HPL sees gradual resumption in travel
Longer stays anticipated, says senior executive.
INDONESIA will see a gradual resumption in tourism - both domestic and international, as vaccination levels go up and countries come up with ways to achieve a new normal, says the chairman of a leading Singapore hospitality management company with highly successful projects in the country.
"With vaccinations levels increasing and countries coming up with new protocols to deal with the new normal, travel will slowly but surely resume. Indonesia is in a good position to benefit from this as there is both domestic travel and international travel that will help to boost the tourism sector," says Mr Stephen Lau, Chairman, HPL Hotels & Resorts, in an email interview with The Business Times.
Headquartered in Singapore, HPL Hotels & Resorts is a hospitality management company, operated and wholly-owned by a Singapore mainboard listed company, Hotel Properties Limited (HPL), which is helmed by Mr Ong Beng Seng as managing director.
Hotel Properties Limited (HPL) has been an investor in Indonesia for more than 30 years. The country has always been important to HPL as Indonesia has been one of its earliest overseas investments that has done well for the group.
"The new normal will translate to perhaps less frequent travel but when there is travel this will translate to longer stays. Hotels located in natural surroundings providing new experiences with safe distancing will be in demand. And throughout the vast Indonesian archipelago, there is room for many such experiences - from beaches, islands, mountains, forests, historic experiences and even city experiences. And all this supplemented with the warmth of a welcoming people," says Mr Lau.
Asked if he thinks the Indonesian government has been taking the right steps to revive international tourism, he says that it is trying really hard to support the tourism industry in the country.
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"Like all governments it has to look at the longer-term benefit and within its power the government has tried to support the tourism industry with subsidies and legislation to protect staff. While this has caused short term distress with border closures and lockdowns, it is designed to protect the industry and it will stand the industry in good stead to quickly revive when demand does return to Indonesia," says Mr Lau.
"Those industry players, who are able to support the local communities it operates in, have been trying to help supplement the local government initiatives with financial support for medical supplies, such as masks, sanitisers, ventilators and PPE (personal protection equipment). Both the public and private sectors have stood together to help the local communities weather the pandemic."
The HPL Hotels & Resorts chairman says that while the Indonesian government is trying to do as good a job as possible, if the messaging by the central and local governments is coordinated better, such a step would be of great help to the industry.
"It will further help the industry if its messaging both at central and local government level relating to border closures and lockdowns are consistent and clear so that the industry players can act accordingly in line with government policies, he adds.
Meanwhile, as a key tourism industry player in the country, HPL Hotels & Resorts has been taking steps to tide over the current difficult situation caused by the pandemic.
"At the onset of the pandemic, our priority was to ensure the safety of our guests and our staff. We have worked with appointed international medical professionals to develop safety protocols for all our properties. For example, our Four Seasons resorts have appointed Johns Hopkins Medicine International to consult on health and safety decisions during this pandemic," says Mr Lau.
"All our resorts have developed new protocols for heightened cleaning and disinfection, protocols for food preparation and service, testing for guests and staff and protocols for dealing with anyone who tests positive.
"We continue to work in conjunction with like minded parties such as the Temasek Foundation and the Bali government to help support the community with donations of masks, ventilators and PPE. And we continue to support the local community in order to ensure that we stand with them and fight this as one community," he adds.
HPL has two award winning resorts, Four Seasons Resorts Bali at Jimbaran Bay and Four Seasons Resorts Bali at Sayan in Ubud, together with the Hard Rock Hotel in Bali. It also has a Sheraton Belitung Resort in nearby Belitung. And the company operates Hard Rock Cafes in Jakarta and Bali together with a Jamie Oliver Kitchen in Bali.
"We continue to have ongoing hospitality projects in other parts of Indonesia," adds Mr Lau.
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