Sheraton Addis

{{short description|Hotel in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia}} {{Infobox hotel | name = Sheraton Addis | location = Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | image = Sheraton Hotel, Addis Ababa (2058298419).jpg | caption = The courtyard of the hotel and its pool | hotel_chain = The Luxury Collection | coordinates = | opening_date = 28 February 1998 | closing_date = | developer = MIDROC Ethiopia | architect = Kosek Ivo | operator = Jean-Pierre Manigoff | cost = {{US$|200 million}} | owner = Mohammed Hussein Al Amoudi | address = Taitu Avenue, Arada district | number_of_rooms = 293 | number_of_suites = 33 | number_of_restaurants = 6, ''Summerfields'' ''Shaheen'' ''Stagioni'' ''Breezes'' ''Fountain Court'' ''Les Arcades'' | number_of_bars = 4, ''Baywatch'' ''Stanley's'' ''The Office'' ''Gaslight Night Club'' | floor_area = 85,000 m2 | floor_count = 6 | parking = | website = [https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/addlc-sheraton-addis-a-luxury-collection-hotel-addis-ababa/] | footnotes = <ref name=d /><ref name=MIDROC /><ref name=Independent /> }} The '''Sheraton Addis''' is an international hotel located in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It is part of Marriott's Luxury Collection. It has 293 rooms, as well as a number of villas.<ref name=d>{{cite web|title=Hotel Ethiopia|url=http://www.hotelethiopia.com/hotels/sheraton-addis.html|accessdate=20 August 2013}}</ref>

==Profile== The hotel was built by MIDROC Ethiopia, and designed by architect Kosek Ivo.<ref name=nion /> Sheik Mohammed Hussein Al Amoudi, built the hotel as a way of creating jobs and promoting the country's image- saying that he is "investing in Ethiopia by following my heart, not my head".<ref name=MIDROC /> The hotel cost over $200 million to build, and over 500 families had to be relocated for its construction.<ref name=Independent>{{cite news|last=Finn|first=Melanie|title=Ethiopians lap up advent of luxury amid the slums|newspaper=The Independent|date=3 April 200}}</ref> It opened on 28 February 1998, and has been considered one of the country's leading hotels.<ref name=MIDROC>{{cite web|title=Sheraton Addis|url=http://www.midroc-ethiopia.com.et/md_15sheratonaddis.html|publisher=MIDROC Ethiopia|accessdate=21 August 2013}}</ref> The hotel is located between two palaces, the National Palace (formerly the Jubilee Palace), which is the residence of the President of Ethiopia, and the Menelik Palace, residence of the Prime Minister of Ethiopia.<ref name=MIDROC />

The hotel has hosted countless high-profile events, including Pan-African and African Union summits, as well as New Year's Eve celebrations with special performances by world-renowned artists such as Beyonce, Ludacris, The Black Eyed Peas, Rihanna and Akon, among other guests.

The hotel has been host to a number of celebrities, including the aforementioned performers; indeed, most, if not all, choose to stay in the Sheraton when in Ethiopia, according to ''The Independent''. Among the many guests include Tony Blair, Rita Marley, Princess Anne, Jimmy Carter, and Bill Clinton.<ref name=Independent2>{{cite news|last=Mourby|first=Adrian|title=Heads on Beds: Sheraton Addis|newspaper=The Independent|date=20 August 2007}}</ref> thumbnail|150px|left|Doormen at the Sheraton Addis.

Confusingly, the Sheraton Addis is not a member of Sheraton Hotels and Resorts hotel chain, but The Luxury Collection, of which it has been a member since it was first opened.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/addlc-sheraton-addis-a-luxury-collection-hotel-addis-ababa/ | title=Sheraton Addis | publisher=Marriott International}}</ref> The Luxury Collection was originally created to designate the most luxurious properties of Sheraton, and Sheraton Addis is one of the three remaining Sheratons with this designation, alongside Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit in Bangkok and Sheraton Kuwait in Kuwait City.{{efn|Other Sheratons with The Luxury Collection designation have since discarded the Sheraton name, like Sheraton Ankara (split into two hotels, one with the Sheraton brand and another retaining The Luxury Collection designation under the name Lugal) and Sheraton Lagoon Nusa Dua, Bali (now The Laguna, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, Nusa Dua, Bali).<ref>{{Cite web |title=CELEBRATE 30 YEARS OF BALI’S DISTINCTIVE RESORT AT THE LAGUNA, A LUXURY COLLECTION |url=https://www.inflash.co.id/celebrate-30-years-of-balis-distinctive-resort-at-the-laguna-a-luxury-collection/ |access-date=2026-05-08 |work=Inflash}}</ref>}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Bangkok |url=https://www.timeout.com/bangkok/hotels/sheraton-grande-sukhumvit-a-luxury-collection-hotel-bangkok |access-date=2026-05-08 |work=Time Out}}</ref>

