Hilton Colombo is a Hilton brand five-star luxury hotel in

Colombo Colombo, ( ; , ; , ), is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. The Colombo metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 within the municipal limits. It is the ...

, Sri Lanka. The hotel is owned by Hotel Developers (Lanka) Ltd. The company was incorporated in 1983 and was listed on the

Colombo Stock Exchange The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) (; ) is the main stock exchange in Sri Lanka that utilizes an electronic trading platform. The CSE headquarters have been located at the World Trade Center (Colombo) Towers in Colombo since 1995, and it has regi ...

in the following year. The hotel was launched in 1987 and the 30th anniversary was celebrated in 2017 with an issuance of a stamp and a first day cover. However, the company is delisted from the stock exchange in 2020 and solely owned by the

Government of Sri Lanka The Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) (; ) is a Semi-presidential republic determined by the Constitution of Sri Lanka, Sri Lankan Constitution. It administers the island from both its commercial capital of Colombo and the administrative capital o ...

, therefore, runs as a

state-owned enterprise A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a business entity created or owned by a national or local government, either through an executive order or legislation. SOEs aim to generate profit for the government, prevent private sector monopolies, provide goo ...

History

The hotel is owned by Hotel Developers (Lanka) Ltd. and the company was incorporated in 1983. The company was listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange in 1984. Since its commencement, the company has had a troublesome history. As the promoters of the hotel did not have the means to finance the construction of the hotel, the

had to provide a guarantee of the payment of a yen-loan worth LKR1.3 billion. As a security for this guarantee, the majority of the shares was transferred to the government. The land on which the hotel was built was leased from the Land Commissioner General's Department, and due to the non-payment of the land lease, the land lease was cancelled and the land was reverted. The hotel was launched in 1987 and the 30th anniversary was celebrated in 2017. To mark the occasion, a stamp and a

first day cover A first day of issue cover or first day cover (FDC) is a postage stamp on a cover, postal card or stamped envelope Franking, franked on the first day the issue is authorized for useBennett, Russell and Watson, James; ''Philatelic Terms Illustrate ...

were issued by the

Sri Lanka Post The Department of Posts, functioning under the brand name Sri Lanka Post ( Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ලංකා තැපැල් ''Shri Lanka Tæpæl''), is a government operated postal system in Sri Lanka. The postal headquarters is the Genera ...

. The new restaurants, Graze Kitchen and L.A.B lounge were opened after the first phase of the refurbishment. Hotel Developers (Lanka) was delisted from the Colombo Stock Exchange in 2020. The Government of Sri Lanka solely owns Hotel Developers (Lanka) Ltd and therefore, runs as a

COVID-19 pandemic

The operations of the hotel were temporarily halted after one of the staff members was tested positive for

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

Operations

Hilton Colombo organises the biggest

Oktoberfest Oktoberfest (; ) is the world's largest , featuring a beer festival and a travelling carnival, and is held annually in Munich, Bavaria, from mid- or late-September to the first Sunday in October. The annual event attracts more than seven milli ...

in the country. The 27th annual Oktoberfest was organised in 2019 by the hotel. In 2021, Hilton was named as one of the best places to work in Sri Lanka.

Amenities

The hotel is located next to the World Trade Center Colombo and has 382 rooms and 36 suites. The hotel has seven dining and entertainment venues. Graze Kitchen, the buffet restaurant; Curry Leaf, the

Sri Lankan cuisine Sri Lankan cuisine is known for its particular combinations of herbs, spices, fish, vegetables, rices, and fruits. The cuisine is highly centered around many varieties of rice, as well as coconut which is a ubiquitous plant throughout the count ...

restaurant of the hotel; Cafe Kai; Stella, a karaoke lounge; L.A.B; SunsetBlu and Emperor's Wok. SunsetBlu was launched at the end of 2020 and marketed as an "all-day club". Swimming pool, fitness centre and meeting rooms are amongst other amenities of the hotel. The hotel also has meeting and banquet facilities.

References

External links