Premier Hotel Group takes off at OR Tambo

Only 500 metres from the Gautrain Station and 1.2km from the Terminals, reached by a free shuttle bus, the 280 room Premier Hotel OR Tambo will be a full service four star-plus hotel.

“Far from being just a lay-over, the Premier Hotel OR Tambo will provide all the services and style necessary to make for a comfortable travel experience. In airline speak it's a business class hotel which fully compliments our existing brand,” says Premier Hotel & Resorts MD Samuel Nassimov.

Costing in excess of R300 million, the hotel's large rooms (45 of which are suites with their own lounges) and public areas will all offer free wi-fi internet connections and other facilities will include a spa, swimming pool deck, gym, restaurant and two bars along with 24 hour room service.

Similar to the group's other hotels, the new Premier Hotel OR Tambo will also contain a large conference centre, with nine conference rooms and board-rooms, able to hold up to 800 delegates cinema-style along with state-of-the-art facilities.

“OR Tambo International is becoming a hub for conventions as delegates are able to fly in and do their business without having to get into the traffic,” adds Nassimov.

Designed in contemporary, African style using natural materials such as stone & geometric glass and aluminium, approximately half of the rooms are afforded a view of the airport.

Offering a range of hotels and conference venues in regional business and travel destinations in South Africa, the Premier Hotels & Resorts Group has grown incrementally from its original base of two hotels and a private game reserve in East London.

The group now includes hotels in Cape Town, Pretoria, Pinetown and the South Coast along with the recent opening of a five star property in Knysna on the Garden Route.

Along with the Premier Hotel OR Tambol, the group is also developing the Premier Hotel Cascades in East London opening year end, linked to the new East London International Convention Centre which the group will also manage (due to open in early 2010).

In terms of green building principles used, the building's design takes orientation into account and windows have solar controlled glazing and to minimize heat load, reducing air-conditioning requirements.

The facades are also “fragmented” to avoid large, heat-absorbing elements while energy efficient VRV air-conditioning systems have been incorporated into the Public areas. The electrical installation incorporates Power Factor Correction to reduce energy demands along with an energy-efficient hot water generation plant utilizing roof mounted Air-to-Water type heat pumps, producing hot water at approximately 25% the cost of electrical water heating.