In 2018, following the acquisition of Starwood by Marriott International, the ''Reporter'' newspaper reported the hotel's name would be changed to the '''Marriott Addis'''.<ref name="Reporter2018">{{cite news |last1=Getachew |first1=Samuel |title=Sheraton to be renamed Marriott Addis |url=https://www.thereporterethiopia.com/article/sheraton-be-renamed-marriott-addis |accessdate=30 April 2019 |work=The Reporter |date=11 August 2018}}</ref> However, this was later denied by hotel management.<ref>{{cite web |title=አዲስ ነገር ነሐሴ 18 2010 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xibGU3jtNAk |publisher=EBS TV |accessdate=30 April 2019}}</ref>

===Labour dispute=== In February 2011, a labour dispute over compensation threatened to close the hotel.<ref name=nion>{{cite news|title=Sheraton Addis to suspend operations due to un agreements with labour union|url=http://ethiopiaforums.com/sheraton-addis-to-suspend-operations-due-to-un-agreements-with-labour-union/4899/|accessdate=20 August 2013}}</ref> In late 2010, a union was formed at the hotel, and in December got involved in a dispute of the distribution of profits from service charges.<ref name="Fortune?">{{cite news|last=Sahle|first=Eden|title=Clash over Sheraton's Services Charge Sharing Continues | url=http://www.addisfortune.com/Vol_10_No_562_Archive/Clash%20over%20Sheraton%E2%80%99s%20Services%20Charge%20Sharing%20Continues.htm| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304093447/http://www.addisfortune.com/Vol_10_No_562_Archive/Clash%20over%20Sheraton%E2%80%99s%20Services%20Charge%20Sharing%20Continues.htm| url-status=usurped| archive-date=March 4, 2016|accessdate=21 August 2013|newspaper=Fortune|date=6 February 2012}}</ref> The workers, who were already the most well-paid hotel employees in the country, taking home 5,337 Ethiopian Birr (US$283) on average per month, felt that the sharing of the service charges was not sufficient.<ref name="Fortune?" /> The union argued that management should be excluded from the proceeds which would increase salaries by 52 birr. Sheik Hussein said that he felt "unappreciated and unrecognised" for his "generosity to employees of the hotel", and threatened to close the hotel for expansion work.<ref name="Fortune?" /> The crisis was solved before the 15 February deadline.

===Expansion plans=== 42 hectares across two districts- Kirkos and Arada, was acquired by the hotel in 2004 for an expansion project, that would contain retail, a mosque, and 8050 apartments.<ref name=Reporter>{{cite news|title=Sheraton to Finally Displace 3,000-plus Homes|newspaper=The Reporter}}</ref> The program was stalled, however, due to the city's inability to find funds to relocate the over 3,000 households that were to be displaced by the project.<ref name=Reporter/> In 2010 MIDROC gave the municipality 151 million birr to expedite the process. As of 2013, the land has been cleared but construction has not begun. thumb|240px|A model of the hotel compound. An additional 5 hectares has been set aside for the construction of a new 9-story hotel wing of 25,000 m2 containing extended stay apartments. Also included are villas, bungalows, as well as a 31,400 m2 health centre, in response to guest complaints about the paucity of health facilities.<ref name=MIDROC /> The health center will contain Olympic and outdoor tennis courts, an olympic swimming pool, restaurants, a soccer pitches, and a basketball court. This project is projected to cost $127 million. As of 2013, construction has begun on the health centre.

==Features==

The hotel has over 1,500 square meters of function space over 11 conference rooms, allowing for a capacity of 1,500 person at events.<ref name=MIDROC /> The hotel provides an array of dining options including Italian, French, Indian restaurants, as well as a poolside restaurant and all-day dining international restaurant with 5 bars and lounges.

The hotel's health club, the Aqva Club, includes outdoor swimming pools, sauna, massage and Jacuzzi. A special feature of the pool is its underwater music. Within the Aqva Club is also found the special Simba Club, the children's playground.<ref name=MIDROC /> However, the health club has been criticised in many reviews as having minimal facilities, leading to expansion plans.

The hotel has a nightclub, called The Gaslight. The Sheraton Addis is the only hotel in Ethiopia to have a water treatment plant using an ultra-violet water sterilization system, which ensures sterilization and bacteria free purification of water. It has a number of generators, meaning that the hotel is never affected by the power cuts and load shedding that plague Addis Ababa.<ref name=MIDROC />

==Notes== {{notelist}}

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== {{Commons category|Sheraton Addis}} *[https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/addlc-sheraton-addis-a-luxury-collection-hotel-addis-ababa/ Official website] *[http://www.winne.com/ethiopia/to17.html Interview with Jean-Pierre Mangioff, manager of the Sheraton Addis]

Category:Sheraton hotels Category:Hotels established in 1998 Category:Hotels in Addis Ababa Category:Hotel buildings completed in 1998 Category:20th-century architecture in Ethiopia