| Tourism boom creates imbalance in hotel demand, supply |
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India’s tourism industry is booming like never before this season, with hotel rooms at several major destinations, including the national capital, going for hefty premiums owing to supply constraints.
India’s tourism industry is booming like never before this season, with hotel rooms at several major destinations, including the national capital, going for hefty premiums owing to supply constraints.
The country in fact, hopes to finally cross the three million mark this year with inflows of 2.6 million tourists till October. In volume, the growth in tourist traffic this year is over 25 percent and in value around 40 percent, said a tourism ministry official.
The travel industry has reported business growth of anywhere between 20-70 percent this year following an increase in airlines’ capacity and consequential growth in tourist traffic.
Thus, for those who like to travel at a whim, this is certainly not the time to do so, warn industry bigwigs.
The imbalance in demand and supply is such that tourists are being turned away from hotels in some destinations, the tourism ministry official said.
We have received complaints of customers being bumped off despite confirmed bookings. And wherever the image of the country is affected, we have assured the travel trade industry that we would intervene, the official told IANS.
Last week, the ministry was forced to intervene as a 26-member group from Australia was informed at the eleventh hour that there was no confirmed booking for it at a five-star heritage hotel in Jodhpur.
The group had received confirmation earlier.
It was only after the intervention of the tourism ministry at the request of their Australian counterpart that the hotel in Jodhpur gave back the bookings, said Subhash Goyal, president of the Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO).
But the group was accommodated only for a day, even though it had confirmation for three days, he said, adding that hotel rooms were being let out at hefty premiums in several places.
In fact, at some destinations like Jaipur and Jodhpur, tourists are being charged above published tariffs. We have received several complaints and have had to intervene in many cases, Goyal told IANS.
Major travel houses corroborated that hoteliers are taking advantage of the heavy rush of tourists to make affordable rooms unavailable or to refuse bookings.
We did have to turn away some of the overseas clients as the special category of rooms they were seeking were not available. In some cases, the clients agreed to lower ratings, said T. N. Bhat, head of inbound travel at Mercury Travel.
We are not geared for such rush. The problem of hotel rooms is more in places like Delhi and Rajasthan. Kerala is better equipped to handle tourists of all classes, unlike the northern region where many three star hotels are not up to the mark, he said.
Along with higher foreign tourist arrivals, the healthy economic growth is resulting in a rise in corporate travel, said Madan Kak, TCI India’s area manager for inbound travel (north India).
With the boom in business, hotels have resorted to yield management to maximise revenue. They are trying to push higher priced rooms that otherwise had less demand. Many have upgraded facilities and are charging more.
Tour operators said reports of overlapping bookings were not uncommon, but the hotel industry refuted charges of such malpractices among classified hotels.
As far as I know, no good hotelier would cancel confirmed bookings or charge beyond published tariff released in October, said Deepak Sharma, secretary general of the Hotels and Restaurants Association of India, northern chapter.
He said good hotel rooms were difficult to find, particularly in Jaipur, Jodhpur and Delhi, where the India International Trade Fair is in full swing.
This is the peak season. After two years, we are really having a good business with over 80 percent bookings in all the higher category hotels in the plains, said Sharma.
In the hill regions though, the story is entirely different.
--Indo-Asian News Service
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| Kashmir solution stares one in the face - Nov 22, 2004 12:39 IST |
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Every recent visit by an Indian prime minister to the troubled state of Kashmir has infused new hope into the situation.
While Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s earlier trip paved the way for what has been described as the first free and fair elections in the state since 1977, his successor Manmohan Singh’s visit has the makings of the opening of a new chapter mainly as a result of his decision to begin withdrawing troops from the state.
Arguably, even more than the Rs.240 billion ($5.3 billion) package of assistance promised by the prime minister, it is the departure of the soldiers that will be welcomed by the local people.
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| South Africa seen as India’s rival in outsourcing - Nov 22, 2004 12:38 IST |
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South Africa may emerge as India’s rival in business process outsourcing, thanks to its better infrastructure, low labour costs and cultural advantages.
The number of call centres in South Africa will double in four years, says a study, South Africa: An emerging offshore location, conducted by Britain-based independent market analyst Datamonitor.
Offshore agent positions are also expected to quadruple from the current levels, says the report made available to IANS. Agent positions are terminals from which call centre operators make and receive telephone calls to internal or external customers. Multiple agents can use the same agent positions during varying shifts in a day.
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| Radio helps reach out to Indian expatriates - Nov 22, 2004 12:37 IST |
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An attempt to reach out to the Indian diaspora via the airwaves of Australia is drawing attention as an encouraging success story.
