Beijing's hotels cut rates for max bookings ahead of Olympics
22/7/2008 17:30
Hotels in Beijing have cut their room rates 10 to 20 percent in a
last-ditch effort to attract tourists before the opening of the Olympic Games
next month.
Olympic room prices in the average three-star hotel, compared
with those quoted in May and June, are now reduced from 700 yuan (104 US
dollars) to 400 yuan per night, and in a four-star hotel from 1,500 yuan to 800
yuan per night, China's largest online travel service website Ctrip.com said on
its website.
"The reasons could be multiple and the price cut during the
Olympic is now a trend," Wu Jiaoli, a press officer with the NASDAQ-listed
Ctrip.com, was quoted today by English-language China Daily as saying.
"One
reason is that the occupancy rate is less than expected; another is to undercut
competitors at the last moment," Wu said.
The three-star Beijing Fuhao Hotel
has cut its room rates 20 percent during the Olympics compared with June, even
though the Olympics occupancy rate is about 70 percent.
"We want to attract
more guests during the Olympics at the time people are about to finalize their
travel agenda," Tian Ye, sales manager of the hotel, said.
Lowering the price
at this time could also help to attract more domestic customers, Ctrip's Wu
said.
Chinese tourists differ from foreign tourists in their tendency to make
reservations two to three days before arrival. A lower price now could hence
attract more domestic bookings, Wu said.
The Beijing municipal tourism bureau
said on July 11 that the occupancy rate in five-star hotels had reached 77
percent, while that of four-star hotels was only 44 percent.
But with the
Games approaching, lower-ranked hotels are gaining popularity, judging from
growing reservations from budget travelers during the past weeks, Ctrip
said.
In terms of location, reservations have been concentrated in the
Olympic Village, Asian Games Village and hotels near the Olympic
stadiums.
Hotels located farther from the Olympic stadiums have also begun
providing packages in a bid to attract customers, including offers of breakfast
vouchers and souvenirs, Ctrip said.
Xinhua
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