Hotels that Persist amid COVID-19 Maelstrom
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to many hotels closing down due to near-zero occupancy. In these difficult times, hotel managements refuse to stand idly by. They choose to innovate.
Front desk staff members wear face masks at Hotel Santika Cikarang, Bekasi, West Java to comply with health protocols to curb the spread of COVID-19. (Courtesy of SANTIKA INDONESIA HOTELS &RESORTS).
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to many hotels closing down due to near-zero occupancy. In these difficult times, hotel managements refuse to stand idly by. They choose to innovate. Many are now offering cheap family staycation packages, work-from-hotel packages, food delivery services for Ramadan predawn meals and vouchers at discounted rates.
Other efforts include house cleaning packages in line with health standards and providing rooms for medical workers. There is no gain without pain. Hotels commit to these efforts to improve their finances and survive another day.
Aryaduta Semanggi Jakarta Hotel, Santika Indonesia Hotels and Resorts and Bekasi-based 88 Hotel in West Java are among the hotels and hotel chains that have launched such innovations.
Some have taken our work-from-hotel packages and others bring their children to stay here,
Aryaduta Hotel group director of sales Valentia Agustadi said Aryaduta Semanggi had offered work-from-hotel (WFH) packages since March to mitigate declining occupancy rate. Discounted room rates are also on offer. “Fortunately, Aryaduta Semanggi has a strategic location and our guests have responded positively to these offers. Some have taken our work-from-hotel packages and others bring their children to stay here,” Valentia said on Wednesday (6/5/2020).
Aryaduta Semanggi’s WFH packages start at Rp 500,000 (US$33.72) for an eight-hour stay. Guests can use internet access and enjoy mineral water, coffee or tea in their rooms. Meanwhile, staycation packages start from Rp 1,088,000 per night for a minimum 14-day stay. Guests also get breakfast for one every day. Breakfasts are in-room to avoid contact between guests.
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Hotel Aryaduta Semanggi in a business area in Semanggi, Central Jakarta
During Ramadan, Aryaduta offers staycation packages starting from Rp 850,000 (one person), Rp 950,000 (two persons) or Rp 1,200,000 (four persons) per night, using one-, two- or three-bedroom apartments. In-room facilities include living room, dining room, kitchenette and basic cooking utensils. Guests can borrow additional cooking utensils from the hotel if needed.
“Usually, these packages are taken by families. Maybe, they are bored at home and prefer to stay at our hotel. In the room, they can cook together with their children,” Valentia said. Furthermore, the hotel is located near Plaza Semanggi, which has a still-open supermarket.
Despite a declining occupancy rate, the hotel still receives many guests today. “For those who wish to extend their staycation, prices are negotiable,” Valentia said, laughing.
Bonus packages
Despite being only 2 years old, 88 Bekasi Hotel also offers competitive innovations amid the pandemic. 88 Bekasi Hotel sales manager Hegar Sangku Kelana said the hotel offered staycation packages, with three house cleaning services as bonus for guests with one-week stay at minimum. Guests who stay for 14 days can get six house cleanings.
Staycation packages start from Rp 350,000 per night, Rp 320,000 per night (for seven-day stay) and Rp 300,000 per night (for 14-day stay). Other than breakfast for two, the hotel also offers masks and traditional beverages. “We implement health protocols, such as checking the temperatures of incoming guests. Breakfasts are delivered to guests’ rooms,” hegar said.
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The bonus packages are attractive for guests. Occupancy rate on normal days reach 70-80 percent. During the pandemic, occupancy rate may only be 30 percent but this is enough to help the hotel stay afloat. The hotel has 70 rooms.
Wearing a face mask and gloves, an employee cleans a bed at Hotel Santika Cikarang, in Bekasi, West Java, to comply with health protocols to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Meanwhile, Santika Group of Hotels and Resorts general manager corporate marketing communication and business development L Sudarsana said that the hotel was preparing staycation vouchers at discounted rates in all hotels in the group. Santika Group has 114 hotels under Amaris, Santika, Amaya, Kanaya and Anvaya brands. Currently, most hotels are closed down due to low number of guests.
However, Santika Premier Hotel in Slipi, West Jakarta, remains open for guests. Santika Hotel in Cikarang, Bekasi, was even fully-booked throughout April. All rooms in the hotel were booked by a bread factory as a place to stay for their employees. They were given temporary accommodation at the hotel to facilitate coordinate and due to its nearby location to the factory during the Covid-19 social restrictions period.
Nightly staycation vouchers for Santika Group hotels start at Rp 230,000 (Amaris), Rp 350,000 (Santika) Rp 400,000 (Santika Premiere) and Rp 800,000 (The Anvaya). Eligible for use between 1 July 2020 and 31 March 2021, these vouchers are offered through the Santika Indonesia Online Travel Fair on MySantika application and the mysantika.com website from 25 May to 6 June 2020.
