The newly opened Royal Place Hotel, located along Egbe-Odo-Ere-Kabba Federal Road, is a state-of-the-art edifice that has no peers in the entire Kogi West Senatorial District. Fitted with features capable of turning heads and moulding dreams, Royal Place Hotel is a world-class edifice, broaching an idea of hospitality that is unseen in this part of the world.
Apart from the hotel’s distinctive look, the 25-room edifice boasts a unique architectural design that is replicated from the foundation to every pillar.
There are 21 standard rooms, two suites and two deluxe rooms. From the main entrance, a first time guest is greeted by a friendly environment spiced with a spacious car park and a lawn tennis court for leisure. These features are complimented with the open roof mini-sit out and the open bar.
Modest in terms of size and height, with modernity and novelty factored into this design, Royal Place takes the first step into redefining hospitality in Kogi State. As executive as it is homely, the hotel is already winning the praises of onlookers, especially the dignitaries who witnessed the opening and dedication ceremony and Egbe Unity Day, the day after.
The hotel was commissioned by Senator Sunday Karimi, representing Kogi West Senatorial District, on Friday, October 11th, 2024. The ceremony extended to Saturday, October 12th, coinciding with this year’s Egbe Unity Day carnival.
Notable among the dignitaries who graced the opening and dedication ceremony, visited Royal Place Hotel before, during and after the opening (some slept in the hotel), include Senator Karimi, Member, Kogi State House of Assembly (Yagba West State Constituency), Hon Ibikunle Idowu; Obaro of Kabba and Chairman, Okun Area Traditional Council, Oba Solomon Owoniyi; Elegbe of Egbe and Chairman, Yagba West Traditional Council, Oba Ayodele Irukera, Elulu of Mopa and Chairman, Mopamuro Traditional Council, Oba Muyiwa Ibeun, and the Elejuku of Ejuku, Oba Lamidi Folorunsho Ayeni. The roll call included Onigbaruku of Igbaruku, Oba Ilufemiloye Jones Babalola, Owa of Egbeland, Oba Sunday Jare, Alaofin of Okoa, Egbe, Oba Otun Mirinmi, Engr Bayo Awarun, Dr Kayode Ige, among other elders.
Royal Place Hotel is a product of the famous Oniya Family of Egbe. The Oniya Family has a rich history of dedication to inventiveness in the industrialisation of Egbe Community spanning half a century. The family is led by the Patriarch, Aare of Egbeland, Chief Adekunle Oniya who is also Bashorun of Shashaland, Lagos. Aare Oniya is a business tycoon in the maritime sector. About 45 years ago, he built the first sawmill industry in the entire Yagbaland. Few years later, Bashorun Oniya launched the first foam making industry in Kogi State. Royal Place Hotel is the brainchild of one of his sons, Faramade Oniya, an engineer in the oil and gas sector. In April, 2024, the Royal Event Hall was completed and furnished to taste, blazing a new trail in the hospitality industry in the area. The Royal Event Place features out of this world Sitting Facilities, Air Conditioners, Exhaustion Tans, Dais/Stage, Lighting Systems, Firefighting Extinguishers and more. It has since become the dream destination for conferences/meetings, weddings, birthdays, or burial receptions organisers.
The young Faramade Oniya, who preferred a low profile, serves as a model for young business people in Egbe, Okunland and the country, interspersed with a commitment to the welfare and growth of other people.
Senator Karimi extolled the virtues of Aare Oniya for his many firsts in terms of establishment and localisation of industries in Egbe and Okunland. He cited Oniya Sawmill Industry and the Oniya Foam factory, among others. Aside from adding colours to the development of Egbe and Okunland, the senator enthused that the hotel is an innovation that has been established ahead of its time and a testament to the great vision of the proprietor. He stressed that the Royal Place Hotel is not just for the moment but for the future benefits of the community and visitors in terms of creation of job opportunities and improving hospitality business in the region.
In his remarks, Hon Ibikunle Idowu who described the Royal Place Hotel as unique by every inch and parameter, noted that the edifice stands out amongst many hotels he had visited in the state, including in the Kogi State capital. He praised the proprietor for his great vision and sacrifice. According to the lawmaker, if not for the love for one’s community, citing a business of the magitude of Royal Place Event Hall and Royal Place Hotel in a place like Lagos, where the proprietor is based would be more profitable.
Hon Ibikunle’s remarks were corroborated by Aare Oniya who noted that the Royal Place Hotel and Event Hall, like the sawmill and foam industries, was conceived out of love for Egbe community development in fulfillment of the family’s agelong vision and mission, and not solely out of calculations based on the profits the business should generate if established in a big city.
