Foreword W
e are back with yet another edition of the Kenya Association of Hotelkeepers & Caterers’ Hotel, Restaurant & Entertainment Guide and we are delighted to celebrate the fifth edition of this guide. Time surely does fly when you are having fun! The fun was interrupted at the beginning of last year with election-related violence that threatened the tourism industry with total collapse. However, the industry got back on its feet quite quickly and was able to recover some ground in the latter part of 2008 in certain areas. This year, we (the industry) are optimistic that we can continue with the recovery, particularly at the Coast Region, which carries a large capacity in terms of accommodation and other tourism investments.
POSITIVE NOTE On a positive note, Kenya has demonstrated that it is still the country of choice when it comes to tourism. In the capital, Nairobi, one five-star hotel opened its doors to the public in September 2008 and another is set to open early in 2009. In total, seven new quality hotels are set to open in the near future, while another major development is a golf estate within the northern part of the coast that will add value to the existing tourism offering.
Some more good news is that the Kenyan Olympic team posted the best results ever at any Olympic event with a medal haul that was the envy of many other countries. The closing ceremony was witnessed by an estimated 1 billion people around the world and all listened to the Kenyan National Anthem as local marathon hero Samuel Wanjiru stood at the podium to collect the final gold medal at the games. A phenomenal achievement. The hospitality fraternity and the entire tourism industry would like to take this opportunity to salute the Kenyan Olympic team and we look forward to the 2012 Games. Inside this fifth edition of the Association’s Hotel, Restaurant & Entertainment Guide you will find new members of the hospitality and entertainment “family” and an expanded variety of products and services to choose from. Have fun!
Mike Macharia Chief Executive Officer Kenya Association of Hotelkeepers & Caterers
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