Kempinski nets big catch four months after hosting Obama

Five-star Villa Rosa Kempinski hotel, has emerged as one of the top beneficiaries of Pope Francis’ visit to Nairobi.

The hotel, which hosted US president Barack Obama during his July visit to Nairobi, will host the largest portion of the delegation that will accompany the Pontiff — confirming its continued rise as the preferred hospitality point for dignitaries in the Kenyan capital.

Mwingirwa Kithure the hotel’s marketing and PR manager, could not confirm the exact bookings, citing guest confidentiality rules but said the delegation had increased the hote’s bookings by about 40 per cent.

“What we can confirm is that we will be hosting the Vatican Press Centre as well as some of the international media, who will be accompanying Pope Francis for the visit,” Mr Kithure said.

Pope Francis has, during recent foreign visits, travelled with a delegation of about 30 officials from the Vatican and about 70 journalists from across the world.  Villa Rosa Kempinski is part of Simba Corporation’s empire which is owned by businessman Adil Popat.

Europe’s oldest luxury hotel brand entered the Kenyan market in 2012 with the flagship 200-room facility that is located in Nairobi’s Westlands area and a luxury tented camp Olare in the Maasai Mara.

The hotel’s management says its presidential suite and the mini presidential suite have hosted 12 presidents from across the world in the last year and a half.

The suites were a hot topic of conversation during Valentine’s Day for their Night of Diamonds experience that was priced at Sh2.34 million for the presidential suite and Sh1.44 million for the mini presidential suite. 

Villa Rosa Kempinski also has luxury escort cars —BMW X5 and 5 Series in red and black that enable its guests to travel in glamour and style. The cars are derived from the hotel’s association with its sister company Simba Colt Motors — the sole dealer of BMW cars in Kenya.

Guests pay between Sh40,000 and Sh100,000 a day for the luxury escort service. Kempinski also has an exclusive cigar lounge that serves an array of cigar brands from the Caribbean and North America.

The Pontiff’s visit is Nairobi’s second interaction with a high profile visitor having hosted US President Barack Obama in July. There are, however, considerable differences between the visits. 

While President Obama jetted into the country in his own private plane Air Force One, the Pope does not own an aircraft and is, therefore, expected to arrive in a chartered commercial jet that serves as the “papal plane”.

The delegation travelling with Pope Francis is also considerably smaller than Obama’s and the pomp and glamour around him more sanguine.

By the time of going to press many hotels told the Business Daily that they had not seen major business as was the case in July when President Obama was in Nairobi.