PRESIDENT, Dr Irfaan Ali on Monday visited the site of the US$15 million Aiden Hotel at Oronoque and Robb Streets, where works are ongoing, and are set to be completed by January 2024.

President Ali was given a tour of the hotel and said he plans on visiting the hotel when it is near completion in November. Construction of the facility began in March 2021.

The hotel will feature 101 “smart rooms” and it is a boutique-styled hotel under the Best Western Hotel and Resorts franchise.

A smart-hotel room is one outfitted with electronic devices and household appliances which are powered by Internet connectivity.

Best Western is a hotel chain that originated in the USA, and subsequently spread around the world. The company has over 4,200 hotels worldwide, each one independently owned and run.

The hotel will be developed by Arimu Investments Inc., which is a Guyanese company with investments in mining, real estate, and business.

The directors of Arimu Investments Inc. and developers of the Aiden Hotel are Geraldo and Lorenzo Alphonso.

Geraldo in an interview with the Guyana Chronicle, in March 2021, had said that Guyana will experience a demand for accommodation amid a rapidly growing economy.

“The Arimu Investment Company is actually named after a tributary of the Mighty Cuyuni River in Region Seven; it is a gold-and-diamond-rich area for a number of years. We know about the area through our gold-mining exploits, and that’s why we came up with the name,” Alphonso said, noting that the company is 100 per cent Guyanese-owned.

Arimu Investments Inc. has acquired the franchises for both “Sure Stay Plus and Aiden”, two franchised hotels, all under Best Western.

The Aiden Hotel, he said, is a trendy collection of laid-back boutique hotels that blends cool, casual charm with an eclectic neighbourly feel.

“No two hotels are alike, with each designed to reflect the unique personality of each community and country they serve. Guests would discover local flair and imaginative design, with Aiden as their welcoming and stylish host,” the businessman said.

He related that the Aiden being developed by Arimu Investments Inc. would be the 12th in existence worldwide; the first to be completed in South America; the only one in the Caribbean, and Guyana’s first franchised boutique hotel.

The “Aiden Midtown Georgetown,” will be nine storeys high, with a 74,000 square-foot modern building.

Amenities, Alphonso said, will include conference rooms, an English restaurant, and bar, coffee shop, gym and sauna area, executive boardrooms and a terrace bar.

The main feature of the facility, he said, would be the rooftop bar and lounge that will be encased in glass to give patrons an exclusive dining experience.

This, Alphonso said, will feature “nothing less than international furnishings, lights, sounds and designs; it would be the first bar in Guyana to feature a humidor with a collection of world-renowned cigars. The invisible-styled rails and barriers concept would give a feeling of dining with the stars, and a sight second to none.”

When completed and up and running, 50 Guyanese will be hired as hotel staff.