Indian expatriates in Australia can hear their own languages on the air - even if only for a few hours each week.
Australia officially argues that community radio initiatives can play a role in enhancing the mutual understanding and cooperative spirit that underpins the tolerant and harmonious Australian society.
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| South Africa 230/4 at stumps - Nov 21, 2004 13:27 IST |
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South Africa Saturday were 230 for four at close on the opening day of the first cricket Test against India at the Green Park Stadium here.
Andrew Hall (78) and Boeta Dippenaar (46) were together at stumps.
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| Muslim leader opposes Kanchi seer’s arrest - Nov 21, 2004 13:25 IST |
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All India Muslim Personal Law Board general secretary Maulana Syed Nizamuddin flayed the arrest of Kanchi Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswathi.
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| Manmohan wins Manipur hearts amid shutdown - Nov 21, 2004 13:23 IST |
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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday sought to win hearts in Manipur with promises of peace and development and was loudly cheered even as a boycott call by rebels ensured a shutdown in most parts.
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| Manmohan launches historic Manipur railway project - Nov 21, 2004 13:21 IST |
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Till Saturday, bizarre as it may sound, the northeastern state of Manipur had a mere 1.5 km of rail track.
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| Jubilation as Manmohan hands over historic Kangla Fort - Nov 21, 2004 13:17 IST |
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Hundreds of people in India’s troubled northeastern state of Manipur shed tears of joy as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday formally handed over to the local government the historic Kangla Fort, a symbol of Manipuri culture and pride.
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| Give up arms, Manmohan urges Manipur separatists - Nov 21, 2004 13:15 IST |
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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday appealed to all separatist groups in Manipur to give up arms and open peace talks with the government.
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| Bohra cleric goes missing - Nov 21, 2004 13:11 IST |
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A leading cleric of the Bohra sect has been missing for two days, police said.
Amil Saheb Abdul Qadir, 28, an influential figure of the sect, went missing Thursday while returning to Surat from Mumbai by Ajmer Express.
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| India hopes to bid for 2016 Olympics: Manmohan - Nov 21, 2004 13:9 IST |
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India hopes to bid for the 2016 Olympic Games, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Saturday.
We are hosting the 2010 Commonwealth Games and would like to bid for the 2016 Olympic Games, the prime minister said while addressing the ninth convocation of Manipur University here.
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| Manmohan reaches out to Manipuris, urges rebels - Nov 21, 2004 13:7 IST |
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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday called upon militant groups to shun violence and talk peace during a hectic day-long visit to Manipur when he launched work on its first railway network, and promised to review a controversial anti-terrorist law.
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| Hall leads South Africa’s charge in first Test - Nov 21, 2004 13:5 IST |
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Andrew Hall scored an unbeaten 77 to help South Africa to 230 for four after Anil Kumble threatened to spin the visitors out on the first day of their first cricket Test match against India at the Green Park here.
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| HDFC hikes home loans rates by 50 basis points - Nov 21, 2004 12:59 IST |
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Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC), the country’s largest housing finance company, Saturday announced an increase of 50 basis points in its floating interest rate on home loans.
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| Manmohan extends healing mission to Manipur - Nov 21, 2004 12:55 IST |
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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday extended his healing mission from Jammu and Kashmir to Manipur as the people of the insurgency-hit state defied a curfew imposed by an underground outfit and came out in large numbers to cheer him.
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| Advani, BJP fast for Shankaracharya - Nov 21, 2004 12:54 IST |
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Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president L.K. Advani Saturday observed a day’s hunger strike against the arrest of Hindu pontiff Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswathi even as the party snapped ties with Tamil Nadu’s ruling AIADMK over the issue.
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| Madras High Court declines Kanchi seer bail - Nov 21, 2004 12:54 IST |
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A Madras High Court judge Saturday rejected the bail application of Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswathi, while another judge posted for Monday a state plea to extend his police custody by one more day.
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| 60 percent vote for Madhya Pradesh urban bodies - Nov 21, 2004 12:52 IST |
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Amidst stray incidents of violence, between 60 to 65 percent of voters Saturday cast their ballots for electing representatives to the 144 urban bodies spread across Madhya Pradesh.
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| Indian shares seen in consolidation mode in week ahead - Nov 21, 2004 12:50 IST |
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After touching a nine-month high in the past week, India’s benchmark share market index is expected to consolidate its gains in the coming sessions with investors adopting a cautious approach.
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| Pakistani visitors add to Punjab cultural galas - Nov 21, 2004 12:48 IST |
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Leading cities in Punjab are awash with colourful cultural events, and making the mood even more festive is the bonhomie with Pakistani participants.
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