UNITED KINGDOM: 50,000 Hotel Developments For Africa

Believing that for too long the African tourism narrative has been restricted to a few destinations and safaris, a new online platform aims to present Africa to global travelers like they’ve never seen it before. Hip Africa, a new guide to the best spots to eat, sleep and play in Africa’s most sought after destinations, launched last week with 5 initial key cities: Lagos, Accra, Nairobi, Dakar and Johannesburg. Cities scheduled to be added next include: Abidjan, Addis Ababa, Cape Town, Marrakesh and Maputo.

Hip Africa is set transcend the old safari narrative, offering up the continent as a viable place for city breaks, great restaurants, arts and culture and a swathe of boutique and luxury hotels.

Africa has emerged in recent years as one of the fastest growing regions for hotel development, with 50,000 hotels in the pipeline: a topic which will be the subject of panel discussions, networking and deal making at the Africa Hotel Investment Forum taking place in Addis Ababa 30th September – 1st October.

This activity is reflective of a wider trend: Africa’s emergence as the last tourism frontier, with a growing number of internationals visiting the continent year on year, and the upsurge of intra-Africa travel.

Global travel accounts for almost 10% of global GDP and is an industry that enjoys year on year uninterrupted growth and Africa’s tourism take off is inevitable. Hip Africa speaks to a sophisticated audience from Europe to the US, Asia and most importantly across Africa itself – both business and leisure travelers.

Hip Africa showcases a carefully selected list of hotels and ‘hip spots’ – including restaurants, art galleries, museums, shopping spots and escapes – with high quality photography and editorially independent reviews.

It is London-based, however its content is provided by a team of journalists, photographers, and movers and shakers on the ground across Africa, keeping readers in the know and up to date.

“We aim to inform our readers, and give them the practical tools for visiting and moving around what is arguably the most exciting continent in the world,” says Ruby Audi, the Ghanaian/British founder.

Hip Africa will soon be unveiling a number of new cities, on every corner of the continent and will eventually cover over 30 destinations in 20 countries.