In an interaction with Travel Trade Insider, Sharad K Upadhyay, General Manager, Crowne Plaza Greater Noida shares the current status of demand from different verticals and insight into the recovery of the hospitality segment.
Q. How is the current demand that you are witnessing at present vis-a-vis pre-pandemic numbers? Is the demand mainly from domestic markets?
A. As travel continues to return, we see a rapid and gradual shift to pre-pandemic levels of demand. In fact, in multiple segments, the occupancy demand is at par or higher than pre-pandemic demand. With the strong tailwinds of H1, H2 is expected to be stronger too. The demand that is driven today is from both domestic and international, leisure as well as business.
Q. The outlook for the hospitality sector is looking positive as per industry observers, going forward how do you see ARRs and occupancies shaping up?
A. The occupancy is back, driven by strong MICE, weddings, and to some extent the corporate segment. With the hybrid model still in place for many big companies, corporate travel will be slow to recover. By Q4 of 2022, most of the metro hotels would be back on track both in terms of occupancy and ADRs. The leisure destinations will continue to enjoy seasonal demand and supply effects. International travel will be affected partly due to Russia and Europe crisis. Having said that, I personally expect 2023 to be a spectacular year for the overall tourism industry.
Q. Is demand from the wedding segment back on track for your hotel?
A. Yes, it is. With a dedicated Crowne Meetings team and a 50,000 square ft. of banqueting space, we have a competitive edge that our guests prefer. We also have a large room inventory of 400 rooms, giving us the muscle to cater to large-scale weddings and incentives demand. With new experiences being introduced across our hotel to cater to the changing guest preferences, we have seen a promising jump in the wedding APC (Average Per Cover) and a good increase in the number of residential weddings.
Q. There are reports that the corporate segment has been slow in recovering as compared to the leisure segment demand. How do you view the present and future demand from corporate and MICE segments?
A. Corporate travel is very sensitive to any kind of risks associated with travel. The Russian crisis and the pandemic still in sight lend to that risk. Due to these, corporate events and exhibitions are making a slow return. The good news is that the organizations are slowly moving away from the restrictions they had implemented earlier during the crisis. Domestic corporate travel will gain momentum by September 2022 while the international corporate travel demand may take until Q1 next year to gain momentum.
Q. In the pandemic world have you seen a change in your distribution channel strategy? Are there more bookings that are now coming directly to you?
A. There is a strong inclination for our guests to book directly with us because safety and assurance are of paramount value now. The distribution system at IHG is powerful and with an enhanced and a new avatar of our IHG 1 Rewards club, we see strong gravitation towards our own channels. Moreover, with strong incentive programs for our bookers and business partners, we enjoy a large portion of business coming directly to us. Bookings through our GDS system too is rapidly increasing month-on-month.