Plaza Athenee to renovate amid fierce competition in capital
Since there is already an oversupply of rooms in Bangkok due to an influx of international hotel chains, Plaza Athenee Bangkok has decided to take some time off and renovate all its rooms so it can offer visitors a "brand new experience", the hotel's gene
Choo-Leng Goh, general manager at the five-star hotel, which comes under the umbrella of Royal Meridien, said the management was currently conceptualising the design, which would focus on Thai contemporary style equipped with leading-edge technology to meet customers’ lifestyles.
“The hotel is already 12 years old and we need to refresh its look because the market is changing. We also want to update the trend in order to cash in on the change in customer behaviour,” Goh said.
She explained that the new rooms would work with smart devices and help guests stay connected with the digital world.
Though Goh declined to disclose how much the renovation would cost, she did say that the overhaul of the 374-room property would be done in phases starting from summer next year and should be completed in the
next two years.
She noted that over the past couple of years, there has been fierce competition in the hotel business in Bangkok thanks to a parade of new hotels. Besides, she said, her hotel has had to increase its room rates by 3 to 5 per cent per year just to offset the inflation.
According to Jones Lang LaSalle’s Hotels and Hospitality Group, up to 8,000 hotel rooms across all segments are in the pipeline between 2013 and 2015, which will possibly further limit revenue growth in the short term.
Goh explained that her key strategy to drive business growth this year was to leverage meeting facilities in the hotel. Plaza Athenee achieves 70-per-cent occupancy most of the year, and meetings and business travellers account for 80 per cent of the total revenue.
