It might sound like we are damning them with faint praise but it’s funny how vital the little things are, and how important it is to get them right.
Conceptually, ONOMO Hotel Kampala aims to create an Afro-fusion hotspot as the place to stay, work and get together for those young at heart. The architecture, landscaping and interior décor, quite simply, strive to, and manage to achieve this, while the structural layout offers functionality.
The hotel has 148 rooms and suites with amazing views, which are somewhat inevitable; it is at the top of Nakasero Hill. Amenities include event space for up to 250 guests, a spa (Remedy Spa) and a specialty restaurant (SABA Restaurant & Terrace), which is at the heart of the hotel and looks like it was designed with Instagram in mind. It has been referred to as a celebration of architecture, interior décor, food and drink, and is simply a delightful experience.
The hotel’s accommodation is broken down into two wings; one wing houses 114 guest rooms with either a queen or twin bed configuration, while the other wing houses 34 suites catering for those guests looking for a little more space.
Amenities also include conference room facilities with a capacity of up to 160 guests, theater style, supplemented by audio-visual equipment, mood lighting, and plenty of natural light.
The food at SABA Restaurant is an exercise in lavishness and fine dining, with house cocktails, and savory gourmet dishes gracing various trays and trolleys throughout the day and night.
If this all sounds like a deliberate effort to break the mold or to avoid the traditional hotel cliché in terms of expectations, it certainly is. In fact, everything about the hotel is deliberate, including its location on Nakasero Hill, where it taps into entrepreneurs, businesspeople and shopping enthusiasts
The name ONOMO was chosen as a tribute to the mythology of the Dogon people of Mali. ONOMO is one of the sons of the goddess Ama, responsible for creating harmony on Earth. This conceptual backdrop is what created the basis of this unusual hotel and the unique urban afro-fusion lifestyle experience it offers.
The decision to open a branch of the hotel was straightforward. ONOMO Hotels Group’s objective is to have a foot print in all major hubs across the continent, and Kampala was tagged as one of those key locations. So maybe all those lavish bits of praise that our tourism sector has been receiving have been reaching the right ears.
ONOMO’s confidence to open in Kampala also stems from Uganda’s growth potential, ease of doing business and its favorable investment environment.
Letters to My Younger Self: What Uganda’s CEOs and Professionals Wish They Knew at the StartONOMO Hotel Kampala is owned and managed by the ONOMO Hotels Group, Africa’s fastest growing and first truly Pan-African Hotel chain. ONOMO Hotels operates 22 mid-scale hotels with more than 2,800 guest rooms in 14 countries: Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, Mali, Togo, South Africa, Guinea-Conakry, Rwanda, Morocco, Cameroon, Tanzania, Mozambique and Uganda.
Anchored in a rapidly changing Africa, the ONOMO Hotels brand deliberately celebrates African culture and art at the heart of the continent. Their stated ambition is to provide 21st-century travelers with quality mid-scale hotels that showcase local identity and culture. It is why the ambience at the hotel is referred to as ‘an experience’, and one of the ‘little things’ that they really get right.
The second thing they get right is the food – it is deliberately lavish, a celebration, a culinary statement even. The most basic item on the menu is treated like an opportunity to impress – something as out-rightly ordinary as a burger prepared with the same care as a wedding buffet centerpiece, exquisite in appearance and taste.
Naturally, of course, the hotel in Kampala has its teething problems. While the staff are eager, helpful and polite, they often struggle with their positioning, especially during the rush hour. But these teething problems are easily offset by the fact that the service staff are plenty in number and their supervisors don’t show the same struggle with the learning curve.
And chances are, you will be too busy soaking in the ambience, and the stunning food presentation and taste to notice those slight hiccups.
The view from SABA Restaurant is like a movie set – I kept expecting Audrey Hepburn to come around the corner on the arm of Cary Grant, a Manhattan in her other hand. That location is certainly not accidental, and the mere thought of sunset on that terrace is breathtaking.
The rooms continue with the same theme, except there’s an upping of the level of plushness. They simultaneously exquisite and comfortable, which sounds like a task that requires some considerable thought to pull off. It is something they manage to do with consummate ease. It is the deliberate functionality, combined with high art décor and the latest amenities that enables them to pull this off.
The fact that all this is within what one might call modest acreage (something like half an acre, if I am to apply my amateur plot measuring skills) emphasizes the ease with which ONOMO Hotel Group keep to their mid-scale definition. The fact that the amenities include a swimming pool, a health club with a gym and spa, makes the feat even more impressive.
ONOMO Hotel Kampala – go on. Experience it. They get the little things right.
