Taj Hotels to hike tariffs from Sept

Tata group company the Taj Group of Hotels on Tuesday said it expects room tariffs to go up marginally from September as occupancy level increases in the hospitality industry after suffering slump in the past two years.

"The tariffs will go up marginally," Taj Group of Hotels Senior Vice-President (Sales and Marketing) Ajoy Misra (also Vice-President of Hotel Association of India) said.

He said in the last two years because of the economic downturn and other reasons such as the Mumbai terrorist attack, there was a huge slowdown in the demand, which forced hoteliers to reduce tariff.

"Fortunately the hotels industry has seen occupancy going up in the last two quarters...With demand going up now, from September onwards there will be an upward revision in hotel charges," Misra said.

He, however, declined to quantify by how much the tariffs are expected to go up. As per government estimates, room rates around December often go up to $500 (around Rs 23,300) in Delhi.

However, this year with more rooms expected to be added for the up coming Commonwealth Games being held from October 3-14, the government had said the rates are expected to be in the range of $150-200 (Rs 7,000-9,300). On the occupancy levels, Misra said: "Going ahead in the peak season, we expect an average level of occupancy up to 70 per cent."

The Taj Group of hotels comprises the Indian Hotels Company Ltd (IHCL) and its subsidiaries. It has presence in the luxury, premium, mid-market and value segments of the market through flagship luxury brand 'Taj', spa and resort 'Taj Exotica', wild life lodges 'Taj Safari'.

It also has full-service hotels and resorts 'Upper Upscale Hotels', upscale/mid-market full service hotels and resorts 'The Gateway Hotel' and economy hotels under the Ginger brand.

Commenting on the expansion in the industry, Misra said: "In the last two years, many projects were put on hold. Looking at the way the demand is going up, many more hotels will be opened in the next four five years."

For the Taj Group, he said the company will open 7-8 new hotels in this fiscal across brands. He, however, declined to give details such as investment and the number of rooms to be added through the new hotels.