City hotels rely on dining offers as hotel occupancy in Nairobi drops to 50pc

Hotel occupancy during the holiday season varies in different towns as many escape from their hometowns in search of a ‘home away from home’.

Nairobi Serena Hotel’s General Manager Anthony Chege confirms that while hotels in cities like Mombasa would be recording occupancies of 90 per cent and above during such a period, hotels in Nairobi would go down to about 40 percent.

“The city hotels have corporate clients as their main clientele, so their room occupancy decreases during the festive period. However, during the festive season, they get busy with end-of-year events by corporations and other organisations. To attract some holidaymakers and leisure guests, hotels offer attractive festive period rates to encourage those not willing to travel outside the city to stay in the hotels,” he says.

Movenpick’s Marketing Manager Randy Ngala agrees that as corporates close down for the holidays, they resort to targeting other audiences using tempting offers for those who would like a change of scenery.

Read: Holiday fever: Hotels start ageing Christmas cakes ahead of festive season

“On offers, we have specials for Kenyans only who want to stay with us between December 18 to January 18 at Sh15,000 single or double occupancy inclusive of breakfast,” he said.

Trademark and Tribe hotels, on the other hand, are targeting Mombasa residents who would like to vacation away from the coast as the hotels are now at 50 percent occupancy.

Their festive season offer running from December 18 to January 2 offers overnight bed and breakfast, two complimentary recreation vouchers and a 10 per cent spa discount – all for Sh18,000.

What draws people to city hotels during this period is the lunch and dinner dining offers on specific days such as Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve, that boast buffet menus that incorporate chef specials and crowd favourites.

Others offer complimentary or bottomless drinks. One must make a reservation for any of the dining experiences as hotels expect their restaurants to be packed. Most hotels charge between Sh4,000 and Sh8,500 per head for the meals.

“The food and beverage department is expected to be very busy during this period as families come out for meals, and our chefs are going out of their way to make these moments memorable. We will have a special high tea offer with Christmas carols on Christmas Eve. Then, spectacular fireworks display on New Year’s Eve as we usher in the new year,” said Mr Chege from Nairobi Serena Hotel.

[email protected]