SEVEN years after they opened, a five-star international hotel chain in Cebu has implemented a P100 million renovation of their 228 deluxe rooms to keep up with the competitive tourism industry in the province.
Cathay International Resources Corp., the owner of Marco Polo Plaza Cebu, has been planning to make major renovations in the hotel rooms since last year to sustain the hotel’s premier position in Cebu, said Kyra Cabaero, Marco Polo Plaza Cebu press communications officer.
“We started with the renovations February this year and we are targeting to finish everything before December which is usually a peak period for hotels,” said Cabaero.
Renovations of four floors or about 92 out of the 228 deluxe rooms have been completed.
Marco Polo Plaza has 329 rooms which includes deluxe rooms, suites and Continental Club rooms.
Cabaero said that the hotel is set to renovate their suites but no final schedule as to when they will be rolling out the next phase of upgrading has been reached.
“With the renovations, we aim to give the hotel’s rooms a modern design, and integrate new trends in design and furnishing styles. Improvements in the bathroom and lighting design are also being implemented through our design consultant Carlo Cordaro,” said Cabaero.
Occupancy
Since January, the hotel has been running on 60 percent to 65 percent occupancy rate and is targeting to wrap up the year with an average occupancy rate of 78 percent.
In 2012, the hotel’s s revenues from their Food and Beverage and room occupancy were equal, Cabaero said.
The F&B segment is expected to rake in more revenues for them particularly because of the ongoing room renovations.
“Once we complete the renovations, we expect to achieve the same balance in our revenues.”she said.
Consistent to the industry-wide trend, the domestic market is the hotel’s biggest market followed by Koreans, Japanese and European groups for their foreign visitors.
Local Flavors
With Cebu now among the top destinations in the country, Cabaero said that they are planning to add more “local favor” options to their guests which is what they usually offer as rewards under their Global Hotel Alliance (GHA) membership.
“Under our GHA membership, instead of gaining points for room nights, our guests can avail of ‘local flavor’ activities. Here we usually offer island hopping, Mango Tour at Profood Gallery, city tours and many other activities that will allow our guests to experience Cebu. We are planning to add more to this especially as Cebu was recently named a good brand for the country’s tourism by a branding expert,” said Cabaero. /Reporter Aileen Garcia-Yap