 "Oyo to open 50 properties in Ayodhya, places big bets on religious cities")
Indian multinational hospitality chain Oyo on Thursday said that in 2023, it will add 50 properties in Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya.
According to an Economic Times report, of these 50 properties, 25 properties will be homestays that will be run by homeowners, and the rest 25 will be small and medium size hotels that will accommodate between 10 to 20 rooms each.
There has been a consistent rise in the number of tourists visiting Ayodhya over the last few years as the city infrastructure is getting rejuvenated. The Uttar Pradesh government expects that tourism in Ayodhya will boost ten times by 2024, once the construction work and development of the Ram Temple are completed. UP government is spending nearly Rs 30,000 crore for Ayodhya's transformation, with the aim of making it a spiritual centre with a global appeal, said the report.
Along with the development of the spiritual city, the Yogi Adityanath government is also working towards the restoration and preservation of heritage sites which includes Ram Katha Park and the development of a Ramayana Museum.
The report also added, "The company said it is being 'actively supported' by Ayodhya Development Authority and Uttar Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation to start these properties in a time-bound manner." The company also devised a robust action plan for the development after several rounds of meetings were held with the state government to understand their concerns.
Oyo's data from January 2022-September 2022 period revealed that the revenue of hotels onboarded on the platform has doubled in just a period of three months as compared to independent hotels of a similar size.
Commenting on its expansion plans in India in 2023, the company said that it is betting big on religious corridors like Ayodhya.
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In 2017, 15 million tourists visited Ayodhya, and nearly 20 million in 2019. The number however dipped during Coronavirus years, but in 2022, it rebounded again, when more than 22 million visited the holy place.