Taj Airport Garden Rebranded as The Gateway Hotel with an Investment of $10mn

12th May 2011, www.dailynews.lk, By Charumini De Silva

The Taj Airport Garden hotel was rebranded as The Gateway Hotel yesterday. This is the first Gateway Hotel launched outside India.

Speaking at the strategic announcement the Indian Hotels Company Ltd., Gateway Hotels, Chief Operating Officer, P.K Mohankumar said the Gateway Hotel is expanding its capacity with an investment of US$ 10 million, while adding another 100 rooms. The expansion project will be completed by end 2012.

The Gateway Hotel primarily caters to the up-scale business travellers, while entertaining the lifestyle holiday travellers as well. The business travellers mainly look for the efficiency, accountability and entertainment.

“Sri Lanka is now on the development path and the country is rich in all sources to benchmark itself as a tourist destination. Like the Tata Group many global giants have conducted market researches before they tap into the market. Sri Lanka is now one of the potential destinations, hence it is timely and vital to build hotels to cater all forms of tourist segments,” Mohankumar said.

Sri Lanka has got the cosmopolitan touch during the post-war era as many of the hotel quickly moved forward with refurbishments and new hotels. I must sincerely pay my gratitude to those hoteliers, which sustained their business even during the hardships that the tourism industry had to undergo. In parallel to the industry growth fusion of infrastructure development has to take off fast. Human resource development needs to be addressed at this point; aiming in developing the skills and language proficiency.

The Gateway Hotel will be constructed in an environmental friendly manner. The hospitality and the hotel industry highly depend on nature and it is our responsibility to respect as we feel it is mandatory, he said. He said The Gateway Hotel has performed extremely well during the past 25 years and is looking forward for further expansions in Sri Lanka.

The brand plays a critical role in positioning and promoting, especially when it comes to the business travellers. The Gateway Hotel brand itself has gained so much trust and accountability among the travellers. Although it is the off-season, there is an occupancy rate of around 80 percent at The Gateway Hotel. The hotel will not increase its tariff. However, with the expansions the company expects to increase the prices up to US$ 120-125.

It is important to have different market segments and different price points for these segments when benchmarking as a tourist destination.

The recent bold step taken by the Government in increasing the minimum hotel room price is well received by travellers. However, it is vital for the industry to continue the impetus,” Mohankumar said.

Related Info :

• Sri Lanka Taj Hotels Rebraded and Upgared. Taj Samudra, Taj Vivanta Bentota & The Gateway Hotel Airport Garden Seeduwa Seen a Dramatic Turn Around

• Sri Lanka Taj Samudra Hotel in Colombo May Build another in the Same Premises

Sri Lanka Taj Samudra Hotel in Colombo May Build another in the Same Premises

14th January 2011, www.lankabusinessonline.com

Investors connected to Taj Samudra hotel in Sri Lanka's capital Colombo may build another hotel in the same premises, economic development minister Basil Rajapaksa said.

The Taj Samudra hotel is controlled by Taj Asia, a joint venture between India's Tata and Cinnovation, a firm owned by Nepali entrepreneur Binod Chaudhary.

The hotel is operated by Taj Resorts.

Rajapaksa said Taj may build another hotel in the same premises after meeting Chaudhary who is currently visiting Colombo to open a re-built hotel belonging to Sri Lanka's Jetwing group. Chaudhary's Cinnovation has stakes in Jetwing hotels.

Taj Samudra is located by the 'Galle Face' beachfront in Colombo. The beach front is to get two new hotels from Hong Kong based Shangri La group and a Chinese state aviation firm.

Sri Lanka is going through a tourism boom after the end of a 30-year war in May 2009.

In 2010 arrivals were up 46 percent. Room rates are rising around the country and occupancy in hotels are also high.

The Taj group said late last year that the existing 5-star Taj Samudra may go through a 60 million US dollar upgrade. The group manages a 4-star hotel near Sri Lanka's main international airport and also has a beach resort in the Southwest coast.

Related Info :
• Sri Lanka Taj Hotels Rebraded and Upgared. Taj Samudra, Taj Vivanta Bentota & The Gateway Hotel Airport Garden Seeduwa Seen a Dramatic Turn Around.

Sri Lanka Taj Hotels Rebraded and Upgared. Taj Samudra, Taj Vivanta Bentota & The Gateway Hotel Airport Garden Seeduwa Seen a Dramatic Turn Around

24th September 2010, www.lankabusinessonline.com

India's Taj group is looking for opportunities in Sri Lanka's war-torn eastern coast and a city hotel it controls will also need 30 to 35 million US dollars to be upgraded to fit the group's new brand portfolio, officials said.

The listed Taj Samudra hotel in Sri Lanka's capital Colombo has 300 rooms.

"It will take 30 to 35 million US dollars to re-do this property," executive director finance of Taj Resorts and Hotels, Anil Goel said.

The group is now evaluating the property to decide where to place it on the group's new portfolio of brands, he said.

Listed Taj Samudra is majority controlled by the Taj group.

Taj also owns a 50 percent stake in Taj Exotica, a 160 room resort in Sri Lanka's South West coast, which has been re-branded as 'Taj Vivanta Bentota' from this week.

It also manages a 130-room hotel near Sri Lanka's only international airport. The Taj Airport Garden hotel, owned by Sri Lanka's Hirdramani group will be put under 'The Gateway Hotel' brand from January 2011.

Its owners are upgrading 40 rooms and building 100 new rooms to increase capacity.

Taj is now evaluating the Colombo property to decide which brand to place it under.

Chief executive Raymond Bickson said the group has been scouting opportunities in the war-torn eastern province of Sri Lanka which has long undeveloped stretches of beach.

Goel said all three properties in Sri Lanka have seen a "dramatic turnaround" in the past few months which had made the group more confident about investing in Sri Lanka.

He said room rates have moved up from around 60 US dollars a day to near 100 dollars and is trending up, unlike during the war years. Occupancy was up.

"Unfortunately we could not command the rates (during the war years)," Goel said.

"There is no correlation between investment vis-a-vis the return from the market."

India itself sends more tourists to Sri Lanka than any other country. Up to August 2010, arrivals were up 46 percent to 397,000. Indian visitors were up 63 percent to 73,400.