“Welcome home to Ife Grand Resort & Leisure. This is the People’s Palace; the home of the Source and all people of the Yoruba Race. You just have to be here,” Reuben Abib, the General Manager of the arguably most affordable, all-inclusive 4-star resort in the country, enthusiastically told Newscoven.ng.
Nothing can be farther from the truth as emphatically declared by the Canadian-born Abib, who, having adopted the name, Oranmiyan, has come to see Yorubaland, especially Ile-Ife, as his natural place of birth.
Ife Grand Resort & Leisure, planted and expanding in Ile-Ife, the globally acclaimed Cradle of the Yoruba Race, is a majestic and an alluring centre of attraction.
The Resort is strategically located along the Ibadan-Ife Expressway. From the Main Gate, Ife Grand Resort radiates and oozes opulence and royalty synonymous with the nouveau riche, yet it is within the reach of the average man who wants to have a fair share of pleasure.
The air of tranquility and sense of belonging starts right with the firm, but yet courteous security personnel professionally manning the entrance into the Resort. Their warm disposition to tourists, guests and visitors is simply disarming.
From the reception, lavishly decorated with a combination of foreign and local materials sets, the People’s Palace offers aesthetic beauty to people seeking indulgence in nature and naturalness.
Seated on a large expanse of land, covering 328 acres, Ife Grand Resort have several facilities: 117 rooms; three swimming pools; three restaurants; a night club; a mini-stadium housing a table tennis court; lawn tennis court; a football pitch; and the well-equipped children’s playground, all to enhance the interest and fitness of both adults and children; a bush bar in the African Village and a standard 200-capacity cinema hall (its construction is ongoing).
On offer at the Resort are single rooms and chalets (named after some prominent traditional rulers in Yorubaland). For the rooms, there are standard, premium, super-premium, executive, royal/and diplomatic rooms, while there are options for standard, premium, super-premium, and executive chalets.
Also sitting comfortably within the Resort is a 3000-capacity Meeting Incentives Conference and Event (MICE) Centre, ‘Ojaja Arena’, a complex of architectural wonder planted to add value of relevance to urban renewal in Ile-Ife.
Built in the African Village are 51 stylish huts named after the past Oonis (paramount traditional rulers of Ile-Ife). The huts come in one-room in-suite, amid world-class facilities.
Moving around the tropical vicinity of the Resort and across streets named after some Yoruba towns such as Abeokuta, Ijebu and Ogbomoso, among others, especially in the late evening is thrilling and fun.
Indeed, Nigerians, nay Africans in the Diaspora would find attractive the huts and the African Village, which hosts a Bamboo Restaurant and a local kitchen where guests can visit to witness how local food menus are prepared and served to them in local pots. While in the Village, guests have access to standard swimming pools and children’s pool.
Heightening visitors’ experience at the Resort are fascinating primates, playful and mischievous nature; these monkeys are an absolute joy to watch and play with, while the growing zoological garden of Ife Grand Resort & Leisure is blessed with a flock of ostriches and peacocks, among other animals.
The Ife Grand Resort & Leisure project is, no doubt, a work in progress as more projects are ongoing to accommodate the growing demands. Work is ongoing at the 200-capacity cinema hall, 6,000-guest-capacity civic centre, and the indoor spa centre for manicures and pedicures, while the Olympic-size swimming pool and the standard football field are close to completion.
Speaking with Newscoven.ng, the General Manager, Reuben Abib said: “Ife Grand Resort & Leisure seeks to boost the economy of Ile-Ife, empower the people and use the Resort to spotlight the ancient town on the world map by luring global tourists to the many attractions that abound in the town.
“The decision by the Ooni to have it here is actually a very spiritual decision. This is the ancient Ogunwusi land. This place has been a garden and a homestead for hundreds of years. On this land, as you move towards Opa River, we have found the evidence of the ancient iron smelting, taking us back to the Iron Age. Also not far from there, you will see a rock that people have used for grinding for ages.
“When Kabiyesi, Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi Ojaja II, came to the throne in 2015, he promised the people of Ile-Ife that he is going to creates job and employment opportunities, and that is exactly what we are doing here.
“At the Ife Grand Resort, we employed 150 full-time staff. We have probably 20 to 30 others on part-time basis. We have brought choices to Ile-Ife in a way that it has never happened before.
“Actually, Ife Grand Resort & Leisure is more than hotel and hospitality. We call it an industrial hub. The vision is that it is not just a resort, but a place where small-scale manufacturing happens.
“We have the Odua Adire home which is actually put up to be making Yoruba traditional adire. There, they make custom design adire. We train young women who are encouraged to pass on the skills in adire making to others.
“Ife Grand Resort and Leisure is actually a small village within the Ile-Ife City. Really, there is virtually everything you want to do here. Whether you want to come in as actor or just for relaxation, this is the place. Ife Grand Resort is the ideal home from home,” the Canadian-born Yoruba cultural enthusiast said.
And there is nothing to fear, as regards security. The Head of Security, Jimoh Joel, attributed the high sense of security in the Resort to effective collaboration with both the Police and some members of a vigilante group.
Abib also put to rest the fear that the classic four-start Resort may not be easily affordable for the average man. He said: “Ife Grand Resort & Leisure is the most affordable four-star resort in Nigeria. I can assure you of that. Here, our services are for all, irrespective of the size of your pockets.”
The Resort is the baby of the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi Ojaja II. It was commissioned on 16 July, 2021 by a former governor of Osun State, Alhaji Adegboyega Oyetola. Speaking during the commissioning, Oba Ogunwusi, explained that the facility was established for youth development and capacity building.
