Category Archives: Hotels

OYO Hotels & Homes has announced that the company has now emerged as the world’s third largest hotel chain (as per room count) as of June 2019. OYO has expanded its presence to 800+ cities, nearly 23,000+ OYO-branded hotels and 850,000 rooms, surpassing the scale of traditional and established hotel chain brands in the world. This growth is backed by a balance sheet of about $1.5 billion, and fueled by the company’s presence in China’s 337 cities with over 500,000 rooms, followed by Indonesia with presence in 80 cities and over 20,000 rooms and 720 hotels and other regions in Asia. Additionally, the UK with presence in 25 destinations and 85 hotels, and more recently the U.S., with a presence in 40 cities and over 68 hotels, have been strong growth drivers. A significant part of its funds is being invested in the business as the company focuses on maintaining its growth momentum across geographies. The company has created over 300,000 direct and indirect job opportunities across India, China, U.S., and the U.K. The recent acquisition of @Leisure has further helped the company strengthen its leadership in the vacation home segment in Europe.

In an exclusive interview to Tourism Breaking News, Vijay Mohan, President of Tour and Travels Association of Andhra Pradesh, said, “We met the tourism minister and discussed about increasing tourism in the region. Among other things, we discussed in detail about starting a Visit Vizag 2020 campaign. We also want to tap a renowned cricketer like Mahendra Singh Dhoni as the brand ambassador. The reason for choosing Dhoni is that in all his media interactions about Vizag, Dhoni has been quoted as saying, ‘This is where I first fell in love.’ It’s a great tag line for us. We also want to develop circuits for religious tourism for which we need to develop the shakti peeths, we also have a wonderful Buddhist circuit.”  

According to the HVS ANAROCK India Hospitality Review 2018, revealed that over 2016 and 2017, new hotel signings in the country remained in the region of ~170 signings, but in 2018, the industry set a record with signing of 201 hotels containing 19,128 keys, signalling a strong growth in investor sentiment. The branded hotel sector comprises of a collection of around 50 hotel companies, each actively competing to find mind share with hotel owners & developers, who are further looking to either convert or build a new property.

The LaLit Suri Hospitality Group is coming up with its new property in Ahmedabad. Jyotsna Suri, Chairperson & Managing Director, LaLit Suri Hospitality Group, says, “We are currently building a new LaLit property in Ahmedabad. It’s situated on the bank of Sabarmati River and should be ready in about 18 months from now.” The hotel will most likely open by next year end and would be the first LaLit hotel in the state of Gujarat.

OYO Hotels is now managing 500,000+ rooms in China and is seeking to invest $100M in quality of infrastructure, service with continued focus on talent. Shella Ng, General Counsel, OYO China, commented, “For the year 2019, we have recognized key priorities, including a deep and wide expansion of OYO’s chain while ensuring a consistent product and service delivery, and high-quality customer experience. To that end, we are continuously working towards establishing the highest standards of quality, compliance, and integrity.”

Located in the heart of Delhi University, North Avenue by Spree is few mins away from the prime shopping hubs and historical places like Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib, Jama Masjid, Red Fort, Raj Ghat. The hotel features 28 well-designed rooms with 24/7 room service, high-speed WiFi, in-room safe deposit, coffee & tea amenities along with a mini-fridge. Treat–the multi-cuisine restaurant renders round the clock in-room dining service.

The tourism sector has been a key source of employment in India, directly accounting for 26.7 million jobs in 2018, according to WTTC India Annual Research 2019. Further, the total jobs from indirect and induced activity was 42.7 million. The number is estimated to reach 43.7 million in 2019, accounting for 8.1% of the total employment in the country. By 2029, the sector is expected to provide employment to nearly 53 million people, directly and indirectly.

A report by India Brand Equity foundation, titled Tourism & Hospitality, revealed that domestic tourists will lead the growth of tourism in terms of spending. The share of foreign tourist spending in 2018 was 12.8 per cent, while that of domestic visitor spending was 87.2 per cent, which was 74.4 per cent more. The report estimated the domestic travel revenues at US$ 215.38 billion in 2018, which is anticipated to further increase to US$ 40.5.8 billion by 2028.

The Fern Hotels & Resorts has opened-The Fern Residency, Satara in Maharashtra, taking the tally to 61 hotels managed by the company. Commenting on the opening of the hotel, the COO of the company, Suhail Kannampilly said, “We are increasing our presence in Maharashtra very rapidly and people of the state are responding to our hospitality in a very positive manner”. The Fern Residency, Satara is a 60-room hotel that offers a roof top restaurant with 2 banquet halls and a gym. The hotel is situated on the Pune-Bangalore National Highway, just 2 kms away from the city center with an easy access to public transport. All the major sightseeing attractions like Kaas Pathar – Valley of Flowers which is world heritage sight declared by UNESCO, Koyna Dam, Bamnoli Thoseghar Waterfall, Sajjangad Fort and Chalkewadi Windmills are in the vicinity.

OYO Hotels & Homes has announced its plans to invest $300 million over the next few years in the U.S. OYO currently offers living spaces in 35 cities and 10 states including Dallas, Houston, Augusta, Atlanta and Miami, and will expand its presence to cities like New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. “We, at OYO, are thrilled to see our business grow in the U.S., our newest home market. We promise to bring new age hospitality experience at a price point you never imagined; select service hotels are finally going to be fun and beautiful,” said Abhinav Sinha, COO, OYO Hotels & Homes, Global. “We are in the largest country in the world when it comes to the hospitality industry and there is a definite need here for chic and comfortable hospitality experiences at prices never thought of before. We are already 50+ OYO Hotels across 35 cities and 10 States and to celebrate our growth, we plan to invest $300 million over the next few years. It’s going to be all about #LivingTheGoodLife at an OYO near you, and we are excited to continue delivering sincerely against our mission,” he added.