Hotels 'need more than just sprucing up'
Singapore
EVEN as hoteliers engage in asset enhancement, their attention to areas such as ventilation and business travel points to industry expectations about the changing profile of post-pandemic tourism.
A spokesperson for Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) told The Business Times that business travellers' needs are evolving, as some visitors stay longer and "look for novel and more interesting activities".
RWS' Festive Hotel, which is slated for renovation works, will be redesigned as a "business-leisure" and "work-vacation" site targeting business travellers who may have partners or families with them.
Meanwhile, Han Khim Siew, chief executive of OUE Commercial Reit's manager, noted that the Hilton Singapore Orchard's meetings, incentives, conventions and events facilities are fitted out to allow transitions to hybrid events.
He added that "we have future-proofed the property" to accommodate the rise of guests' expectations for safe distancing, enhanced cleanliness and sustainability.
Other changes were already under way pre-pandemic, with the Hilton Singapore Orchard planning from the start to target direct bookings and broaden guest source markets beyond the Asia-Pacific.
"Consumers continue to expect technology offerings to enhance their stay or service experience," Steve Carroll, head of hotels and hospitality at CBRE, also noted.
"Forward-thinking owner and operators are combining technology strategies into their asset and operating plans, to elevate the guest journey and in turn enhance margins via increasing revenue and rationalising the cost base."
And Sashi Rajan, senior vice-president at JLL Hotels & Hospitality, told BT that, "with higher average length of stay and higher spend per head, those tourists should be putting greater emphasis on F&B offerings within the hotels, as well as any other additional services" in the near term.
In the longer run, he expects a return of leisure tourists who stop over on routes such as Europe to Indonesia, or Australia to the West.
READ MORE: Hotels get makeover before anticipated return of international visitors
