Mail & Guardian: Smooth marble floors and elegant wooden furniture adorn the entrance halls of Khartoum's brand new luxury hotels, promising weary visitors a fresh welcome to the country emerging from years of civil war.

After a north-south peace deal in January 2005 ended Africa's longest civil war, investors cautiously began to visit bringing promises of cash, development and services.

And one service this capital city needed was hotels. Add a massive United Nations peacekeeping mission, the world's largest aid operation, rapidly expanding embassies and returning diaspora and suddenly Khartoum's old, dilapidated hotels found themselves double, even triple-booked.

"People are paying five-star prices for two-star hotels," said businessman Hatim Awadallah. "We were paying those prices because we didn't have a choice."

In the 1990s, Sudan's occasional visitors had a limited choice of hotels to seek refuge from the dust and searing sun. Khartoum's Hilton hotel, magnificent when it opened 30 years ago, sat empty for years as a hardline government took Sudan down the road of isolationism and international sanctions.

After the 2005 peace deal, despite a separate and ongoing conflict in the remote western Darfur region, investors are lured by the promise of the end of the war in the south, where most of Sudan's over 500 000 barrels per day of oil is produced.

Since then, a dozen mid-level two- or three-star hotels have opened. But the major battle promises to be in the five-star category as Khartoum's slightly shabby, landmark hotels find new competition entering the market.
 
While for more than a decade the Hilton was the only top brand hotel in the country, Rotana from Saudi Arabia opened a branch in February and later this year Maltese Corinthia will open a top-end hotel complex on the banks of the Nile.

Despite its awkward location -- surrounded by building sites and in the middle of Khartoum's largest road -- the Rotana has been fully booked since opening.

Sunbathers may be disturbed by low-flying planes over its outdoor swimming pool as it lies on the busy airport approach. And so far only government ministers seem to be among the few able to afford the health club charges of $100 a day.

But the hotel is confident it will remain full even after its opening discount rate expires. The night rate is $325, against nearer $200 per night for the Hilton.

"Ours is the first [such] hotel to open since 30 years ago," manager Mohamed Ali said. "It's a new building, new furniture. The city needs this hotel and maybe another two [such] hotels."

Khartoum's older top-end hotels say there's plenty of business to go around. They also say the new hotels may have problems finding the quality staff they have spent years training because new arrivals are entering a service industry starting almost from scratch.

"Anyone can build a beautiful hotel but it's the operation, the management, the service which will determine whether the guest will stay there or not," said Hilton manager Pieter Stapel.

 
The Hilton, 51% owned by the Sudanese government, hosts most presidential and ministerial visits. The Corinthia-operated Burj el-Fatih hotel said it was targeting those governmental delegations due to its proximity to a major conference venue, the Friendship Hall.

Sudan in 2006 hosted three major summits as well as other smaller ones. The Arab League, African Union and the African Caribbean Pacific organisations all engulfed Khartoum with thousands of delegates demanding first class hotel service.

Corinthia's hotel, funded by Libyan leader Moammar Gadaffi's government, had hoped to be ready for those summits but its unusual design caused technical problems that delayed the opening.

A Maltese architect won a competition to design the hotel, which is in the shape of a boat with a full sail as it sits on the convergence of the two Nile rivers.

Gadaffi has spared no expense with panoramic glass elevators, tennis courts, an outdoor and indoor swimming pool and a Turkish bath.

"We are targeting that we will be the best, something new in Sudan," said project manager Emhemmed Ghula. "This was not just about investment, but more of a present from Libya."