Bulawayo hotels fully booked for ZITF

Published: 15 April 2014

With about a week to go before the start of the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair, most hotels in Bulawayo are reported to be fully booked for the duration of the annual trade showcase.

In an interview yesterday, the Matabeleland South chairperson for the Hospitality Association of Zimbabwe and general manager for Cresta Churchill Hotel Brian Nyakutombwa, said most hotels in the city were fully booked for the dates 22 to 26 April.

"Most hotels in the city are fully booked and as Cresta Churchill, we are also fully booked. All the 50 rooms in our hotel are occupied for the duration of the trade fair".

"We are excited to have so much business as this will boost our revenue. We promise our local and international visitors a wonderful stay. Exhibitors usually book very early for the trade fair period and the hotels will be fully booked by the time April starts," he said.

In an interview, the director of the School of Hospitality and Tourism, Innocent Nezungai, said Hotel St Patricks, which has 16 rooms, was fully booked while the Bulawayo Polytechnic School of Hospitality and Tourism was also fully booked for the period of the ZITF.

"Exhibitors for the trade fair and people coming for the fair often make reservations for the following year, this means that at this point we already have bookings for next year's ZITF period and this is brisk business for us," said Nezungayi.

This year's exhibition should be officially opened by Congo Brazzaville President Denis Sassou Nguesso on April 25.

It will be held under the theme: "New Ideas, New Heights" and will feature product groups such as machinery and expertise for infrastructure, manufacturing processes and equipment innovation, automation and supplies for agro-processing, among others.

Last week, 16 countries had confirmed attendance at the fair and these included Brazil, People's Republic of China, Republic of the Congo (Congo Brazzaville), Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Poland, South Africa, USA and Zambia.
- Zim Mail

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