Bluebay Hotels Zanzibar - July Update

Dear Friends, Partners and Colleagues of Bluebay Hotels Zanzibar,

I trust you are well and preparing for the forthcoming peak summer season.  We hope that the effects of the global financial crisis has not had too much of an effect on your operations.

Zanzibar like most other long haul destinations primarily dependent on the European markets for visitors has been greatly affected and to this extent we want to thank you for your ongoing support.

To counter the effects we have endeavoured to be most pro-active in all our markets.  From the end of last year we have taken measures in an effort counter the impact of this crisis in our occupancies.

The first effort was to issue an Addendum to our Contracts on December 30th 2008, which was followed by a second Addendum in February 2008.  Finally a wide ranging Special Offers document for the balance of 2009 (running upto Dec 21st 2009), was issued at the beginning of May 2009, and has been circulated with the 2010 rates.

We hope you have been in receipt of all the above communications, if for any reason you have not, please ensure that you are enlisted with our distribution lists either by responding to this mail and/or registering within our AGENT ZONE on our website: www.bluebayzanzibar.com. We are pleased to let you know that all the above communications are available as downloadable pdf files once you gain access to this ZONE which is private and exclusive to our Agents.

We have also collaborated widely with all the regional carriers, formulating Flying Packages into Zanzibar from all major regional centres (NBO, MBA, DAR, JRO/KIA, LUN, etc) with direct flights into Zanzibar or hubbing at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, the home of Kenya Airways, Fly540 and major base for Precision Air.

As a result of the success of these regional efforts for those of our partners who book through our Nairobi offices we have established a General Sales Agency “INCREDIBLE ZANZIBAR LTD” to deal with all your questions, bookings and money matters.  More about that will follow in due course.

All these measures have achieved remarkable results with a whole new interest in Zanzibar which has boosted our occupancies throughout the first half of the year.

Now, as we move into the peak summer months we look forward to growing levels of demand and anticipate good results in our three properties, Bluebay Beach Resort & Spa, Sultan Sands Island Resort and the Beyt al Chai Hotel & Restaurant.

Herebelow, a brief outline as to what we have been up to during the months of April and May:

Bluebay Beach Resort & Spa:

Bluebay continues to be a tremendous property.  The support in these difficult times has been incredible!  The closure in May last year for full refurbishment saw an extension of the Spa with raised sea view yoga platform being added to the 5 sea view treatment rooms. The Bahari Grill and Beach Bar was tastefully renovated and continues to give the unique opportunity to dine on seafood extravaganzas right in front of the beach.  All kitchens and cold storage were completely renewed re-establishing Bluebays commitment to the highest levels of hygiene.  A brand new 650 KVA generator was installed which allows the full hotel to operate when there is a power cut and of course, our commitment to the environment remains strong as we continue to recycle all water in the hotel both from the rooms as well as kitchens and bars.  This is then used in our incredible gardens.  A similar system has been put into Sultan Sands.  We also completely refurbished all the rooms, all makuti roofs, all soft furnishings of both rooms and public areas.

As a result, Bluebay, which celebrates 10 years of operation in December this year looks brand new.  Having completed this extensive refurb last year Bluebay did not close its doors during this green season and shall remain open for the next 10 years to come!

Sultan Sands Island Resort:

Sultan Sands has been a fantastic hit with guests and operators alike since opening in July last year.  The indications are that this will be another tremendously successful resort with recognition spreading as the word gets out and it starts to feature in your brochures and sales kits.

We have been very encouraged by an enormous number of site inspections that have taken place during the last few months.  Virtually without exception we have been assured this is the finest 4 star property on the island.  Everything is just right: the location next to Bluebay (which is by now world famous), the rooms spacious and tastefully decorated, leading edge facilities (individual as well as shared with adjacent sister resort, Bluebay) and very edgy introductory pricing make Sultan Sands a winner even in these difficult times.

Sultan Sands is of course fully operational for the forthcoming season, the 60 guests currently enjoying the new facilities are extremely pleased with their choice.  We encourage you to take the time out to visit Sultan Sands. If you do have occasion to visit Zanzibar we would be very pleased to introduce you to this one of a kind resort.

Beyt al Chai:

Beyt al Chai: Boutique Hotel and Restaurant goes from strength to strength!  Closed for annual refurbishment in May, the hotel reopened with a bang in time for the famous Zanzibar Film Festival!  The Beyt al Chai Restaurant was operational throughout, being the premier fine dining Restaurant in Stone Town, it would have been a disservice to visitors and it´s loyal patrons to shut this down even for a day!  Some important updates for this unit:

-      Marriage, Prince Beyt al Sahel & Princess Beyt al Dal:

    During the closure, these two rooms were merged and are now a SUPER Suite at Beyt al Chai.  This accorded Prince Room Beyt al Sahel a separate sitting room and raised it to a class of its own in Zanzibar.  For the remainder of this year it will be sold as a Sultan Room, some of your lucky clients will get a pleasant surprise! This union means Beyt al Chai now has only 5 Rooms: 3 Sultan Rooms & 2 Prince Rooms.  An updated fact sheet can be downloaded from the AGENT ZONE on the www.bluebayzanzibar.com website.
     -          Secondly, at the beginning of this year, and in response to our guests needs, we installed wireless internet throughout the house.  This is available in all the rooms and lounges in the Hotel (for guests) as well as for diners at the Beyt al Chai Restaurant – of course FREE of charge! All guests need to do is request for a password and vuala – they are on the net.
    -          Wireless internet is planned to be a standard offering throughout the Bluebay Hotels before the end of this year.

On A Group Level:

We have officially launched the Bluebay Hotels Zanzibar brand and you will see more and more of this in our branding.

To manage the group we have recruited the services of Brett Castleman.  Brett has many years of experience in the hospitality industry in Kenya, Tanzania and the Caribbean.  Resident at the hotels, Brett has joined us as the Group General Manager, based at Bluebay he is able to manage both properties with ease.

His wife Karen has joined us in the marketing department, to reinforce myself and Sam Mundia’s efforts in this area.  Resident in Zanzibar, she will deal with the local Tanzanian market as well as assist us with the growing international market.

They have with them their young son Josh who has started school in Zanzibar and is loving it!

We hope they will be with us for many years to come.

Someone who has been with us for many years both in Kenya and Zanzibar is Hassan Jusab. He has been promoted to Resident Manager at Bluebay Beach Resort and Spa

By now you will all be familiar with Tammy Stone who is in charge of the Reservations at the hotels and who is doing a tremendous job there.

Domenico Coppola the executive Chef at Bluebay continues to inspire us with culinary delights from around the world and Jussi Hussa at Sultan Sands has done a remarkable job of launching Sultan Sands as a resort where one can expect exceptional levels of cuisine.

In conclusion, I am certain you will agree the unique hotels comprising the Bluebay Hotels Zanzibar are positioned to continue to be regarded as Zanzibars´ leading hotels. Our sincere thanks for your continued support and our best wishes for a successful summer season. Please feel free to contact us, at your very earliest convenience should you require any clarification or further information.

With very best regards,

Andrew Smith

CEO/DIRECTOR