Rutendo Nyeve Sunday News Reporter
VICTORIA FALLS’ tourism sector is set for a major boost as international hotel brands, including
Radisson and Grand Hyatt, invest in the resort city, strengthening its capacity to attract
international visitors and host major business events.
The entry of the global hospitality brands, alongside other international investments, has been
described as a vote of confidence in destination Zimbabwe, with the developments expected to
increase accommodation capacity and enhance the city’s competitiveness in the regional tourism
market.
Among the key projects is the Park Inn by Radisson Hotel, which is under construction in Victoria
Falls in partnership with the Zesa Pension Fund.
The former Kingdom Hotel is also undergoing refurbishment and is expected to reopen under the
Grand Hyatt brand.
Speaking in Bulawayo during the week, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Barbara Rwodzi
said the developments marked a significant milestone for Victoria Falls, particularly in
strengthening its capacity to host meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE).
“This year, we have Park Inn Radisson Hotel, which is coming in Victoria Falls, and they have
already started work with a capacity of, I think, about 1 000 to 2 000 for MICE tourism in Victoria
Falls,” she said.
“There is remarkable progress on this top-tier global brand entry in Victoria Falls, boosting room
capacity and international trust. We also have Grand Hyatt Luxury Standard that is under
refurbishments, which used to be called Kingdom Hotel. They have a very big plan and we are in
support as the ministry.”
Director of International Tourism in the Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Mr Douglas
Mavhembu, said the entry of global hospitality brands demonstrated growing confidence in
Zimbabwe as a tourism destination.
“We are very happy as destination Zimbabwe. Of late we have seen quite a number of global players
in the tourism industry coming to Zimbabwe to invest and what it tells you is an expression of
confidence that the international hospitality community is for destinations,” he said.
He said international hotel brands could also help attract more visitors because travellers often
have confidence in accommodation providers they already know.
“We are very happy with this level of endorsement because attracting global hospitality talent and
players is important for the brand. It means quite a lot in terms of attracting also international
visitors because they follow where their brands go and that is very important,” he said.
Mr Mavhembu said the investments would strengthen Zimbabwe’s ability to compete with other
tourism destinations in the region.
“It brings us to a competitive level where we are saying that we are able to compete in the region
more comfortably with other countries from within the region,” he said.
He noted that attracting internationally recognised hospitality brands was particularly important
given Victoria Falls’ status as a major regional tourism destination.
“As you know South Africa in particular said that we are a big tourism destination and if there are a
lot of international brands across the region and we do not have that kind of competition or that
kind of an attraction of such international brands within Zimbabwe then we are at a very difficult
position in terms of setting ourselves as a global player. Since we have the iconic regional tourism
project in Victoria Falls, it’s only good that we should be able to attract international brands.”
Beyond expanding accommodation options, the investments are expected to create employment
opportunities, support tourism-related businesses and strengthen Victoria Falls’ profile as a
destination for international leisure travel and business events.
The developments could further consolidate Zimbabwe’s position on the global tourism map as the country seeks to attract more visitors and investment into the hospitality sector.
