Rainbow Tourism Group to focus on expansion
By Michael Tome
Listed hospitality and leisure group, Rainbow Tourism Group (RTG), says it will be directing its focus and resources towards hotels refurbishment and room expansion in the 2020 financial year.
The hotel group revealed this in its full year final results to 31 December 2019.
In December last year RTG embarked on a US$3 million refurbishment of its flagship hotel, the Rainbow Towers Hotel and Conference leading to a temporary closure of the hotel side as 183 guest rooms and suites were being renovated.
This also entailed installation of two high-tech guest elevators to complement the modernisation programme.
As part of efforts to bolster its income, RTG also successfully established Heritage Expeditions a local tour operations and activities entity.
Heritage Expeditions has already established an adventure park at the Rainbow Towers Hotel in Harare, kick starting various activities like city tours, quad bike safaris and white water rafting.
In a statement accompanying the 2019 full year results to December RTG chairman Arthur Manase said:
“The company will continue to deploy its resources towards supporting its key strategic pillars which include: refurbishment of all the hotels to world standards, and rooms expansion in Victoria Falls hotel.
“…at the same time financing the growth of Heritage Expeditions Africa to become the premier tour operations company in Zimbabwe.”
Despite the turbulent times experienced in 2019, the hotelier saw a revenue growth of 62 percent to $454,6 million from $279, 8 million in the relative period despite a 23 percent drop in occupancy levels from 61 percent.
RTG attributed the decline of 2019 occupancy levels to the group’s decision to shut Bulawayo Rainbow Hotel between January and February last year for renovations, shedding 4 percent in occupancy levels in the process.
Coupled with significant monetary policy changes, which saw promulgation of Statutory Instrument 142 which ushered the use of Zimbabwe dollar as the sole legal tender for domestic transactions in the country.
RTG’s foreign business revenues modestly surged to close the period under review with a foreign business income of US$11,2 million translating to a 1 percent growth compared to US$11,1 million percent recorded in the prior comparable period, while the e-commerce channel earned the company US$2 million from US$1,8 million in 2018. The Herald
