This soon turned to bigger thinking and a decision to expand and cater for a clientele wanting a unique place to stay and still be at a home away from home.

In brief remarks Saturday, the proud daughter of Queenstown told relatives, friends and others who gathered to be part of the grand occasion, the ceremony marked the completion of a long success story that started with a dream to do something worthwhile in Guyana and particularly in her birthplace.

The former member of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) expressed appreciation to those friends and relatives who encouraged her, as well as the people of Essequibo, in particular those from Queenstown, for their welcome and support, and the public and private sector departments whose contribution made the opening possible.

“I would like to think of the `Hotel Urbayne Oasis’ as an asset to our tourism industry. We will certainly be striving to provide the standards necessary to make it a fine hotel,” she added.

COUNTRY OF CHALLENGES
Obviously reminded of prior problems that plagued the construction, chief among them the partial collapse of the building when some $4M was already infused, Payne remarked that she had learnt long ago that Guyana is a country of challenges and that hopefully those challenges are now behind her.

Payne, who has years of experience under her belt as a realtor in the `Big Apple’, said she now looks forward to working with the Government and people of Guyana and all the various organizations in furthering the objectives of the hotel, as well as the business community in Region Two in pursuit of a stronger business environment. Tourism, Hamilton said in his feature address, is defined as a collection of activities, services and industries that delivers a travel experience, including accommodation, eating and drinking establishments, retail shops, entertainment business and other hospitality services provided for individuals or groups traveling away from home.

He also alluded to a statement from the World Tourism Organisation (WTO) that tourism is currently the world’s largest industry with annual revenues of more than three trillion US dollars, and it has the largest number of employees with the U.S. employing more than six million people.

In Guyana, Hamilton said, the government is placing much emphasis in the sector which is at an interesting period of its development. Tourism is expected to provide jobs for many persons thus making a significant contribution to the GDP.

Modern hotels delivering quality service are needed and it is in this context Hamilton sees the `Hotel Urbayne Oasis’ as rising to the challenge of providing accommodation to visitors to Guyana, particularly the Essequibo Coast.

He said the investment was a good one which will no doubt motivate others on the Essequibo Coast to do likewise in the tourism sector.

Hamilton noted that the opening of the hotel coincided with the hosting of `Essequibo Nite’, which was held Friday and Saturday at Anna Regina and which attracted thousands, including visitors from outside the region.

Vice Chairman of Region Two, Mr. Vishnu Samaroo, who admitted to being “very much surprised” at seeing such a quality and first class hotel when he toured the facility with the other guests, said the hotel has come at a time when Region Two is on the move and there is a dire need for places of employment.

He noted too, that from time to time, when hosting important functions such as `Essequibo Nite’, the regional administration has encountered difficulty in finding suitable accommodation for visitors, and he thanked Payne for chancing to invest in such a venture. SPACIOUS: in the conference room. He expressed the hope that the new facility would be a boost for more people wanting to visit the region as there will now be more options in a place to stay, reminding that Guyana will early next year be hosting Cricket World Cup (CWC).

The ceremony which was attended by among others, Police Commander of `G`, Division, Senior Superintendent Gavin Primo; Officer-in-Charge, Essequibo Fire Station, Patrick Carmichael, and other representatives from the Tourism Ministry, was interspersed with musical renditions from a representative group from the Queenstown Primary School.

Payne’s classmate, Errol Greene called `Papa Greene’, offered a touching prayer while there were sentiments from well wishers.

Chairperson for the proceedings, Ms. Desiree Pearson, evoked much laughter when she remarked overhearing someone saying after touring the facility, “You know Elroy really gat guts.”

Wendell Walcott who described the occasion as “only the beginning” in his `Vote of Thanks’ and promised that the hotel will strive to improve on the already high standard that has been set, also expressed much gratitude to Rawle and Stacy Jones for lending moral and other support to the proprietress from the initial stage of the project.