TTG ASIA MARCH 2019
DESTINATION: HONG KONG 23
NEW HOTELS
Hotels
Holding steady
While limited four-star inventory downtown could drive rates
up, some foresee the trade war and China’s slowing economy to
exert a greater price pressure, finds Prudence Lui
W
ith almost 5,000 estimated
additional hotel rooms this
year and the closure of the
869-room Excelsior Hong
Kong this month, the industry is divided
on what to expect of hotel rates.
According to STR Global’s perfor-
mance data for 2018, the city’s occupancy
rose by 1.3 per cent to 87.7 per cent. ADR
increased 8.3 cent to US$234.70.
PC Tours and Travel’s general manager
Cary Chiu told TTG Asia: “Hotel busi-
ness was good last year due to the surge of
Chinese travellers. Though there’ll be new
supply from the luxury Rosewood Hong
Kong, my clients typically opt for four-star
hotels.”
Three- and five-star options already
dominate the downtown, and the lack of
four-star choices will only be intensified
with the closure of Excelsior.
Vigor Tours, Greater China manager,
Coral Wu, said hotel rates were too high
and unlikely to come down in the near
future due to the “insufficient” inventory.
However, Destination China’s general
manager, Gunther Homerlein, foresees
little impact from The Excelsior’s closing.
He said: “Right now the rates seem
comparable with 2018 in high-end hotels.
Like us agents, hotels are dealing with a
situation where bookings have short lead
times, while there is a big drop (in de-
mand) from the US. I expect rates to re-
main the same or even lower than 2018.”
Some hotels seem to be winning against
this backdrop. Last year saw the Holiday
Inn Golden Mile grow their market share
and reach record occupancy levels. The
hotel’s general manager Gerhard Aicher is
optimistic of continued growth following
the property’s recent revamp.
“We will see continued growth however
at a slower pace. Several new hotels have
Page148
Page Hotels has launched its 197-
room Page148 at Austin Road,
Tsim Sha Tsui. The hotel offers a
choice of the standard rooms for
two to family rooms for four. A 4G
Pocket Wi-Fi Device is included in
selected room types. Page148 is
a short walking distance to both
Tsim Sha Tsui and Jordan MTR sta-
tions, and just 10 minutes by taxi
from the Express Rail Link.
Hotel Cozi ∙ Oasis
The 583-room Hotel Cozi ∙ Oasis
opened its doors in January 2019,
located 30 minutes from the
airport. Complimentary shuttle
services to MTR Kwai Fong Sta-
tion, MTR Lai Chi Kok Station and
MTR Tsim Sha Tsui Station are
provided. Room sizes range from
16m 2 to 38m 2 with free Wi-Fi and a
smartphone.
Rosewood Hong Kong
Rosewood Hong Kong is opening
on March 17 this month within the
Victoria Dockside district. There are
322 guestrooms, starting at 53m 2 ,
and 91 suites, starting at 92m 2 .
Holiday Inn Golden Mile
Hong Kong
The hotel has unveiled its newly re-
vamped Premier Plus rooms. This
is the most recent round of up-
grades after renovation of shared
spaces such as the lobby and club
lounge as well as restuarants were
unveiled in 2017. The Premier Plus
Room category comprises king,
twin, triple and family room op-
tions.
recently opened or are opening, which will
increase the supply of hotel rooms.
“We (also) see some uncertainties in the
market with the US-China trade conflict
as well as the slowing Chinese economy.”
Dorsett Wanchai Hong Kong also re-
corded double-digit increase in total room
revenue last year over 2017. A spokes-
man remained optimistic about the hotel
business in 2019, especially in the China
market. She said: “We believe the new ad-
ditional room supply will outweigh the
impact of the rooms reduction from The
Excelsior.
20 - 22 APRIL 2019
traveltrademaldives.com
The Excelsior,
Hong Kong