The hotels in the list of Top Ten Hotels 2005 announced by the Vietnam Tourism Association late last month are cashing in on the growing tourism of Vietnam, even in a present time considered as low season for the hotel industry.

Japanese are the major source of guests at most of the Top Ten Hotels 2005.

Most of the award-winning hotels said their hotels posted good business last year as the award proved, and forecast the same or even better revenue and room occupancy results this year.

Pham Thanh Ha, deputy general manager of the Caravelle Hotel in downtown HCMC, told the Daily that the gross operation profit of the five-star hotel was increasing every year and hoped that it would grow as good as last year.

Ha revealed the hotel's room occupancy of nearly 60% in low season but said the rate would be higher next month, which is the start of the boom time of the year for the hotel industry. Ha expected the room occupancy for 2006 would be 75%, or equivalent to the rate of last year.

Another award winner in HCMC, the New World Hotel Saigon, announced a room occupancy rate of 70% in the current time, when expatriates go on overseas vacation and locals holiday away from cities.

The hotel's general manager Mak Djalali told the Daily that the current occupancy was meaningful in a time when more five-star hotels the Windsor Plaza Hotel in District 5 and the Park Hyatt Saigon in downtown HCMC have come on full stream. "This means tourism in Vietnam keeps growing."

Djalali said the hotel had seen good growth so far this year and expected the sales result of this year was as good as or better than that of last year.

At the Grand Hotel, the rate was also high, always at above 80% in the past two years. The French-architecture hotel under the umbrella of Saigontourist enjoys the advantage of its prime location in the heart of the city, on Dong Khoi Street overlooking the Saigon River.

The award winners of the Top Ten Hotels 2005 in Hanoi have achieved better business results than those in HCMC.

Some hoteliers even said there was not low season for hotels in the capital city this year and pointed out easier visa procedures, more investment in tourism infrastructure, and Vietnam emerging as a safe and attractive destination for foreign tourist.

"It is currently seen as a very 'hot' destination in a number of overseas markets," said Charlotte Gutte, director of sales and marketing at the Sofitel Plaza Hanoi.

The Sofitel Plaza Hanoi proved its room occupancy of 80% in the first half of this year and at least 75% currently, up 10-15% on the same period of last year.

The Melia Hanoi provided the Daily with higher room occupancy at the moment. "We have current occupancy of 89.34%, very high, and it's the highest among five-star hotels in Hanoi. Actually, there is not low season for the past two years," the hotel's general manager Fredrick Arul said.

Arul said the Melia Hanoi attracted nearly 140,000 per-room-night guests and earned revenue of US$12mil last year.

The Melia Hanoi sold less room nights in the first half of this year but posted a higher January-June revenue of US$6.56mil compared to US$5.35mil in the year earlier period. The hotel has set a 2006 target revenue of US$14.5mil.

Top markets

Japanese are the major source of guests at most of the Top Ten Hotels 2005, which are New World Saigon, Hanoi Hotel, Caravelle, Sofitel Plaza Hanoi, Melia Hanoi, Rex, Grand, Huong Giang, De Nhat and Ana Mandara Nha Trang.

Arul told the Daily that Japanese account for 12% of the total number or the largest source of guests at the hotel, followed by Vietnamese, Americans, Koreans, Australian and Germans.

Japanese also top the list of room guests at the Sofitel Plaza Hanoi, or over 23% of the total number, Like at the Melia Hanoi, Americans rank third in the list after French.

Gutte believed Japan still would contribute the largest number of visitors to Vietnam in the second half as Japan remains the number one Asian country in terms of foreign investment in Vietnam.

The Japanese population also has a deep love for travel and short haul destinations with a difference such as Vietnam are in high demand. Direct flights from Japan to Vietnam are also an important factor.

In HCMC, the New World Saigon also benefits much from the Japanese market. "Japan is the number one market for the hotel right now but the largest growth has been from the US. The number of American guests started to grow a year ago when United Airlines served its flights, and the number will be greater in the future," Djalali said.

Arul said in support of Djalali that the US will contribute the largest number of visitors to Vietnam given Asia-Pacific Tourism Association's estimation that the number of American tourists travelling to Vietnam will reach half a million in 2006.

Gutte said France, Taiwan and Korea would also continue dominating the inbound tourist markets. Djalali of the New World and Ha of the Caravelle agreed and named Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and Russia in the list of major and potential markets for Vietnam.

To attract more international tourists, hoteliers proposed develop more cultural tours, products and other attractions unique of Vietnam. "You need to make Vietnam as a destination to be Vietnam and make sure whatever you want to attract people involves Vietnamese culture," Djalali said.

Arul said Vietnam's accession to the World Trade Organization possibly this year lays ahead both opportunities and challenges as it requires a more competitive business. "Vietnam should also do more improvement in infrastructure and logistics services."

(Source: SGT)