Delhi, Mumbai hotels put up house-full sign
With the demand supply gap increasing for hotel rooms, many hotels have already revised the room tariff. De-stress with board games | Christmas shopping
By Raja Awasthi, TNN |
NEW DELHI: Planning a business trip to Delhi and Mumbai? Think twice as hotel rooms in both the metros are fully booked. In fact, corporate travellers and tourists coming to these cities this season must make alternative arrangements for their stay to avoid incoveneience.
Reads like a cautious travel advisory but its true. Such is the rush that most five-star hotels have been booked till March 2008 and many hospitality majors have reported occupancy of over than 90% this year, against 70 to 80% last year.
The situation in Delhi, which is already facing a shortage of rooms, is more acute because of the sudden rush of travellers owing to the International Trade Fair, ongoing India-Pakistan Test match and many business conferences.
With the demand supply gap increasing for hotel rooms many hotel have already revised the room tariff. Keeping the shortage in mind, an average room in Delhi, which was available for Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000, has now gone up to Rs 16,000 to Rs 18,000, while the suites and president suite have gone up to Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000.
Says Greesh Bindra, vice-president, Crowne Plaza: “Many in the industry have increased room tariff this year, effective from last month, by 30 to 35%. We are nearly 100% sold for the next two months. This month also saw the start of the wedding season and there is a mad rush now.
The hospitality sector boom — being seen because of a rise in both Indian and foreign business travellers — is also playing an important role. It is estimated that there has been an increase of 25-30% in foreign business travellers in 2007. This year we have witnessed 100% occupancy across the board which has resulted in this tariff increase.” Tarun Thakral COO, The Le Meridien, too, feels that the hotel industry is riding high on the booming economy. “Almost every chain is planning a room tariff increase by 25-40% as tourist arrivals has shown a positive growth in the last three years,” he adds.
Elaborates Manav Thadani, MD, HVS International: “For the fourth year in a row, the hospitality market has witnessed exceptionally strong increases — both in terms of occupancy and average rates.” Another factor contributing to the robustness in the hospitality industry is the increasing household income. With special holiday packages now facilitating easier and convenient travel, an increasing number of people are opting for these packages, which, consequently benefits the hospitality industry.
Reads like a cautious travel advisory but its true. Such is the rush that most five-star hotels have been booked till March 2008 and many hospitality majors have reported occupancy of over than 90% this year, against 70 to 80% last year.
The situation in Delhi, which is already facing a shortage of rooms, is more acute because of the sudden rush of travellers owing to the International Trade Fair, ongoing India-Pakistan Test match and many business conferences.
With the demand supply gap increasing for hotel rooms many hotel have already revised the room tariff. Keeping the shortage in mind, an average room in Delhi, which was available for Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000, has now gone up to Rs 16,000 to Rs 18,000, while the suites and president suite have gone up to Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000.
Says Greesh Bindra, vice-president, Crowne Plaza: “Many in the industry have increased room tariff this year, effective from last month, by 30 to 35%. We are nearly 100% sold for the next two months. This month also saw the start of the wedding season and there is a mad rush now.
The hospitality sector boom — being seen because of a rise in both Indian and foreign business travellers — is also playing an important role. It is estimated that there has been an increase of 25-30% in foreign business travellers in 2007. This year we have witnessed 100% occupancy across the board which has resulted in this tariff increase.” Tarun Thakral COO, The Le Meridien, too, feels that the hotel industry is riding high on the booming economy. “Almost every chain is planning a room tariff increase by 25-40% as tourist arrivals has shown a positive growth in the last three years,” he adds.
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Interestingly, the trend is not just confined to Delhi and Mumbai. The all-India occupancy has touched the 79.8% mark for the first time this year. According to an HVS annual report, many cities are completely sold out on a number of weekday nights, resulting in hotels jacking up their rates. The largest increase is being seen in the luxury segment followed by the mid-market and budget segments. The report further says that the demand-supply imbalance in cities such as Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Jaipur helped the hotels charge higher tariffs across all market segments.Elaborates Manav Thadani, MD, HVS International: “For the fourth year in a row, the hospitality market has witnessed exceptionally strong increases — both in terms of occupancy and average rates.” Another factor contributing to the robustness in the hospitality industry is the increasing household income. With special holiday packages now facilitating easier and convenient travel, an increasing number of people are opting for these packages, which, consequently benefits the hospitality industry.
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