Emirates does the business in Durban

The award-winning carrier starts services to Durban on 1st October, bringing passengers from around its growing network to the province of Kwa Zulu Natal.

To mark the opening of Emirates' 17th route into Africa, the airline is offering Business Class passengers two complimentary night's accommodation in a standard room at Durban's Southern Elangeni Hotel.

The deal, for those travelling between 1st October and 24th December, covers single or double room occupancy, buffet breakfast and free Discovery Durban entertainment vouchers.

Kwa Zulu Natal province is blessed with an abundance of wildlife and plays host to some of Africa's most famous nature and game reserves. There's also hundreds of kilometres of subtropical beaches on the warm Indian Ocean coastline.

On the business and trade side, the province is a key commercial and manufacturing centre and Durban itself is recognised as the busiest port in Africa. Emirates SkyCargo have already set up a base in the city to support the movement of goods.

Nigel Page, the airline's Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Americas & Africa, said:

"With the start of this new and exciting route just around the corner, we're pleased to present yet another reason to visit this popular province. We expect Durban to perform well across all sectors; business, leisure and those visiting friends and relatives. We are very much looking forward to starting services 1st October."

Emirates, an Official Partner for FIFA 2010 in South Africa, offers its Business Class passengers a seamless service chain. This includes complimentary chauffeur-drive, exclusive lounges, Business Class check-in desks and priority baggage handling. An additional 10 kg was added to luggage allowances earlier this year.

From 1st October, Flight EK775 will depart Dubai at 1025hrs, arriving at Durban International Airport at 1710hrs. EK 776, leaves Durban at 1840hrs and gets into Dubai at 0520hrs. A 278-seat Airbus A330-200 in a two-class configuration will be deployed on the route with a flight time of around 8hrs 45 minutes.

In addition to the new service to Durban, the award winning carrier already flies three times a day to Johannesburg and daily into Cape Town.