AFRICAN & MIDDLE EAST NEWS

Five major refurbishment projects were completed, including bedroom upgrades at key hotels and complete revamps of restaurants at Umhlanga Ridge and V&A Waterfront

By Charity Kamiro

The expansion comes amid strong growth in Tanzania’s tourism sector, which generated US$3.9 billion in foreign exchange earnings in 2024 making it the country’s leading forex earner ahead of gold exports.

The redesigned restaurant forms part of Accor’s broader effort to elevate guest experiences through upgraded public spaces and new culinary concepts.

The expansion comes during robust financial performance, with the group generating $4.4 billion in revenue in the first half of the fiscal year, a 14 percent increase.

The project has identified 10 target countries for regional partnerships: Australia, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Poland, Spain, Thailand, the UAE, and the United States.

A key focus was the signature concept of island hopping, a unique experience setting Seychelles apart from Indian Ocean competitors.

By securing this agreement now, IHG ensures that when the city reaches its stride, Hotel Indigo will be there, a boutique anchor in a master-planned landscape, offering travelers a sense of neighborhood in a place built from a master plan.

The initiative seeks to simplify payment experiences for tourists through reduced international commissions, pay-by-link, tap-on-phone, and dynamic currency conversion tools.