Heaven Boutique Hotel and Heaven Retreat are two properties run by an American-expat couple. They are next to each other in the same complex but are different in their offer.
Heaven is a unique social enterprise in Kigali combining art, crafts, great food, a boutique hotel and a retreat. The founders started Heaven to help train and nurture Rwandans to grow the hospitality industry. Within the complex, there is a restaurant called Heaven that is open to the public and is a favorite for lunch and dinner, and a fine dining restaurant, Fusion, located within The Retreat.
The Boutique Hotel is a four star 22 room hotel spread across three adjoining properties. Here the atmosphere is clean and rustic with lots of colour from the fabrics and textiles used.
The five-star Retreat has only 11 rustic chic rooms built with Tanzania sustainable teak wood. Aside from the main bedroom they also have patios with sofas and indoor/outdoor showers all decorated with local art. The complex is eco-friendly and runs on solar power.
The premises, although small, has a pool, a well-equipped gym, a sauna and a hot tub shared by both the Boutique Hotel and The Retreat.
The Retreat has nothing to envy the larger chains or hotels and is a great place to stay, despite its location in a residential area, not as central to tourist spots as the other larger chains – a great excuse to jump on a boda-boda.