2nd September 2020
Own Correspondent
Hilton Garden Inn Gaborone has announced its roll out of its Clean Stay and Event Ready campaign, which is tailored for meetings and events.
Developed in collaboration with RB, maker of Lysol and Dettol, Hilton CleanStay allows guests to enjoy an even cleaner and safer stay, building on its already high standards of hygiene and cleanliness. New standards that will be visible throughout the hotel include a Hilton Clean Stay Room Seal to indicate that a room has not been accessed since being thoroughly cleaned and disinfected, extra disinfection of identified high-touch areas, and flexible housekeeping options.
As part of the programme, the hotel has also increased the frequency of cleaning public areas and will be providing hand sanitizers and disinfecting wipes throughout the property.Hotel guests can also enjoy contactless check-in and unlock their guest rooms using their smartphoneswith the Digital Key, which is available through theaward-winning Hilton Honors mobile app.
The launch of Hilton Clean Stay, is a unique new program to deliver an industry – defining standard of Hotel cleanliness to elevate Hygiene practices from check -in to check out. Hilton Clean Stay was developed to meet the evolving consumer expectations during Covid-19 pandemic.
Rutang Ruth Kerumile Moses, Chairperson of the Botswana Public Officers Pension Fund (BPOPF) said,
“I’m pleased to confirm that as Letsema Board, as well as BPOPF we have been continuously pleased with the performance of the Hilton Garden Inn since it started operating, it had an excellent start and its performance has been consistent throughout 2019 until end of 1st Quarter of 2020, when the global pandemic, Covid-19 hit the industry.”
She said, “Recently, during our business dialogue with Hilton Management, we acknowledged that Covid-19 is here and we don’t know for how long it shall prevail. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that the business continues to survive and our investments are protected, as well as continue to grow.”
Hilton Garden Inn, Gaborone has created jobs for 100 people and 99 percent are locals.
The hotel also welcomes Thabani Ndlovu as its new General Manager. With an unwavering passion for hospitality and aspirations to work among the world’s leading companies, Thabani’s longstanding and influential career at Hilton began in a restaurant at the Hilton London Metropole in 2004, where she continued to add value and insight to the business through the various roles in Operations and Corporate since then.
Her drive and determination led her to becoming an esteemed and highly experienced member of the tourism & hospitality sector, having received a number of honourable awards and recognitions, including being ranked among the top 100 women in tourism in Africa by ATQ news.
Thabani Ndlovu, Hilton Garden Inn General Manager, said “We are pleased to also have 99% of our colleagues, employees of Hilton Garden Inn Gaborone, from Batswana.”
She said, “It is important to note that we intend to develop and grow talent from Botswana in line with our localization plan and as part of Hilton’s global Travel with Purpose strategy to support the communities it operates in.”
Ndlovu maintained that through Hilton, the team also has access to industry-leading management development programs, including those by Ivy League universities Cornell & Harvard, which are in partnership with Hilton globally.
“We face National and indeed global restrictions on travel, commerce, and social gatherings in public areas, all aimed at limiting the spread and impact of COVID-19. We recognize that we all had to adapt to a new way of doing things,” said Ndlovu.
She said, “The travel and hospitality sector, in particular, has had to work to ensure we remain strong. For us, this meant working to ensure we adapt to the new ecosystem we are in, prepare ourselves accordingly, and focus on even greater health, safety and wellbeing policies and protocols.”
Shaped by extensive research and feedback, Hilton Event Ready with Clean Stay is a global, industry-leading cleanliness and customer service programme specific to meetings and events. The tenets of the programme include enhanced cleanliness protocols – addressing every touchpoint of the meeting experience, flexible pricing and space options, as well as safe and socially responsible solutions.
As the first Hilton property in Botswana and a proud investment of the Botswana Public Officers Pension Fund (BPOPF), Hilton Garden Inn Gaborone promises guests a better and brighter stay and outstanding service delivery.
“At Hilton Garden Inn Gaborone, the safety and security of our guests and Team Members remains our highest priority. Hilton Clean Stay and Event Ready with Clean Stay will allow us to continue delivering Hilton Garden Inn’s renowned bright hearted hospitality while providing guests with reassurance,” Thabani said.” We are committed to working with key clients to achieve their business objectives by delivering event experiences that provide meeting and event planners, and their attendees, with peace of mind from start to finish.”
Adding to the positive developments for the property, Hilton Garden Inn Gaborone was also recently recognized with the 2020 Traveler’s Choice Award, making it among the top 10% of hotels globally on Trip Advisor. The coveted award is based on the quality and quantity of reviews and opinions submitted on Trip Advisor by travelers from all over the world.
