REMERA-BASED Hilltop Hotel and Country Inn is the kind of place that gives off the impression of a small, crowded nook in the city centre once you stand at the entrance looking in. Step inside though, and the sight that now awaits you turns to that of a small town in its own right –an extension of Remera town perhaps. The hotel’s humble beginnings date back to over a decade ago, at which time the facility was housed in a single, modest residential house. And from this time and through the years, the hotel seems to have been running along that time-tested hotel tradition of dining and wining “big men”, and playing host to big conferences and seminars. With its vast green spaces, Hilltop seems to cater to the whims of people with a natural inclination to space and ambience for all sorts of occasions. Actually space is the undoubted by-word for the hotel. They have some of the more spacious rooms in the budget hotels league, and what’s more, the rooms come nested under a dense canopy of tall trees. But if you should think this facility to be already big enough, well, the proprietors think otherwise. An elegant, pink, single storey structure has been fast-rising from the upper wing of the hotel, and what this can only mean is …well, more space. The new structure alone accommodates a total of seven multipurpose conference rooms on its upper floor, all air conditioned, each with a capacity of between 600-700 people. The lower flow consists of a restaurant and bar, one of the largest I have been to, spacious enough, with enough space between tables, that sits 350 people. Ushering you into the restaurant is the ample forecourt that stages a live band and theme nights on select nights. Beyond the restaurant, a large hallway ushers one into the basement complex that houses Club 9, the hotel’s brand new discotheque. Friday night was the club’s official launch, a night that was graced by performances from Fireman, Tom Close, and Bruce Melody. Also housed in this new complex is a Forex bureau, salon, and gift shops. The restaurant runs a buffet (continental and African), that goes for about 3500 Rwf. For breakfast, they do hot chocolate, African and English tea, and coffee mixed with farm-fresh milk. This is accompanied by omelet, ham, cheese, toasted bread, and spaghetti bolognaise, at 2500Rwf. Starters are served hot and cold, and these come with soup mixed with vegetables, mushroom, chicken, and ham. For those with more authentic Rwandan tastes, worry not, because the triple combination of “Igisafuriya”, tilapia fish and “Agatogo” will put all your whims to rest.
