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otel managers nationwide have expressed confidence about business in the coming months after occupancy rates in September hit 56 percent '€” the highest in three years.

It was a 2.05 percent increase from to the same period a year earlier. The September occupancy rate was mostly driven by high occupancy in four- and five-star hotels.

Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) executive director Cyprianus Aoer said the trend was expected to continue with the upcoming vacation months at the end of the year and the growth of the tourist sector.

'€œWe will see more increases toward December. It'€™s the end of the year and people will go on vacation. Recreation is a basic need,'€ he said on Tuesday.

He added he was upbeat the government would achieve its target of welcoming an additional 1 million tourists this year.

The government had welcomed 7.1 million foreign tourists as of September, 2.9 million short of its 2015 target. In September alone, the government saw a 9.84 percent year-on-year (yoy) increase of tourist arrivals to more than 869,000.

He said the surge in tourist arrivals was a result of events such as the Tour de Singkarak in West Sumatra. In addition, the government also relaxed one of its regulations, allowing civil servants to hold meetings at hotels.

'€œMany civil servants use hotel facilities for meetings, and that has supported the growth in the last two months. Both [tourism and meetings] will support it [occupancy rates] in the future,'€ he said.

Previously, the Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Ministry banned civil servants from holding meetings at hotels as part of efforts to save state funds. The policy was met with protests from the hotel industry, forcing the ministry to relax the regulation.

Cyprianus said the relaxation could increase occupancy rates in hotels located in remote areas by 10 to 20 percent. Around 40 to 50 percent of revenue at such hotels is from government-related events.

According to him, there has been a shift in people'€™s behavior in terms of comfort and culinary standards as they opt more for starred hotels.

'€œIt might have to do with the rising middle to upper class, both internationally and domestically. I would say that future investment would go to starred hotels to serve that market,'€ he said.

Occupancy in five-star hotels led September'€™s national hotel occupancy rates with 65.32 percent, higher than 61.19 percent month-to-month (mtm), followed by four-star hotels at 58.68 percent.

It was also higher than one-star hotels, which recorded a 42.57 percent occupancy rate.

Jayakarta Hotels president director Adwin Dhanu said his company had seen a surge in occupancy rates at its four-star hotels in Jakarta and Bali on the back of a visa-waiver policy as well as the government allowing civil servants to hold meeting at hotels once again.

'€œIn September, we really felt the impact of the visa-free policy for 90 countries,'€ he said.

He said the company'€™s four-star hotel in Jakarta had seen a 15 percent mtm increase to 65 percent in September, with the rising trend expected to continue in October and November on the back of numerous government meetings.

Meanwhile, he said that its Bali hotel had been recording occupancy rates over 80 percent since June, increasing to 92 percent in September.

'€œFor November, December, the trend usually increases,'€ he said.

Bali led national hotel occupancy rates with 67.65 percent, 3.78 percent higher yoy.

Meanwhile, Sultan Hotel and Residence Jakarta general manager I Nyoman Sarya and Hotel Mulia director of communications Romy Herlambang said that events in Jakarta also supported their hotels'€™ occupancy rates.

'€œWe saw a 30 percent surge from August to September, with the meetings and various events at the nearby Jakarta Convention Center. ['€¦] It usually continues until mid-December,'€ Sarya said.

Jakarta saw a 2.48 percent hotel occupancy rate rise yoy in September to 61.39 percent compared to last year. (fsu)
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