Hotels are offering not only staycation packages. If 88 Bekasi Hotel gives house cleaning service as bonus for guests, Aryaduta offers the same service for the public – with the condition that house area is at least 100 square meters. Cleaning service packages range from Rp 5,000 per square meter to Rp 20,000 per square meter for complete cleaning package.
Generally, companies like banks order the meals for their employees who are still working
Valentia said that the offer utilizes the hotel group’s housekeeping staff and equipment. “All parts of your house, including the curtains, windows, floor, sofas, beds, kitchen and bathrooms will be cleaned in line with our hotels’ standards. Demand was high in April but went down a bit in May,” she said.
During Ramadan, hotels are also offering meal delivery service. 88 Bekasi Hotel has an iftar meal delivery service ranging from Rp 25,000 per package to Rp 200,000 per 10 persons.
Furthermore, the hotel’s restaurant offers various iftar meals for delivery within three kilometers from the hotel. “Generally, companies like banks order the meals for their employees who are still working,” Hegar said.
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A guest consults with a front desk staff member at Hotel Amaris Ambon in Maluku on Thursday (2/4/2020). The hotel resumed operations after closing for two weeks.
Awaiting incentives
Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants Association (PHRI) secretary general Maulana Yusran said that PHRI was happy with these initiatives. He said that he understood the relentless hit hotels and restaurants had received resulted to many committing to non-stop innovations.
Maulana said that more than 1,600 hotels in Indonesia had ceased to operate since March. The real figure may be much higher as not all hotel and restaurant owners report their businesses to PHRI.
Other than closing down their business, a majority of hotel and restaurant owners have also furloughed their employees. “What can they do when there is no income?” Maulana said.
According to him, hotel business players such as himself, feels the heavy burden of paying for basic operational costs, such as electricity, employee salary and health insurance. Therefore, furloughing employees remain an option – albeit a difficult one to take. “We have no more money. Looking at this severe conditions, hotel and restaurant owners need incentives from the government to revive our businesses. We are waiting for this incentive,” Maulana said.
Some of the furloughed employees still receive their salary, while others do not. It all depends on the hotel management. Santika Hotel Group employees, for instance, still receive their basic salary.
Arma Hotel and Resort Bali founder Agung Rai, who was forced to close down his hotel due to lack of guests, reaches into his own pockets to pay 120 employees. “We are trained to face crises, including the Bali bombing and now the Covid-19 pandemic. Mentally and financially, we have prepared ourselves,” he said.
Other than giving basic salary, the hotel also distributes staple foods such as rice and vegetables harvested from farms and plantations the hotel managed to employees.
Environmentally-friendly
Agung Rai said that the cancellation of various tourism activities in Bali led to deserted hotels. “These include the Ubud Village Jazz Festival, which is an international jazz festival that should have been held in Arma in August 2020,” he said on Tuesday (28/4/2020).
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Foreign tourists visit Tanah Lot in Tabanan, Bali, on Monday (9/3/2020). Foreign tourist arrivals in Bali dropped sharply due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
He said that Covid-19 was not the first crisis faced by Bali’s people and tourism business players. Prior to that, there were at least two extraordinary incidents, namely the Mt. Agung explosion in 1963 and the 2002 Bali bombing.
“When Mt. Agung exploded, it was really chaotic. Nothing can be consumed and many residents migrated to other places,” he said. Meanwhile, the Bali bombing was also disruptive but for not too long. The world sympathized with Bali and offered helping hands.
The Covid-19 crisis, according to Agung Rai, reminds Balinese people about the importance of food self-sufficiency and security in tourism. The quarantine period should be a moment to rebuild Bali’s image as an environmentally-friendly tourism destination.
“Building tourism does not mean sacrificing agriculture and 100 percent developing hotels. Agriculture must be integrated with tourism development. This way, we can be prepared for crises,” he said.
Colliers International study shows that hotels are the hardest hit by Covid-19. This is because many travelers and either canceling or delaying their plans due to government appeals to stay at home.
Efficiency and innovation are key!
Furthermore, the government had ceased all flights connecting Bali and China since early February 2020. This led to the Island of the Gods losing 96 percent of its Chinese market. As tourism plummets, hotels’ occupancy rate nosedives.
Amid these difficulties, hotel business players have taken several prevention measures to prevent the situation from getting worse. Several hotels have ceased to operate due to lackluster occupancy rate that leads to difficulties in covering operational expenses.
Hotels still in operation must commit to efficiency measures by closing cafés, restaurants or fitness facilities, operating only certain rooms or offering room only (without breakfast).
To get through this hard time, efficiency and innovation are key!
