The Caravan Hotel in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, was nominated to be added to THE LIST by eTurboNews. Sending in the nomination was James MacGregory, the team leader for the Ethiopia Accommodation Star Grading Program for hotels and resorts, which includes a one-month training for future assessors who will eventually undertake 400 hotel/resort assessments in Ethiopia.
“I am going into my fourth month at this delightful little 34 unit boutique hotel. Furthermore I have been here with five other colleagues as we undertake the Ethiopia Hotel Grading Program including the star rating of all of the hotels in Addis. As a team we have had access to every hotel in the city, and as you can imagine many GMs would like us to move to their facility,” said Mr. MacGregory.
“However we have been so pleased with our stay hear that we would not think of moving. As well, since we are on a relatively low per diem, the value for dollar that we have beats most other properties in the market.
“It has so many of the qualities that other hotels lack. For instance the kitchen is deep cleaned every six months which means it is essentially spotless, There is a well-located fire escape, and they have all of the fire and hygiene requirements.
“The food is excellent and most of it is made on site. This includes homemade peanut butter which has kept me going every morning.
“They took a risk having six professional assessors from Ireland, South Africa, and Morocco staying at the other property. They could’ve been severely criticized. Quite the contrary, as we have all been very pleased. They are trying to create a family atmosphere, and they certainly achieved it. We were even invited into their home on Good Friday.”
eTN publisher Juergen T. Steinmetz said of the nomination: “Mr. MacGregory, who nominated the Caravan Hotel, has been a sustainable tourism development planner for the past 30 years and has worked in 41 countries. His interest lies in the greening of the accommodation sector as well as encouraging cross-border tourism between various nations. So when he sent in his recommendation for the Caravan Hotel, we definitely felt it was worth a follow-up.”
So how does one make it on THE LIST? Anyone can nominate a hotel, destination, attraction, airline, person, cruise, or restaurant based on a best moment or experience. THE LIST is not about rating how “luxurious” something is. It is more about how much something is appreciated or different.
“It is a pleasure and an honor to be included as part of the list on eTN, and we, the management and staff at Caravan Hotel, are delighted to receive such recognition by the service we provide to all our guests. I also would like to thank all our guests, because we would not be here without them,” said Simon Tadesse, General Manager of the Caravan Hotel.
“The Caravan Hotel had the pleasure of hosting Mr. MacGregor and his team of five international professional assessors in the first three months in the spring. It was particularly interesting for my management team since they were here, on contract to the UNWTO and the World Bank to assess 400 hotels in Addis Ababa and the regions.”
“They continually referred to the Caravan Hotel has their “home away from home” which is exactly the atmosphere that we try to create. This is an Ethiopian family-owned and operated business, and we strive to create a family-like atmosphere for both the business and leisure travelers. It seems that we have achieved that since they recently returned for an additional three months to complete their assignment.
“Finally, we believe in and are committed to the future of the Ethiopian travel industry. We are excited to offer our tour company and boutique hotel by providing quality tourism services at reasonable rates.”
To make a nomination for THE LIST, go to honesttravelawards.com.
