Just over an year ago, Ahmedabad city had a standalone five star hotel Courtyard by Marriott in the upscale segment, apart from a few in mid-scale when it came to international hospitality players. Today, the city already boasts the like of Hyatt, Sheraton, Holiday Inn and Radisson Blu to name a few.
Thanks to the growth in industrial investment as well as the 'Khushboo Gujarat ki' campaign, the presence of international luxurious hospitality players in Ahmedabad has been increasing rapidly.
In the last one year, over 500 luxury and mid-scale rooms have been added in the city, thanks to launch of Hyatt, Four Points by Sheraton, Holiday Inn Express and Radisson Blu, adding to the existing list of names like Courtyard by Marriott and Ramada, among others.
"Hyatt is a very functional hotel and with Ahmedabad being a business city with global travellers, the city will now get an opportunity to explore global flavours through Hyatt. As a city, Ahmedabad depends on consumerism, investments and infrastructure and many foreign companies are coming in, bringing along international travellers which is all the reason for us to be present here. We will look to offer luxurious global flavours for local residents, business as well as leisure travellers," said Girish Ganeshan, General Manager of Hyatt Ahmedabad, the only other five star hotel in the city with 178 rooms.
What's more, the occupancy rates have been competitive as well ever since their launch. For instance, while Ramada, which came up couple of years ago enjoys an occupancy rate of 62 per cent, Hyatt and Marriott boast of 70 and 80 per cent, respectively, according to industry sources.
"While we have been present in Ahmedabad since over a couple of years now, it is only now that Ahmedabad is being equipped to cater to such international brands. Suddenly there is a boom in other sectors and the overall industrial investment growth of Gujarat itself is a major reason. Moreover, the kind of professionalism these international hospitality chains are bringing in, the market will soon change," said Atul Budhraja, general manager at Ramada Hotel, Ahmedabad.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide also recently launched Four Points by Sheraton in Ahmedabad, a 104-room mid-scale business hotel.
"Ahmedabad has come into its own as a leading investment destination. It is seeing tremendous economic growth and overall development. We see strong local demand for branded hotels that people know and trust - the number of midscale hotels in India is currently just 15 percent of its 125,800 hotel rooms and where we see incredible headroom for growth. If you look at domestic trips, Ahmedabad is one of the cities benefitting from a strong domestic market (over 850 million domestic trips were taken in India last year) and where a clear gap exists in the mid-market segment. Holiday Inn Express fits this market perfectly," Douglas Martell, Vice President Operations, South West Asia, InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) which runs the 173 rooms Holiday Inn Express launched recently in Ahmedabad.
And if that is not enough, other upcoming hotels in the upscale segment include Starwood's Aloft, Accor Group's Novotel and IHG's Crowne Plaza in Ahmedabad's SG Highway area.
"Two more five star hotels are expected in Ahmedabad, which is a gateway for global tourists across Gujarat. All these traffic is going to come to these hotels in Ahmedabad. It is a demand driven growth for hospitality industry in Ahmedabad. From 48,000 rooms two years ago, today total number of rooms in Gujarat stand at 64,000 rooms. By 2016, over 100,000 rooms are projected. Both investments and the Khushboo Gujarat Ki campaign featuring Amitabh Bachchan have worked towards driving this growth," said Vipul Mittra, principal secretary - tourism, Government of Gujarat.
