Category Archives: Hotels

Spreading its wings in Nepal, The Fern Hotels & Resorts has opened its first overseas property under The Fern Residency brand in Kathmandu. With this opening, the tally of the hotels managed by the group under The Fern Residency brand goes up to 23 hotels. The Fern Residency, Kathmandu is located in the heart of the city and offers a total of 58 well-appointed rooms – 46 Winter Green Rooms, 10 Fern Club Rooms and 02 Hazel Suites. The hotel facilities include a finely designed multi-cuisine restaurant, a coffee shop, two conference rooms, health club with spa and a mini-casino. The hotel has easy access to the major sightseeing attractions in town and to public transport as well. The COO of the company Suhail Kannampilly said, “We are delighted to offer guests visiting Nepal The Fern experience in Kathmandu and enjoy the advantages of our environmentally sensitive brand. It is no mean achievement to take an Indian brand overseas and we want to further consolidate our position in India as well as internationally, to get to our target of 100 hotels by 2020.”

Sterling Holiday Resorts is set to launch its latest resort in Jaipur. With this launch, Sterling now has increased its holiday network to 34 resorts across the country. This is Sterling’s second property in Rajasthan, underlining the importance it gives to expansion in India’s foremost tourist destination. Sterling Holiday Resorts has signed a management agreement with Atharva Hotels and Resorts for Sterling Jaipur. Located on the Jaipur-Ajmer NH-8, Sterling Jaipur is spread across 6 acres of land and is divided into two wings: the Palace and Cottage wings. The architecture is inspired by the world-famous Rajasthani art and architecture. There are 45 luxurious rooms in the resort. Speaking on this occasion, Ramesh Ramanathan, Managing Director, Sterling Holiday Resorts stated, “Rajasthan is at the heart of cultural experiences and attracts tourists from different parts of the world. This resort will further bolster “Brand Sterling” in providing experiential and immersive holidays to its guests.” Commenting on this partnership, NBS Raathore, Partner, Atharva Hotel & Resorts said, “We are delighted to work with Sterling and we believe “Brand Sterling” brings immense leisure hospitality expertise, and with this launch we look forward to establishing Sterling Jaipur as a premier resort.” The resort offers extensive recreational and meeting facilities, which include a conference hall, three spacious lawns for banquet and weddings facilities, spa and swimming pool, two restaurants and a rooftop resto-bar.

Mumbai is leading in terms of hotel occupancy (74.2%) as per a report by HVS Global Hospitality Services. According to the report as expected in the second year of the up-cycle, all major markets tracked  witnessed an increase in Revenue per available room (RevPAR) except for Agra. Interesting to note, Noida saw the highest year-on-year growth in RevPAR (16.0 %), followed by Hyderabad (11.4%) and Ahmedabad (10.7%). Noida displayed the lowest occupancy (56.9%) and Ahmedabad, the lowest average rate (3,840), the study said. All 13 hotel markets depicted an increase in occupancy leaving Pune (-0.7%), even as some markets saw a lower growth (Bengaluru and Mumbai at 0.4% and 0.6%, respectively) compared to others (Ahmedabad and Noida at 12.0% and 11.7%, respectively). In 2016/17, only two cities showed a decline in average rates – Agra, which witnessed a steep decline of 8.9% over 2015/16 and, Ahmedabad, which witnessed a minor decline of 1.1%. Goa registered the highest yearon-year increase of 7.3% in average rate, followed by Pune (5.7%).

Hotels that opened in 2015-16 in India  averaged 42.7 per cent and, new openings of 2016-17 averaged  45.9 per cent occupancy in their very first year, according to a report by HVS Global Hospitality Services. Similarly, while  first year ARRs were successively lower than their  preceding years from 2012-13 to 2014-15, the ARR for  hotels that opened in 2015-16 and 2016-17 have seen  an increase in comparison to their preceding year, the report said. Both these figures, coupled with the demand-supply  outlook for the next sixty-months, further corroborate our view that most  markets in India are at a point where both occupancy and ARRs can substantially improve. The question is whether the sector’s stakeholders will truly manage to capitalise  on the evident opportunity, or do we still need to live by  the adage, the report said.

OYO Hotels has announced the acquisition of wedding banquet company Weddingz.in to expand its playfield to real estate sector. Globally, the wedding industry has grown to become a $500 billion market and OYO’s sharp focus on global expansion will support its debut in disrupting these markets. Commenting on the development, Maninder Gulati, Chief Strategy Officer – OYO, said, “What this partnership facilitates is combining OYO’s capabilities of asset management and technology with the scale Weddingz.in offers in India’s fragmented $40bn weddings industry. The company has a healthy scale of managing 1,500-plus wedding events per quarter, with an inventory size of over 40 banquets spread across Mumbai and Delhi.’’ With more than 10 million marriages in India held annually, the segment holds immense potential for innovation, improvement and standardization of processes. “Weddingz.in is India’s largest banquet management company specialising in weddings led by an extremely ambitious founder Sandeep Lodha and his talented team and the value proposition they bring to the table via skills in managing weddings is clearly visible in their dominance and popularity.’’ added Maninder. Sandeep Lodha, Founder, Weddingz.in, commented, ‘’This alliance will work towards simplifying wedding planning for Indians while tapping the enormous opportunities this space offers.”    

