H

otel numbers will continue to rise not only in Bali but in the capital city of Jakarta as well.

A major tourist destination in the country, Bali Island is still seen as lucrative for developing hospitality facilities, specifically hotels in the three-star or higher category.

 In 2016, the Island of the Gods will see the development of 50 hotels, with a total of 8,283 rooms. Of the 50 hotels planned, 12 of them are three-star hotels, 23 are four-star hotels and 15 are five-star.

 This means that there will be a 100 percent increase in the number of hotel development projects on the island compared to that in 2015. Last year, around 25 new hotels opened their doors on Bali Island.

 Bali, named the World'€™s Best Island by the Conde Nast Traveler Best of Reader'€™s Choice Award 2015, remains a favorite destination for international tourists. This is the major draw for developers in building hotels on the island.

 '€œData from the Bali Tourism Board, as of October 2015, tourists from Australia numbered at 821,214 people. The number shows an increase of 1.04 percent compared to the same period in 2014,'€ said Ferry Salanto, associate director of research for Colliers International Indonesia.

Besides Australia, other potential markets for Bali tourism are those of China and India. The increasing number of tourists coming from China was evident in the last three years, kompas.com reported.

 This phenomenon is, to some extent, the result of the policies set by the government, including compulsory Mandarin language courses for local tour guides and the opening of direct flights to and from Guangzhou.

 '€œTo support the growing Chinese market, Garuda Indonesia plans to launch a direct route to and from Shanghai. The new route is set to be inaugurated before the Lunar New Year,'€ Ferry added.

 As for India, the island has seen an increase of tourists from the country in the last two years.

 The Bali Tourism Board reported that 90,406 tourists from India had visited Bali by October 2015. The number shows an increase of 27.37 percent from the previous year.

Market expansion

The Switzerland-based hotel chain, Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts, has confirmed its intention to expand the hotel chains portfolio with a new hotel in Jimbaran, Bali, in 2016.

The Mövenpick Resort & Spa Jimbaran is the company'€™s strategic move to expand its market in Southeast Asia. Aside from the Island of the Gods, in the same period the company will also commence operations of Mövenpick Resort Boracay in the Philippines.

'€œWe want to expand our chain hotel in Southeast Asia, the region seen as a lucrative market for high-tier hospitality concepts such as Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts,'€ said Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts senior vice president for Asia, Andrew Langdon.

Mövenpick Resorts and Spa Jimbaran is developed and owned by PT Summarecon Agung, with the development requiring around Rp 1 trillion.

Of the Rp 1 trillion, Rp 600 billion is for construction and Rp 400 is billion for acquiring 3.8 hectares of land.

After Indonesia and the Philippines, the company plans to open hotels in Malaysia (Mövenpick Hotel Kota Bahru) and Vietnam (Mövenpick Resort Cam Ranh Bay). The company eyes 2018 for the completion of these two projects.

 Mövenpick Hotel Kota Bahru will have 453 rooms, while Mövenpick Resort Cam Ranh Bay will have 250 rooms, 100 residences and 100 villas on 20 hectares.

 '€œOur strategy is to open at least 15 properties by 2020,'€ Langdon added.
 
Jakarta'€™s market

The rising number of accommodation facilities development is seen not only in Bali but also in several other cities, including Jakarta.

Even though hotel and accommodation sector did not show significant progress throughout 2015, more hotels have been developed in the city.

In 2016 as many as, 39 new hotels will offer 7,135 rooms. Seven of them are budget hotels, 10 of them are three-star hotels, 15 are four-star hotels, and the other five are five-star hotels.

This is despite the average occupancy rate (AOR) showing only moderate growth at 2.7 percent to 59.1 percent. Meanwhile, the average daily rate (ADR) shows a 0.15 percent decline to US$ 82.02.

 Senior associate director of investment services at Colliers International Indonesia Aldi Garibaldi commented on the decision to ease up on a ministerial circular on the prohibition of conducting meetings at hotels.

'€œBesides, it is expected that demand will increase this year for meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE), such as music concerts and sporting events,'€ Aldi told kompas.com, in Jakarta recently.

 With reference to the number of visits in 2015, there is a big opportunity for improvement in the hotel industry.

Data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) said that by October 2015, there was an increase of 1.3 percent in arrivals at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport to 1,900,459 people. From the total number of arrivals, 3.36 percent of them were foreign tourists.(JP)