HOTELS
Some equally strong words are reserved for the region’s hoteliers. While the crisis forced hotels here to dramatically slash their rates to attract guests during the downturn, Kanoo remains unconvinced that they have learnt from past mistakes and with the tourism sector now reviving, hotels once again risk pricing themselves out of the market with inflated room rates.
“I would strongly suggest to the hotels in the region – they have this done in the past and I hope they learn from this – do not ‘gouge’ your customer. I know the number of hotels here is limited but then so is the entertainment that a hotel guest would have.
“Tourism is still young,” he adds. “There is still a lot to do here before it becomes a major attractions point. If you keep doing that to your customers, eventually you will lose them.
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The more discerning ones will find alternatives. If I was to charge the same rate as that of a hotel in London or Paris or New York, and I cannot provide them the same entertainment factor of London or Paris or New York – well what do you think?”
THE FUTURE
Kanoo is optimistic that things are now picking up for the travel sector as those “silly policies” that companies put in place during last year’s reccession – otherwise known as corporate travel bans and travel spending cuts – are finally being rescinded.
“Fortunately some companies have looked at it and said, it was a silly policy, let’s go back to what is the norm, and I can see the trend is moving towards readjusting that aspect, so I’d say [the travel sector] has revived, to a certain degree it has recovered.”
But as to the future of the travel agency - well, with airlines no longer paying commission and the internet taking a bigger slice of bookings every year, Kanoo says its only the “serious travel agencies that will survive”.
He predicts a rash of consolidation and smaller shop closures in the future. “Travel agencies that rely on making a living off commission - they are going to die a natural death,” he says.
“In a zero commission environment, watch and see it won’t take very long. You should start seeing these smaller shops shutting down. Unless of course they are a front for something else...” he adds, (when I ask what that could be he suggests money laundering as one plausible option.)
For a “serious travel agency” like Kanoo Travel there are other concerns. With 96 percent of the company business now coming from corporate accounts, the focus going forward is to take ultimate care of these clients.
“Our main concern – and this is paramount for us – is to service our current customer base and to ensure that they are satisfied and happy with the service they are getting. And to find out what do to keep them as happy customers – that’s our main goal.
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