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has signed a management agreement with Lotus Trans Travel to establish a four hotel portfolio under the Holiday Inn banner. Slated to open between 2020 and 2023, Holiday Inn Bodhgaya, Holiday Inn Kushinagar, Holiday Inn Gorakhpur and Holiday Inn Shravasti together will add over 450 rooms to IHG’s system and establish the company’s presence at the Buddhist tourism circuit. As a part of the agreement, Holiday Inn hotels in Bodhgaya, Kushinagar and Shravasti will be refurbished and upgraded to ensure the portfolio is fully representative of the Holiday Inn brand globally. Holiday Inn Gorakhpur will be will be a new build hotel. Bodhgaya in Bihar, Gorakhpur, Shravasti and Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh are some of the main pilgrimage centres for Buddhism in India and together form a part of ‘The Buddhist Circuit’ in the country that drives a great deal of religious visitors and international travellers to these states. Sudeep Jain, Vice President—Development, South West Asia, IHG said, “We are excited to be collaborating with Lotus Trans Travel, who have a strong presence and a deep market understanding of Buddhist destinations in India. This signing adds to the rapidly growing presence of our well-recognised Holiday Inn brand across the country.” Karan Rai, Director, Lotus Trans Travel, added, “We feel there is a need for quality branded accommodation in cities with immense travel potential such as Bodhgaya, Kushinagar, Gorakhpur and Shravasti, and are delighted to be partnering with IHG for our business in these markets.”

Expanding its presence in China in November 2017, OYO has grown its presence in the country by 50,000 exclusive rooms with a strong presence in cities including Hangzhou, Xian, Nanjing, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shenzhen, Xiamen and Kunming among others. It recently launched its exclusive hotels in Hulunbeier City, Sanya City and Hainan Province. Commenting on the business performance, Ritesh Agarwal, Founder & CEO, OYO said, “We are thrilled with the response OYO Hotels has received in China. It is well-established that there is a great demand for good-quality accommodation among the 400 MM middle income people in the country. July was a milestone month where we added 25,000 rooms to our chain and look forward to achieving a similar feat in the coming months. It’s been a truly exciting journey for us and we believe that the innovation and R&D being offered in China will assist us and the mission globally.” With its unique business model, OYO works in close proximity with its hotel partners while ensuring a quality living experience to guests, promising benefits to both. In India, OYO has a 100,000-exclusive-rooms strong chain with a presence in over 160 cities with Malaysia and Nepal as the other two international destinations where the chain is present.

Niraamaya Retreats, a collection of boutique properties across India, has announced its first foray in North India to operate and manage Royal Heritage Haveli in Jaipur. Located on the outskirts of the city, the haveli offers unique experiences such as destination cued dining, cooking sessions revealing the secrets of the family’s favourite recipes passed down generations, a hands-on hand-block printing workshop and a private class of Polo at a nearby farm. Elaborating on the expansion, Manu Rishi Guptha, CEO, Niraamaya Retreats, said, “Our entry in to North India is a big step towards establishing a significant pan-India presence for the Niraamaya brand. Each of our properties brings a unique combination of local and cultural activities complimented with the boutique Niraamaya experience. We are delighted to mark our debut in Rajasthan with the iconic Royal Heritage Haveli which has all the hallmarks of a magnificent boutique property which entails a rich heritage, a serene location and most importantly the gracious hospitality of the noble family who interacts with the guests.” Built in the 18th century as a hunting lodge for the Jaipur royal family, the sprawling five-acre property offers 19 spacious suites. Built in the Indo-Saracenic style of architecture, each of the living spaces has a unique character which exudes regal charm and features well-appointed interiors that provide the highest standards of luxury and comfort.    

Ginger has signed a new hotel in Bharuch, a key city of Gujarat. The brand is already present in six cities in the state with hotels under development in Surat and Sanand. With this new addition, Ginger will have 10 hotels with a combined inventory of close to 800 rooms in Gujarat. Deepika Rao, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Ginger said, “We are delighted to expand our presence in Gujarat and enter Bharuch by partnering Hotel Sethna Plaza Annexe. The modern day Bharuch is one of the biggest industrial areas in the state. The hotel will be ideally located to cater to the business guests.” With 55 comfortable rooms, an all-day diner, a banquet hall and a fitness centre; the new Ginger is located just a few minutes from the railway station amidst a commercial hub catering to chemical, textile and pharmaceutical companies. The hotel is a management contract and is slated to commence operations in 2019.    

The Fern Hotels & Resorts has started managing The Fern Residency, Yeshwanthpur-Bengaluru in Karnataka. With this opening, the tally of the hotels managed by the group under The Fern Residency brand goes up to 22 hotels. Located 30 kms away from the Kempegowda International Airport, The Fern Residency, Yeshwanthpur is a mid-scale business and leisure hotel with 64 well appointed rooms. Suhail Kannampilly, COO, The Fern Hotels & Resorts, said, “The Fern Residency, Yeshwanthpur strives to offer excellent services with affordable pricing. I am happy that guests to Bengaluru and local residents will be able to experience our ​services at our second hotel now open in the Garden City.” ​The hotel has large banquet facilities and latest business services​ for the discerning  business traveller​. Guests can enjoy various facilities such as high-speed Wi-Fi, LCD TV, digital in-room safe, in-room tea and coffee, minibar, etc.