HOTELS SEE SIGNAL OF ‘REVENGE TRAVEL’
Hotels are seeing a surge in enquiries and bookings at their properties in leisure destinations ahead of the unlocking that various state governments are expected to announce in the next few weeks.
The real picture, however, will emerge after states unlock, pointed out hotel executives. Owing to the magnitude of the crises unleashed by the pandemic's second wave and the psychological impact, the drive to a meaningful recovery this time around may take a while longer.
“We do expect leisure travel to kick in from June and for things to improve further from the second quarter,” says Manav Thadani, founder and chairman at Hotelivate, a hotel consulting firm.
But the trend will be visible only after four to six weeks. Thadani doesn’t expect a sharp V-shaped recovery or the so-called revenge travel trend like last time, owing to the severity of the second wave.
Parveen Chander, senior vicepresident (V-p)-sales and marketing at Indian Hotels (IHCL), concurs. Though the booking and enquiry trend for June is encouraging, it is still lower year-on-year and not comparable with what one saw in February and March, when the bookings were strong, says Chander.
“We are seeing some pick-up in both enquiries and bookings. However, these are for the short-term since the booking window has narrowed. We expect the trend to increase once the lockdowns are lifted. We are seeing many enquiries for social events like weddings and celebrations for this winter. We are also seeing an interest from corporates for offsites, albeit in smaller numbers,” adds Chander.
At its peak, India registered over 400,000 active Covid cases in a single day in May, resulting in stringent lockdowns, travel restrictions, and mandatory reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT- PCR) tests. This led to a sharp drop in occupancies and booking cancellations for airlines and hotels.
A decline in fresh cases and rampup in vaccination are being seen as positive triggers for the revival of the travel sector.
The penetration of the vaccine is helping bolster confidence in travel, and the sense we get is that there is a lot of interest in both resort and city destinations, says a spokesperson for ITC Hotels.
“This year, starting second quarter (Q2), there are a number of key wedding dates which are increasingly getting booked. However, the scale of these weddings will depend on the mandates of the relevant authorities in each city,” adds the spokesperson.
But Kerrie Hannaford, V-pcommercial, Accor India & South Asia, that runs hotel chains under brands including Sofitel, Swissotel, Novotel, and Ibis, among others, is not willing to read much into the initial trend just yet.
“It’s slightly premature to comment on the winter bookings/enquiries at this stage when recovery from the second wave of Covid-19 is still underway,” says Hannaford.
She expects the pace of bookings to improve once states start to unlock. “Currently, guests prefer to book with shorter lead time, given the uncertainty,” adds Hannaford.
In a note to investors after its fourthquarter earnings, Makemytrip said it remains “cautiously optimistic about domestic travel recovery starting from Q2 of the financial year ended March 31, 2022”.
The extent of the effect of the Covid19 pandemic on the business, operations, cashflows, and growth prospects remains uncertain and will hinge on future developments.
While many countries have begun the process of vaccinating their citizens, the large-scale logistics of distributing the vaccines, their efficacy against new variants of the virus may contribute to delays in economic recovery, it cautioned.
Meanwhile, to tide over the current lull, hotels are offering long-stay packages at attractive rates.
ITC, for instance, has recently launched the ‘Rejuvenate & Recharge’ package. It is a specially crafted longstay package meant for guests who may want to isolate themselves or simply want a safe staycation with family and friends.
Select hotels in the hills, like Welcomhotel Chail, Welcomhotel Shimla, Welcomhotel The Savoy, Mussoorie, and Welcomhotel Pahalgam, are also offering activities for children and other enticements.
“The hills and beaches are normally the quickest to recover. This time, we are seeing a lot of interest being generated for these hotels,” says a spokesperson for Welcomgroup.
At Accor hotels, on opting for a minimum 14-night stay, one can save up to 40 per cent on stay, plus get an additional 20 per cent discount on dining and laundry services.
At IHCL’S amã Stays & Trails, a branded homestay product, guests can book an entire bungalow and enjoy their own private haven of tranquility under the ‘Bungalow is Yours’ scheme. It even allows guests to take their pets along. IHCL is also seeing good traction for its properties at driveable distance from cities.