FROM Lagos to Johannesburg, Addis Ababa, Cairo, Nairobi, the world?s best-known hoteliers are targeting Africa?s growing capital cities to benefit from a rising number of business travellers and a huge undersupply in available rooms.
Senior Vice-President of development for Hilton Worldwide, Europe and Africa, Patrick Fitzgibbon in an interview he granted an international cable television recently said, ?There?s a growing demand in those capital cities because they are the centers of business, of government and of commerce ? all of which have hospitality needs?.
?We have a very bullish feel for these markets and we are very excited about the opportunity Africa presents. I think that for the next 20 years we are going to have our hands full with opportunity.?
According to a recent survey by Lagos-based consultancy, W Hospitality Group, some 40,000 new rooms in 207 hotels are planned in the continent?s under-served cities, up almost one third compared to 2011.
Hilton, which operates nearly 11,000 rooms in 37 properties in Africa, says it has some 5,200 rooms and 17 hotels in the pipeline across the continent.
Carlson Rezidor, which recently opened a Radisson Blu in Port Harcourt, its eighth hotel in Nigeria and 49th in the continent, is targeting 12 new hotel deals this year. French group Accor, owner of the Novotel and Ibis brands, has some 5,000 rooms in the pipeline, according to the W Hospitality survey.
?The vast majority of those hotels are business-oriented,? explains Trevor Ward, Managing Director of W Hospitality. ?If you look at where those hotel chains are primarily going, it?s the capital cities or the major commercial cities of Africa where the business traveller is going,? he adds.
One of the leading tourist destinations in the world, South Africa is a bustling country filled with beauty, mystery, sophistication and cultural diversity, everything you could possibly want in a holiday destination.
From the business powerhouse of Johannesburg, to the trendy cosmopolitan lifestyle of Cape Town, the big five of the Kruger National Park, and the sprawling beauty of Mpumalanga and the Garden Route, South Africa is a world in one country.
Thanks to an awesome combination of natural charisma, world class facilities and services, and a diverse and fascinating cultural heritage, travellers around the world are choosing South Africa as their dream destination.
South Africa is fast becoming a leader in the tourism industry, with hotel accommodation available to suit all. Here you will find everything, from five star luxury and world class spa resorts, to family friendly establishments, casino resorts, conference hotels, and even special interest lodging like hotels catering to extreme sports lovers, fishermen and golfers.
According to STR Global, South Africa saw revenue per available room (RevPAR) increase by 13.6 percent for the first two months of this year, reaching ZAR542.07.
However, hotel owners are looking to increase their investments in Africa, as the race for the continent?s promising long-term growth prospects intensify.
With limited opportunities for expansion in SA, a slew of hospitality players are eyeing the rest of the continent, where an undersupply of quality hotels and upbeat economic growth prospects are fuelling the scramble.
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