African Sun Amber Hotel in Mutare, Zimbabwe, is to be rebranded to a Holiday Inn by the end of the year.

According to Head Holiday Inn Divisions Zimbabwe, Tich Hwingwiri, the rebranding would allow the group to leverage an international brand. “Holiday Inn is a global brand under the International Hotel Group (IHG), which connects you to 5 000 hotels worldwide. Hence, being part of this brand is important in appealing to global travellers.”

Hwingwiri said plans to rebrand Amber Hotel were now at an advanced stage with the mock-up room completed, adding that African Sun had put a reasonable investment into the exercise.

“As part of IHG, there are certain specifications on how the brand must be run and certain international standards to be met. We will be redoing the rooms and public areas, including the restaurants, as per Holiday Inn international brand,” he said, adding that investment into the product was being made.

According to African Sun, Holiday Inn facilities are evaluated and inspected annually and those requirements have to be met.

Hwingwiri said a bigger conference room had been built at the hotel as it was now targeting MICE tourism.

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