IHG’S CROWNE PLAZA BRAND COMES TO ETHIOPIA
(Posted 01st October 2014)
News are emerging from Addis Ababa that the InterContinental Hotel Group, in short IHG, has signed a deal with developers in Ethiopia to build a 210 suites and rooms Crowne Plaza Hotel.
The site is reportedly located near key organizations like the African Union headquarters, the AU Convention Centre and other similar international bodies of equal standing.
The hotel will feature a range of facilities, from a business centre to meeting rooms the size of a ballroom or the size of a boardroom, on to restaurants and bars and of course a health club, Spa and swimming pool for guests to relax after a long day in meetings.
Mr. Pascal Gauvin, Chief Operating Officer for India, Middle East and Africa of the InterContinental Hotel Group in a media release said: ’Addis Ababa is evolving at pace, with infrastructure such as the Bole International Airport now serving almost 20 million passengers a year. We’re always on the lookout for the right partner to grow our brands in the right location. Now we’re bringing Crowne Plaza to a new country with Tsemex Hotels and Business Plc. Crowne Plaza Addis Ababa is a strong addition to the brand and with this being our first hotel in Ethiopia we will now have a presence in 13 countries across Africa’.
The nearest Crowne Plaza is located in Nairobi, operating under a franchise, and the move by IHG to Ethiopia now opens the door for other of the IHG brands to also enter this growing market.
In a related development though has work on the proposed site for an InterContinental Hotel in Kampala come to a standstill with no activity seen for many months, while the so called Hilton Kampala too remains in virtual limbo with no visible progress and certainly no opening date in sight, leave alone the uncertainty if at all it will become a Hilton on opening given years of very adverse publicity for the owners and the project, which has been moving at snails’ pace, if not slower, since 2006.
For breaking and regular hospitality news from Eastern Africa look no further but watch this space.
