Hôtel des Mille Collines
1°56′49″S 30°03′43″E / 1.9469°S 30.0619°E
| Hôtel des Mille Collines | |
|---|---|
Hôtel des Mille Collines front entrance | |
| General information | |
| Location | Kigali, Rwanda |
| Address | 2KN 6th Ave |
| Opening | 1973 |
| Owner | MIKCOR Hotel Holding |
| Other information | |
| Number of rooms | 112 |
The Hôtel des Mille Collines (French pronunciation: [otɛl de mil kɔlin]) (English: Hotel of the Thousand Hills) is a large hotel in Kigali, Rwanda. It became famous after 1,268 people took refuge inside the building during the Rwandan genocide of 1994. The story of the hotel and its manager at that time, Paul Rusesabagina, was later used as the basis of Terry George's film Hotel Rwanda in 2004.
History edit
The Belgian airline Sabena built the Hôtel des Mille Collines in 1973 and owned it during the Rwandan Genocide.[1]
The four-star hotel has 112 rooms, a bar, a café, three conference rooms, a restaurant, a swimming pool, and tennis courts.[2][3]
On August 10, 2005, Sabena Hotels sold the Hotel des Mille Collines to MIKCOR Hotel Holding[4] for US$3.2million (about RWF 1.8 billion).[5][6] Miko Rwayitare, the managing director of the MIKCOR group, said during the handover held at the hotel on Thursday 16, that the group now owns 89% of the hotel with 8.5% and 2.5% owned by Rwanda Development Bank (BRD) and the government of Rwanda, respectively. Rwayitare is also the executive chairman of Telecel International, a communications company.[7] In April 2014,[1] Mickor Investment Holdings Ltd turned management of the hotel over to Kempinski Hotels[8] and it was renamed the Hôtel des Mille Collines by Kempinski.[9] The hotel left the Kempinski chain two years later, on April 1, 2016, and returned to its original name.[1]
In popular culture edit
The hotel is the setting for the film Hotel Rwanda, but it does not actually appear in the movie, which was largely shot in South Africa. The hotel does however appear in the 2005 HBO film Sometimes in April and the 2007 Canadian film Shake Hands with the Devil, which were shot on location in Rwanda.
References edit
- ^ a b c Mwai, Collins (March 22, 2016). "Mille Collines snaps ties with Kempinski Hotels". The New Times Rwanda. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
- ^ . Archived from the original on 2006-05-11.
- ^ . Archived from the original on 2006-04-06.
- ^ . September 15, 2005. Archived from the original on 2008-09-22. Retrieved 2008-12-02.
- ^ . September 15, 2005. Archived from the original on 2008-09-22. Retrieved 2008-12-02.
- ^ . hotel-contacts.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
- ^ Majyambere, Gertrude (September 19, 2005). "MIKCOR Hotels takes over Milles Collines". rwanda.rw. Archived from the original on 2007-07-30.
- ^ Agutamba, Kenneth (September 9, 2014). "No need for 'Hotel Rwanda' brand as Kempinski takes over Mille Collines". The New Times Rwanda. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
- ^ "Kempinski takes over running of 'Hotel Rwanda'". Breaking Travel News. July 22, 2014. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
External links edit
- Media related to Hôtel des Mille Collines at Wikimedia Commons
- Hôtel des Mille Collines official website