History
Cresta Hotels is one of Southern Africa’s leading hotel management groups, operating business and resort hotels in Zimbabwe, Botswana and South Africa. Experience the true warmth of African hospitality at Cresta Hotels, where we’ll do whatever it takes to make your trip a memorable one. All 17 Cresta properties have modern and comfortable facilities for both the leisure and the business traveller and are renowned for personalized service and true African luxury. Celebrated leisure hotels in the Group are the Mowana Safari Resort & Spa and Cresta Sprayview in Victoria Falls. Perfectly positioned on the banks of the mighty Chobe River in Botswana the luxurious Mowana Safari Resort & Spa has spectacular river views, with guest rooms tastefully decorated in ethnic style to compliment the natural ambience. The Spa is a haven of relaxation. Game drives and sunset cruises complete the experience. Cresta Sprayview Hotel, just 1.4 kilometres from Victoria Falls Rain Forest, is the perfect gateway for adventure seekers exploring the resort town of Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe and its surrounds. Cresta Sprayview was completely remodelled in 2013. Whether you are travelling alone, with a group or on honeymoon, you are sure to leave with wonderful memories!
Cresta Marakanelo is the operating company for the 11 Cresta Hotels in Botswana. New ventures are in the pipeline and will be announced in due course. The company was established in 1987, when Cresta Hospitality was awarded the Management contract for the Marakanelo Hotels in Botswana by the Botswana Development Corporation. From an initial portfolio of less than 100 rooms under management, the group now manages over 1000 rooms in Botswana.
Cresta Marakanelo is jointly owned by the Botswana Government, through the Botswana Development Company, and TA Botswana.
Established in 1970, the Botswana Development Company is the investment arm of the Botswana Government. BDC’s main aim is to be the country’s main agency for commercial and industrial development. The Government of Botswana owns 100 percent of the issued share capital of the Corporation. BDC has interests in industry, property development and management, agribusiness and services. For more information on BDC visit www.bdc.bw.
TA Botswana is ultimately owned by MASAWARA PLC Limited, a Jersey Registered Company listed on the AIM Stock Exchange, in London, with an investment portfolio that extends from Zimbabwe to Botswana, Zambia, South Africa and Uganda. The Group’s portfolio spans the Hospitality, Insurance, Investment Management and Agrochemical sectors. Its hospitality arm, Cresta Hospitality Holdings, is one of Southern Africa’s largest hotel management groups, managing or operating 17 hotels in Zimbabwe, Botswana and South Africa. For more information on MASAWARA visit www.masawara.com.
Cresta started hotel operations as far back as 1958, when it began running the Jameson Hotel in Harare. Cresta Holdings is a hotel management company registered in Botswana.
GATEWAYS
Cresta Hotels brings you memorable hospitality experiences through four experiential gateways. From a single point of departure, the Cresta brand encompasses a range of different products, without being diluted or compromised. Whether you are looking for a cosmopolitan – or truly authentic African experience, you will find that every hotel of the Cresta Hotels Group offers exceptional service quality. The four gateways ‘Urban Heartbeat’, ‘Urban Oasis’, ‘African Roots’ and ‘African Fingerprint’ are each designed differently for you to choose the travel experience that will best suit your individual needs.
Urban Heartbeat
Cresta Hotels' Urban Heartbeat gateway encompasses destinations that pulsate with energy. Urban Heartbeat is where Africa meets the world, a fresh, stylish, cosmopolitan setting in the hustle and bustle of town. Excitingly different and aesthetically pleasing, Urban Heartbeat surrounds itself with innovative design and technology suited for the travelling businessman. High quality à la carte restaurants and bars are destinations in their own right, perfect for business lunches, private dinners or even Friday night drinks. Conference facilities are fully equipped and made for successful meetings, while fully catered functions provide you with peace of mind knowing that everything has been taken care of.
Urban Oasis
The Urban Oasis gateway offers peace and calm as well as rebirth and renewal. Just like the African spring, hotels and lodges in this gateway are places of growth and energy, where fresh ideas can sprout like new seeds in fertile ground. The Cresta Urban Oasis gateway makes it possible to have a real holiday without being too far removed from the hustle and bustle of the city. Even more than that, it is the perfect in-betweener, where work and rest can be mixed effortlessly and where business becomes a pleasure. A stones throw from the action, Urban Oasis offers all the facilities to stay connected and in touch with the world when opportunity desires. Set in lush and verdant gardens, these properties offer the perfect setting for relaxation following a hectic schedule of meetings. These tranquil properties are comfortable, quiet and informal, offering a true blend of modern convenience and traditional, homely comforts. These features blend beautifully to create a true mix of heritage and modernity. Urban Oasis hotels offer buffet restaurants and hearty cuisine that will nourish body and soul.
African Roots
African Roots combines hotels in surprising havens and in unexpected places. They are like sunflowers in maize fields; beautiful, refreshing and out of the blue. On a smaller scale, and in smaller locations, these lodges and hotels provide great value and service equal to the bigger hotels of the group. They are modern, affordable and represent something that is inherent in African hospitality: you find it wherever you go. These hotels provide modern, affordable accommodation in towns or locations where one would not always expect to find suitable accommodation and offer the same standards as the Urban Oasis hotels and Urban Heartbeat hotels. With quality accommodation, food, beverage and entertainment, these hotels are a nucleus of activity and a great place to stop over on a long journey.
African Fingerprint
African Fingerprint gateways are the Cresta Hotels’ signature destinations. Their essence is the African bush, their hue is the light on the dust kicked up by passing herds, their images are of nature, animals and trees. As such, Cresta’s African Fingerprint gateway promises to punctuate a journey uniquely and to provide a background for an unforgettable experience. Situated in niche locations these hotels are as unique as the name Fingerprint suggests. Exquisite surroundings, unique à la carte restaurants set in and around some of the world’s most beautiful creations such as the Chobe River basin, African Fingerprint represents the elite of the Cresta Hotels.
