The new AC Marriott Hotel at Ogle officially opened its doors at Ogle on Saturday with President Irfaan Ali, describing the addition of the new hotel to the local market as a demonstration of Guyana’s development agenda.
With growing interest and increased travel to Guyana by international visitors and investors alike, the President said his administration’s vision to modernize infrastructure aligns with the expansion of the travel and tourism sector.
“The hotel is a declaration that Guyana’s future is not something we wait for, its something we construct and we are constructing it with purpose. Some may ask, why a high end hotel here at ogle? Why near a municipal airport? Why now? The answer is simple, because development does not wait for perfection”, the President said.
The new hotel boasts 150 rooms, conference and meeting facilities and all the amenities that would be enjoyed by the business or leisure traveler. Its location close to the Eugene F. Correia International Airport, Ogle, has been praised as strategic.
Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Susan Rodrigues, said with Guyana expected to see more growth in visitor arrival in the coming year, there will be the continuous need for investment in accommodation and airlift.
She said “the establishment of the AC Marriott Hotel supports this national objective by expanding our room stock, raising the standard of our tourism product, and strengthening our capacity to host travelers, international conferences and major business events. Over the past five years, we have added 600 hotel rooms through six new hotels. At present, 15 hotels are under construction across the country, including other internationally recognized brands, such as the Hyatt and Four Points by Sheraton”.
Rodrigues lamented that the hotels still to be opened will add close to 2000 rooms to the local market.
Chief Executive Officer for the AC Marriott hotel investment group, John Aboud, praised the support the investors received from the Government and various agencies, including the Guyana Office for Investment, the Guyana Revenue Authority and the Central Housing and Planning Authority.
He said the hotel currently employs 250 permanent staffers, with 98% of them being Guyanese. He said the hotel will be expanding more within the coming three years, as it plugs more investment in Guyana.
“When completed, this investment will cost approximately US$200 million and will stand as a testament of the serenity an rhythm of the water, that is the relationship between Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. On behalf of the investor group, we would like to thank everyone, who contributed to this investment phase, a world-class AC Marriott hotel, that is comparable to the best in the world and this is no exaggeration”, Aboud said.
He said the hotel has already been investing in the continuous training of its staff members, but looks forward to working along with the Ministry of Tourism as it seeks more support in the area of training.
The Government has welcomed the growing number of new hotels being added to the Guyana market, and the Office of Investment has been encouraging more investment in the hospitality sector.
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