The newly constructed AIDEN by Best Western Hotel, officially opened its doors on Saturday evening in the heart of Georgetown, standing majestically at the corners of Oronoque and Robb Streets.
The nine-story tall hotel boasts 138 rooms and a number of dining and other facilities. Construction work on the hotel began in 2021.
Hotel Director, Geraldo Alphonso, in remarks at the opening spoke about the investment made to acquire the more than 20 properties to construct the hotel and the building process that brought together workers from Guyana and a number of other countries. He encouraged the use of Guyanese expertise and engineering for local projects, pointing out that his company embraced local content and will continue to support local.
“Presently, our hotel employs over 60 Guyanese nationals and our franchise, the Best Western Hotel Group and US management company WN Hospitality, extends massively towards conditioning and training of staff to deliver a world class experience”, Mr. Alphonso said.
Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Oneidge Walrond welcomed the opening of the new hotel and the significant boost it will add to the local hospitality industry. Minister Walrond told invitees at the opening that Guyana’s tourism industry is expanding rapidly and hotels are seeing an increase in demand.
“Courage, such as that exhibited by the Alphonsos who answered the call, their commitment is testimony to the potential of public-private partnerships in driving national development and it sets a powerful example for others to follow as we continue to build Guyana’s tourism sector into one that competes on the world stage”, Walrond said.
In declaring that his Government will continue to support investment and investment ideas, President Irfaan Ali said attention must now be focused on attracting world class class businesses to Guyana.
He said “Brand Guyana” must be associated with the best brands in the world and the best markets to allow Guyana to be marketed in the top tier globally.
“We are also working on developing this industry by bringing world class manufacturers, so with the cost of power coming down and greater access to gas, we will be developing in the coming years, a dynamic and versatile manufacturing and industrial sector, like agro processing and that would be linked to a world class logistics and transport hub that will be linked to a deep water port, and that must have with it, a trade zone in which investors and people will look at Guyana as the premiere geographic positioning for their business in Latin America and the Caribbean”, the President said.
President Ali said Guyana wants value creation in its economy and will be turning to its global partners to assist with that, adding that the Government is looking to international investors to add value to the country and its resources as development continues to take place.
He also noted the need for Georgetown to be further developed and to break away from the political culture that may be affecting development in the city.
The President noted that as part of the Government’s tourism push, Georgetown will continue to be featured as a highlight to that push and will be linked to other towns, as it is further developed to welcome visitors. He said plans are underway to address parking and drainage in the city, to create new open spaces and walkways to make Georgetown much more welcoming as a tourism hub.
The new Aiden by Best Western Hotel, was constructed at a cost of more than US$15 Million.
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