Nestled along Ghana’s Atlantic coast, Elmina is a town where history and vibrant local life come together. This Elmina, Ghana travel guide is your essential resource for exploring one of Ghana’s most historic and vibrant coastal towns. Elmina’s unique blend of historical significance and coastal charm makes it a must-visit destination for anyone exploring Ghana’s rich culture and scenic beauty.
For travelers seeking rest and relaxation, Elmina offers several inviting beach resorts, including the Coconut Grove Beach Resort, a landmark with a rich history and modern amenities.
Elmina Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, stands as a poignant reminder of history and a major attraction near Coconut Grove Beach Resort. Image: wikipedia.org
A Vision Realized: The History of Coconut Grove Beach Resort
Marlene Rodriquez, an American tourist, may have had strong convictions about the beautiful landmarks that formed the foundation of the Hotel in 1994, yet she was cautiously optimistic in her dream about the facility. Marlene was 45 on her first visit to the Resort.
Coconut Grove Beach Resort opened its doors for the first time on December 14, 1994, with six employees and 12 rooms, with Mrs. Yvonne Nduom at the helm when it welcomed its first clients, Ghana Telecom. And that credit goes to Dr. Papa Kwesi & Mrs. Yvonne Nduom, the executive owners of the Resort.
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In 1998, just four years after opening, Coconut Grove Beach Resort was adjudged the Ghana Tourist Board's Hotel of the Year in the 3-Star Category. The resort retained this award in 1999 and followed it up with the CIMG Hospitality Facility of the Year award in 2000.
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Evolution and Expansion
From its humble beginnings, Coconut Grove Beach Resort has grown into a chain of Five World Class Hotels, the Coconut Grove Hotels, operating in three regions. Coconut Grove Beach Resort has seen massive facelift in-between her visits. There have been additions and upgrades to its structures via the number of spacious family suites and the panache of its room services.
Today, Coconut Grove Hotel is a complex of four hotels located in Elmina, Accra and Obuasi. In addition, new companies have been brought on board to constitute the business conglomerate called Groupe Nduom.
Here are some of the key locations under the Coconut Grove Hotels umbrella:
- The Bridge House: Located directly opposite the historic Elmina Castle along the picturesque fishing bay of Benya Lagoon. The building has a rich history as one of the oldest buildings in Elmina left behind by the Portuguese explorers who first settled at Elmina. It has been developed by operators of Coconut Grove Hotels to meet hospitality-industry international standards.
- The Miners Lodge: Located at Obuasi and is five-minute drive from the historic Obuasi mining township. The Miners Lodge has 24 plush rooms and a Conference Hall.
- Coconut Grove Regency Hotel: Located in the Business District of Accra. It's surrounded by many important landmarks. It has 35 plushy-furnished rooms comprising Suites to Standard Rooms as well as 9 world-class Conference Halls.
The pool at Coconut Grove Beach Resort offers a refreshing escape with views of the Atlantic Ocean. Image: tripadvisor.com
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Amenities and Activities
Coconut Grove Beach Resort offers a host of amenities and recreational activities including an outdoor swimming pool with glorious views of the Atlantic Ocean, tennis courts, a full-equipped gym, basketball court, play scape for children and even a mini animal sanctuary. Also available at the Resort is a state-of-the-art conference facilities for business meetings, event organisation and entertainment. It has beach front reverie, classy pool side, live combo band, etc.
The stand out attraction and beauty of Coconut Grove Beach Resort would surely have to be the ample access to the ocean. The staff ensured to keep the beach clean and it was great to see locals out about walking the coast, catching fish and enjoying the nearby area as well.
If you are planning a family getaway, a solo trip or even a wedding or conference, Coconut Grove Beach Resort has you covered. It offers meeting rooms that seats up to 300 people for your event and even golf lessons for those interested during their downtime.
Groupe Nduom: The Backbone
Groupe Nduom (GN) is a family business holding of Ghanaian origin. Groupe Nduom started as single unit business establishment, Coconut Grove Beach Resort in Elmina twenty years ago by Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom family. Today Groupe Nduom comprises over eighteen companies spanning the hospitality industry, print and electronic media, banking, development finance, investment and security, pension trust, quarry, research, industrial estate, industrial park and many more located in Ghana, Togo, La Cote d'Ivoire and the United States.
Groupe Nduom has not only brought wealth to its owners, the Nduom family but also wealth and livelihood to over 3,600 employees and the communities the companies are located, especially, Elmina, the home town of the Nduom family. Groupe Nduom is also contributing to the growth and development of the country through prompt and regular payment of taxes and SSNIT contributions as well as offering employment to the people and selecting independent minded competent persons to serve in management positions and as directors.
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Last week Groupe Nduom celebrated the 20 years anniversary of the grandfather of the group, Coconut Grove Beach Resort, Elmina. During the durbar, the guests listened to reminiscences and genesis of the hotel group from Dr. Kwesi Nduom, Group President, Mrs. Yvonne Nduom, the Executive Chairman of the hotel group, Mr. Ralph Ayittey, the General Manager of Coconut Grove Regency Hotel, Accra, and Mr. Elmina.
Long service awards were presented to some staff members who have served the hotel between 15 years and 19 years.
Challenges and Resilience
However, it has not been all that rosy for the hotel group. The hotel group has suffered its share failure of the government to provide motorable roads leading to tourist installations in this country. The road leading to the Hotel in Elmina is in a bad shape to such an extent that the hotel had to access loans to repair the last stretch of the road entering the hotel premises. The failure of either the central government or the district assembly to repair the tiny bridge which acts as the main access point to the Elmina Castle and therefore depriving the hotel of a route through Elmina town sounds more like a sabotage to the spirit of entrepreneurship in this country and complete lack of understanding and appreciation of tourism and the wealth of the Elmina Castle to the tourism industry.
The hotel in Accra spends so much of its limited resources on delivery of water from private water tankers because of the lack of constant supply of pipe borne water. While the quality of the water tank delivered water cannot be guaranteed, it has to be purified at additional before it can be used to wash the hotel linens. The hotel has also to rely on a bore hotel to get water to flush the toilet system. Constant electricity supply is a taboo topic.
It is quite obvious that despite the huge taxes the government collects from the citizens and industry, little trickles down as service to the people. Nowhere is this so obvious as in the hotel business.
Coconut Grove Beach Resort is a perfect blend of relaxation and cultural immersion. Image: youtube.com
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