to international tourism until 1987
• One&Only Jeddah — Jeddah, Saudi Arabia — announced November 2025 — no construction-start date confirmed; part of a SR7.6 billion (US$2 billion) joint venture with Midad Real Estate and PIF-backed Jeddah Central Development Company; seven specialty dining venues, Club One wellness centre (padel and pickleball courts), private beach access, and the brand's first Saudi Private Homes community; site: formerly industrial Red Sea waterfront returned to public access for the first time in modern history

Every One&Only hotel on the atlas

United Arab Emirates

• One&Only One Za'abeel — Dubai · Grand Luxury
• One&Only Royal Mirage — Dubai · Grand Luxury
• One&Only The Palm — Dubai · Grand Luxury

Greece

• One&Only Aesthesis — Glyfada · Grand Luxury
• One&Only Kéa Island — Kéa Island · Grand Luxury

Mexico

• One&Only Mandarina — Riviera Nayarit · Apex Luxury
• One&Only Palmilla — Los Cabos · Grand Luxury

Rwanda

• One&Only Gorilla's Nest — Kinigi · Apex Luxury
• One&Only Nyungwe House — Gisakura · Grand Luxury

United States

• One&Only Moonlight Basin — Big Sky · Grand Luxury
• One&Only Hudson Valley — Hyde Park · High Luxury · Opening soon

Antigua and Barbuda

• One&Only Half Moon Bay — Half Moon Bay · Core Luxury · Opening soon

Fiji

• One&Only Nacula Island — Nacula Island · High Luxury · Opening soon

Maldives

• One&Only Reethi Rah — North Malé Atoll · Grand Luxury

Mauritius

• One&Only Le Saint Géran — Pointe de Flacq · Grand Luxury

Montenegro

• One&Only Portonovi — Kumbor · Apex Luxury

Saudi Arabia

• One&Only Jeddah — Jeddah · High Luxury · Opening soon

South Africa

• One&Only Cape Town — Cape Town · High Luxury

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Every house in The Maison

How the six LHA Tiers work