The Ghanaian Journal

Holiday Inn, an international hotel brand, is now in Ghana.

The Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG), owners of the Holiday Inn franchise,had hitherto approved the facility and granted the wholly Ghanaian-owned Royal Airports Hotel permission to operate under the brand name, the first in West Africa.

Tourism experts have touted the 168-room four-star hotel as a big leap in the tourism industry, as it has many modern facilities that the industry lacks.

The General Manager, Mr Monjed Salha, told the Daily Graphic that the hotel had two presidential suites, six suites, 10 luxury rooms and 52 executive rooms, and plasma television in all rooms.

The facility has been built to IHG standards but has local architecture and design with about 70 per cent of the interior decor being Ghanaian.

This includes the wooden floors, doors, frames, furniture upholstery as well as the marbles and stones. The hotel has two restaurants, conference and meeting facilities.

“This was built by an all Ghanaian team— the architects, structural, civil, mechanical and electrical engineers are all Ghanaians.

And the building materials and furniture have all been made here in Ghana by Ghanaians,” the Chief Executive Officer of Royal Airport Hotels, Mr Patrick Kwadwo Saad Fares, told the Daily Graphic.

Mr Fares, said the hotel was set to make a meaningful and significant impact on the tourism industry and the Ghanaian economy, and added that so far, all guests had been impressed with the design, architecture and service, which is unique to the country.

His vision, he said, was to demonstrate that Ghanaians had a lot to offer and with help could give of their best.

Already, the hotel has hosted delegates who attended the 12th Ministerial Meeting of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), which was held in Ghana a couple of months ago.

Story by Samuel Doe Ablordeppey