Slow summer months coupled with the impact of the economic downturn may sound like trouble for Middle East hotels – but the outlook is positive, insist hoteliers. Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa resort general manager Arbind Shrestha predicted that the Oman hotel would "maintain the same occupancy levels as last summer or even see a bit of growth". "I don’t think there will be any big drop; I’m not saying it’s going to be easy, but it won’t be bad by any means," he predicted. "I don’t foresee any radical changes.
"In fact, we may still see growth," he continued. "The summer in Oman has stayed in the occupancy range of 35-45% over the last couple of years; we have seen slow but consistent growth of about 5% year-on-year and I do not think that this will change this summer." Shrestha said the property had addressed the downturn by "introducing a lot of value-added proposals for the market". "For example, our ‘Stay-Pay’ deals have been received very well," Shrestha said. "Guests can stay six nights and pay four, or stay four and pay for three. "We are offering the same price we always offer over the season, but adding extra value with the free nights. We have packages for meals, the spa treatments, packages including water sports activities - so customers perceive that they are paying the same amount and get better value."
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Patrick Antaki, general manager of Le Méridien Al Aqah, said the Fujairah hotel’s promotional measures had yielded similar positive results.
"Because we’ve adjusted our rates to a level that seems to be more appropriate today, our volume has actually been very similar to last year – even slightly higher," he revealed.
"We’re running at between 88-98% occupancy, so we can’t complain."
Antaki explained the hotel was beating market gloom by "thinking outside the box" when it came to promotional deals.
"Our summer promotion allows anyone staying from May to August who stays more than two nights to claim a voucher for a third night free," he said.
"We’ve also done things like raise the age at which children can stay free with their parents and offer free transfers to Fujairah; you basically give add-ons, so it becomes cheaper and better value for the consumer.
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