Tinapa’s concept was to provide a high-level business and entertainment/shopping complex in Cross River. It’s a huge site comprising a hotel, shopping complex, Nollywood (Nigeria’s answer to Hollywood) studio and a waterpark. The location, alongside the Calabar River with a large artificial lake in front of the hotel, provides a picturesque backdrop. It’s well catered for with a dining room capable of feeding several hundred. Equally there is plenty of parking, and rooms are a good standard, only really lacking a safe, and tea and coffee making facilities. The facilities are clean, modern and spacious, staff are smart and attentive, and there are ample business facilities. As a result it is a popular venue for multinationals looking to do business in Cross River.

Overall Tinapa is a pretty decent place, although at 10 miles from Calabar centre it can be a little of a trek to get there. The main issue really is the fact that the site simply hasn’t attracted the numbers it was intended for. The hotel had a total of seven guests, but this was mid-week and may not represent the norm. During my stay the only area that was remotely busy was the waterpark, and it was just members of the local army on a day off. Over time, as Nigeria’s blossoming middle class looks towards more viable tourism options, it may be that Tinapa fills a void, but at present there is still quite a gulf between the bustling street markets of Calabar and the empty shopping complex of Tinapa’s K-Mart.