Serena in Sh400m makeover

The hospitality firm has over the last two years carried out refurbishments of its facilities across the region.

Refurbishments of two of the firm’s facilities, the Mara Serena Safari Lodge and the Sweetwaters Serena Camp in Nanyuki, have seen the company spend about Sh396.5 million ($4.5 million) over the last two years.

“The needs and expectations of our clients are dynamic ones. With this particular project the new public areas of the Mara Serena Safari Lodge have thus been under active construction for well over a year with the goal of maintaining the lodge as the best in its category in the Masai Mara game reserve, meeting all the needs and expectations of our clients,” said Prince Amyn Aga Khan.

The prince is the chairman of the executive committee of the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development, which has a significant stake in the Serena Hotels.

Refurbishments at the Mara Serena have seen the construction of a gym and spa while accommodation at the Sweetwaters facility has been expanded. The company is also rehabilitating the Serengeti Serena and has completed the refurbishment of the Kigali Serena Hotel.

FIVE-YEAR PLAN

In the upcoming financial year, the company is also planning to refurbish its Dar es Salaam facility.

The first phase of a three-year extension plan to the Nairobi Serena Hotel, in which the company will construct an underground parking lot and renovate existing bedrooms, will commence in 2014.

“This is part of a five-year plan. As a company, we realised that the days when people went on Safari to see the big five are gone,” said Serena Hotels managing director Mr Mahmud Jan Mohamed.

Mr Jan Mohamed noted that the local tourism industry is in dire need of product diversification, especially with the challenges posed by security concerns in the region.

Criticism has been lodged against overdevelopment in certain segments of the industry, especially in the beach product, that has seen Kenyan tourism industry players compete on price rather than quality.

With fears that Kenya’s safari product may be similarly eroded, construction of new lodges in the Maasai Mara has been halted by the county government of Narok.

NEW LODGES

Speaking at the Mara Serena Safari Lodge Wednesday, Narok governor Mr Samuel Tunai said the county has banned the construction of new lodges and camps in the game reserve and is currently carrying out an audit of existing facilities.

“The mushrooming of so many camps and so many lodges in the Mara is a development challenge. We have made up our minds that there will be no more developments in the Mara,” said Mr Tunai.

Mr Jan Mohamed said the industry should diversify its tourism circuits into Western Kenya and the Tsavo as part of initiatives to ensure that the Safari product is not eroded.