The Laico brand is a big name in Africa. With an extensive portfolio throughout the continent, it offers more than 3,000 rooms in 14 hotels, providing consistently high levels of service in key destinations.
The group has been slowly and steadily expanding over the last few years, even through the global credit crisis. However, while other chain expansions can represent unique venues being swallowed into a homogenous mass, Laico are keen for their hotels to be distinct from each other, retaining a large part of their local traditions. “Business travellers will come to a Laico hotel and recognise the brand, the uniform, the stationery,” says marketing manager Renaud Bachoffner, “but each hotel still retains its own personality.”
So their Lake Victoria Hotel in Entebbe is a British colonial style destination, the Djerba Hotel in Tunisia reproduces all the charm of local Mediterranean architecture, and the Laico Bahari Beach in Dar Es Salaam Tanzania, the brand’s latest opening, offers luxuriously furbished rooms in traditional thatched beach houses, mere seconds from the Indian Ocean.
“Imagine a hard day working in the hot city centre,” says Mr Bachoffner. “After a short drive, you enter your cottage, take your suit off, and only steps away from your room, dive into the ocean.”
“It’s a unique feeling,” he says: “you’ve just washed your busy day stress away.”
Away from the hustle and bustle of the city, surrounded by beautiful lush gardens featuring indigenous palms, tropical flowering shrubs and bright bougainvillea, the hotel offers 92 bedrooms, four suites and an ultra-modern conference centre – the best of its kind in Dar-es-salaam.
Meeting in paradise
The Bahari Conference Centre features three meeting rooms and a multi-purpose ballroom; all the venues are fully equipped with LCD projectors, screens, a translation room and modern furnishings providing delegates with all-in-one conference solutions.
Tembo, the multi-purpose ballroom, can host up to 600 people for a reception or 260 people in a classroom style. The three fully equipped meeting rooms on the first floor offer a spectacular atmosphere for board meetings and smaller events. Simba can host up to 70 people in reception style and 45 classroom; Chui holds 60 reception and 42 classroom, and Twiga fits 50 people reception and 35 classroom.
The conference centre is completed with three well furnished lounges where delegates can relax during their breaks, a VIP lounge for prestigious visitors, and ample secure parking around the facility to guarantee peace of mind. And with just a two minute walk to the beautiful Bahari Beach, it is the perfect venue to indulge in some wide-open, blue-sky thinking.
The country’s unique landscape and the hotel’s individual design makes it a fantastic destination for MICE visits, whether visitors wish to take advantage of the nearby national parks offering excellent safari opportunities, or simply enjoy the professional facilities of the hotel with a well deserved cocktail and delicious dinner under the tropical stars.
The design of the Laico Bahari Beach’s guestrooms and suites is influenced by old Swahili architecture, built in traditional style from coral blocks and palm frond thatched roofs.
Every single room faces the ocean, offering spectacular views of the sun rising over the sparkling sea, and has its own spacious terrace or balcony accessed through wide glass doors. They are individually air conditioned, and elegantly styled and furnished with local fabrics in traditional colours. n
Rising in the east
Kenya
The Laico Regency Nairobi, conveniently located in the very heart of the capital’s business district, is a must for individual travellers and international meetings. The hotel features 208 rooms and 34 suites, while the business centre can accommodate up to 600 guests in its large Cristal Ballroom and smaller meetings in its exclusive and refined colonial-style Summit Club. After work visitors can relax by the pool, work out in the fitness club or tour the many nearby shops for a fitting souvenir. Evening entertainment is provided by cocktails at the 5th Avenue jazz bar and the hotel’s four a la carte restaurants.
Uganda
Just minutes from Entebbe’s international airport, Laico Lake Victoria is far more than “just another hotel.” Built in the 1940s amid lush tropical gardens and majestic Royal palms, this colonial gem offers an intimate Out of Africa atmosphere. The entire property has been redecorated, with all 100 rooms and four suites completely renovated. The restaurant, bar and terrace overlook the pool and lake, creating a glorious idyll. A meeting in one of the three conference rooms, with a coffee break on the terrace, buffet lunch in the gardens and an elegant gala dinner by the pool is the perfect scenario for a successful seminar.
Rwanda
The Laico Umubano is five minutes away from the Rwanda’s capital Kigali; but set atop a hill in an oasis of greenery it provides a place of calm retreat as well as easy access to this celebrated city. Just five kilometres away from the airport, it’s also a fine stopping point for those adventuring deeper into the country – such as to visit the gorillas in the Volcano National Park. The 85 comfortable rooms, 15 suites, business centre and four meeting rooms (one of which can accommodate up to 300 guests) allow for large conferences. Lunch and dinner can be served amid lush gardens on the terrace of the Cote Jardin, with other professional diversions including the pool bar, tennis facilities and well equipped health centre.
Setting in the west
Burkina Faso
The Laico Ouaga 2000, featuring 210 rooms, 11 suites and 10 villas, is the emblematic hotel of the new administrative and residential district of capital Ouagadougou. Its contemporary luxury is set off by African touches and ultra modern facilities. Four meeting rooms for up to 800 guests make it a prestigious venue for seminars, congresses and events. Its restaurants combine contemporary international cuisine with an African flavour: guests can choose between La Cascade, which overlooks the outdoor pool; the elegant Tenakourou, offering panoramic views; and the grilled dishes of open air Zama.
Gabon
Gabon’s capital Libreville offers many pleasures, and the Laico Okoume Palace is ideally positioned to enjoy them all: just five minutes away from the airport, it is right next to the beach and close to many of the city’s key sights and amusements, including St Marie’s Cathedral and the Mbolo Shopping mall. The luxurious hotel offers 300 rooms, 20 suites and 78 apartments, as well as the requisite amenities for business travellers. Guests can savour the refined cuisine of the Muhebe restaurantÕs delicious sea food specialties and enjoy a light Italian meal under the coconut trees of the Terrace restaurant.
Mali
Located in downtown Bamako, close to the market and Mali’s National Museum, the 158 rooms and 33 suites of Laico L’Amitie offer top quality service and refined comfort, from the Deluxe rooms to the prestigious Presidential Suite overlooking the Niger River and the Martyrs Bridge. The hotel offers a business centre and the largest meeting facilities of the capital (nine meeting rooms including one for 600 people), allowing for large conferences and summits. It features two restaurants and a lively bar to complement a congress or business trip. Set in a huge park, the property also features fitness and tennis facilities, an outdoor pool, and a nine hole golf course.
