The Hotel Memling is a five-star

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the Capital city, capital and Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-grow ...

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

History

Hotel Memling was built between 1937 and 1964, in

Léopoldville Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-growing megacities, with an estimated population of 17 million ...

(modern-day Kinshasa) in

Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo (, ; ) was a Belgian colonial empire, Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960 and became the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville). The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Repu ...

by Sabena, the former Belgian airline, offering accommodation to its passengers and clients. It is located near the river in the neighborhood that is today known as Gombe, in the center of the city, between Boulevard du 30 juin and the Grand Market of Kinshasa. The hotel, modernised by numerous renovations since 1964, including in 1989 by architectural firm Henri Montois and after the 1991 and 1993 Kinshasa riots, now has a number of rooms, banquet halls and conference rooms. Along with Grand Hotel of Kinshasa and the Hotel Venus, it is one of the most famous and prestigious hotels in the city. Following the collapse of Sabena in 2001, the future of the hotel was uncertain. At the end of 2001, it was managed (in bankruptcy) by the Compagnie des Grands Hôtels Africains. The hotel is named after Belgian painter

Hans Memling Hans Memling (also spelled Memlinc; – 11 August 1494) was a German-Flemish people, Flemish painter who worked in the tradition of Early Netherlandish painting. Born in the Middle Rhine region, he probably spent his childhood in Mainz. During ...

The hotel today

The hotel has been the site of seminars, receptions, protests, openings, press conferences and shows in Kinshasa. International agreements have also been signed there, including the agreement for a EUFOR mission in the country. In 1994, the hotel was the site of a party honoring Congolese singer Abeti Masikini. In 2009, the

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...

trophy made a stop at the hotel on the way to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

for the games. On June 29 and 30, 2010, Belgian journalist Nathalie Maleux presented her news broadcast live from the hotel on

RTBF The ("Belgian Radio-television of the French Community"), shortened to RTBF (branded as rtbf.be), is a public broadcasting, public service broadcaster for the French Community of Belgium, French-speaking Community of Belgium. Its counterpart i ...

, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Congolese independence.

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://www.memling.net Hotels in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Buildings and structures in Kinshasa Lukunga District