Global hotel franchise, Hilton Hotel is entering the Rwandan market by taking over Ubumwe Grande Hotel that is located downtown Kigali City.

Hilton Group will operate the facility under DoubleTree Brand joining other global brands in the market including Radisson Blu, Park Inn, The Marriott, Serena Hotel and Golden Tulip.

Ubumwe, which was opened in September last year, has 153 rooms -134 guest rooms and 19 apartments.

The takeover is expected to take effect beginning next year.

According to a statement by Hilton Group, the hotel will undergo some changes in order to rebrand.

"The hotel will undergo some changes in order to rebrand and will be Hilton’s first property in Rwanda. Once rebranded, the hotel will trade as the DoubleTree by Hilton Kigali City Centre,” the statement read.

The property is owned by a consortium of investors including Nepalese businessman Binod Chaudhary, Uganda’s Mukwano Group and Robert Bapfakurera, a local businessman.

Hilton currently operates 19 hotels in the Sub Saharan Africa region with a further 29 in its pipeline. It has held a presence on the African continent for over 50 years.

Patrick Fitzgibbon, Senior Vice President, Development, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Hilton said that they are keen on expanding their footprint in the region.

He said that they will use a model of converting existing hotels to be converted into facilities under the brand.

"The model of converting existing hotels into Hilton branded properties has proved highly successful in a variety of markets and we expect to see great opportunities to convert hotels to Hilton brands through this initiative,” he said.

He said that the model will enable them grow their portfolio and deliver returns for owners.

"It enables us to rapidly grow our portfolio and delivers returns for owners by increasing exposure of their business to more international, inter-regional and domestic travellers,” Fitzgibbon said.

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