Glenn Stutchbury
Cresta Hospitality has increased its investment in Cresta Lodge to $7,2 million following an additional $700 000 allocated towards the completion of refurbishment programme at the hotel this year.
Cresta Hotels’ chief executive Glenn Stutchbury said the latest investment would go towards completing the remaining rooms as well as refurbishing the swimming pool.
“We are completing the refurbishment of Cresta Lodge and we should finish the final 50 rooms in a couple of months. We will also have other product improvements at Cresta Jameson and Oasis but we will not overdo it because of tight liquidity. The project of the year is the 40th anniversary celebrations for Cresta Oasis,” he said.
Mr Stutchbury said Cresta Oasis will celebrate its 40th anniversary with a variety of promotions and activities for its customers. Mr Stutchbury said the group’s performance in the first quarter is already four to five percent above last year following a busy month in February.
“We finished 2014 in a slightly better position than we had anticipated. 2015 started slowly but March has been better.
“The Victoria Falls hotel was very busy in February because of the 21st February movement celebrations but March has been quieter. Occupancy might pick a little in April because of the school holiday and Easter holidays,” he said.
The group foresees a solid second half as the season peaks between July to October.
Looking at the group’s regional operations, Mr Stutchbury said Zimbabwe is not as busy as Botswana and the hotel there is likely to have higher occupancy and room.
Cresta is a unit of the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange-listed investment group, TA Holdings, with a footprint extending across Africa.
Cresta manages and operates 13 hotels in Botswana, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Ghana with a strong international representation in South Africa, Europe, America and Asia. — BH24