ETHIOPIA TO OFFICIALLY LAUNCH NEW AIRPORT TERMINAL AND NEW AIRPORT HOTEL TODAY
(Posted 27th January 2019)
(Picture courtesy of Wikipedia)
A new terminal at Addis Ababa’s Bole International Airport, due to be officially opened later today by the country’s Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed Ali, will raise the airport’s capacity to 22 million passenger per year, dwarfing other airports in the wider Eastern African region and further cementing Ethiopian Airlines dominant role on the continent of Africa.
Travelers have for long complained about the substandard facilities at the airport in Addis when transiting to their final destination and the new facility will mitigate all of that. New departure lounges and notably also new lounges for premium passengers, new duty free shops and additional restaurants are elevating the transit experience in Addis to hitherto unknown levels, at par with the continent’s best airports in South Africa, on Mauritius and a few other countries which have invested in airport infrastructure.
The 300 million US Dollars new terminal, under construction since 2014, was built by a Chinese company, raises the previous handling capacity from only 6 million passengers – of course long exceeded given the phenomenal success of Ethiopian Airlines – and the airline is thought to be a major beneficiary to further increase their traffic into and through their Addis Ababa hub.
Also due to be officially opened later today is the first of two new hotels owned by Ethiopian Airlines, just minutes away from the new terminal.
The Ethiopian Skylight Hotel will offer 373 rooms and suites and a full range of meeting facilities.
A second hotel, also owned by Ethiopian Airlines, will see construction start later this year and, when completed by 2021/2, have a capacity of an estimated 637 rooms and suites.
