Mariott Intl to add 400 service apts

To tap the market created by the extended stay of foreign travellers to the country, Marriott International has identified two companies to launch about 200 service apartments each in Delhi and Chennai.

Service apartments are largely aimed at foreign travellers who want to enjoy the luxury of staying with a five or four star hotel, at a lesser cost (close to 20 per cent lesser than a room in star hotels) with a built-in pantry and kitchen.

With a large number of top management officials of international companies travelling to India for a month to six months for their business activities, service apartments are booming in cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad.

John Toomey, director of marketing-India, told Business Standard that it was in talks with two companies which would be the key investors in the service apartment projects. The deals are expected to be finalised in the next two months. He, however declined to disclose the name of the companies.

"The soaring real estate prices in Bangalore have made the managers of international chain hotels look to Delhi and Chennai," he said. Mariott International manages a building of 177 service apartments in Mumbai, which was established in 2001.

The proposed 400 service apartments would take at least two years to complete, Toomey said. The investment on 200 service apartments is estimated between Rs 100 crore and Rs 160 crore.