RTG finalises US$1,5m upgrade

The scope of the upgrades include the flagship Rainbow Towers Hotel in Harare where two elevators will be installed by the end of July

Livingstone Marufu
LISTED hotel concern Rainbow Tourism Group is halfway through refurbishment of two of its Kadoma Hotel and Conference Centre and New Ambassador Hotel, as it renews its local product offering.

The US$1,5 million facelift, which began in early 2016, will be completed by year-end.

RTG chief executive officer Mr Tendai Madziwanyika said the investment in New Ambassador Hotel in central Harare was just under US$500 000. Over US$1 million will go to works in Kadoma.

The two hotels remain open for business during the period.

“To date, we have refurbished 36 of the 72 rooms. The New Ambassador Hotel is the ideal hotel for the business traveller as it is right in the business hub of the city. We have redone the flooring and bathrooms, and invested in new furniture and soft furnishings for the bedrooms.

“The restaurant has been given a refreshing facelift with new modern furniture. The ambiance is definitely refreshing and welcoming,” said Mr Madziwanyika.

For the Kadoma property, RTG has bought contemporary furniture and linen for the bedrooms and work is about 40 percent complete.

The properties are being primed to compete locally and internationally.

The scope of the upgrades include the flagship Rainbow Towers Hotel in Harare, where two elevators will be installed by the end of July.

“We anticipate continued growth in our foreign business segment, which as you know grew by six percent in 2015.

“We believe it will continue to ameliorate the difficult domestic liquidity situation to assure growth in our revenues going forward,” said Mr Madziwanyika.

Government has been trying to help the hospitality industry spruce up its act.

In 2013, Statutory Instruments 172 and 173, which exempted selected tourism-related goods from excise duty and Value Added Tax (VAT), were gazetted.

There are plans to expand the list of goods covered by the SIs.

RTG’s revenues rose 13 percent to US$8,6 million in the first four months of 2016 from US$7,6 million over the same period a year ago.

Much of the growth was driven by the strong performance of hotels as occupancies grew to 48 percent from 38 percent in 2015. Also, RTG’s market share climbed to 32 percent from 27 percent a year earlier.

However, Rainbow Hotel Mozambique’s revenues fell by 46 percent on political instability in that country.