This archive report was first published on 27 December 2019.
Grand Winston Hotel Brings New Life to Nakuru Suburb ¶
Located in Kiamunyi, a suburb five kilometers from Nakuru's central business district, the Sh220 million Grand Winston hotel has brought new life to the area.
Once a sleepy place with little human activity, Kiamunyi has experienced a surge in business due to its location and the growth of the town.
The hotel, which opened its doors in 2018, was started in 2014 and has been a major catalyst for development in the area.
Hotel Manager Rosa Muriuki told the Business Daily that the hotel was built to tap into the growing clientele in the hospitality sector, particularly in the meetings, incentives, conferencing, and exhibitions (MICE) subsector.
"This project was started in 2014 when its ground-breaking was done, and we opened the hotel in 2018, four years after its construction," Ms Muriuki said.
The hotel offers conference facilities, bar and restaurant services, and has a total of about 65 rooms, three conference halls, two bars, and a restaurant.
Ms Muriuki said that the hotel's location, away from the town's noise, traffic, and lack of parking space, is a major advantage for its clients.
The hotel has received funding from the Tourism Finance Corporation (TFC), which has supported the project from its inception.
TFC Managing Director Jonah Orumoi said that the hotel is one of the many projects the State agency has supported in the tourism industry across the country.
"We can give loans to people who intend to invest in tourism, and Winston was one of the clients who came to the office, looked at their proposals and we assisted them," Mr Orumoi said.
