On Tuesday, June 11, all roads in Vijayawada were blocked. This is because hotels reported 100 per cent occupancy on the eve of TDP President N. Chandrababu Naidu’s inauguration as Prime Minister. Kesarapalle near Vijayawada on June 12 (Wednesday).
Vijayawada Hotel Owners Association president PV Ramana said the city’s around 250 hotels – each with an average of 40 rooms booked – were still seeing growing demand. “We have set aside 250 rooms as directed to accommodate government officials, ministers and visiting dignitaries,” he added.
“Some star hotels are charging high rates, up to €30,000 per night, but they still have a lot of guests. Typically, these hotels cost between $5,000 and $7,500, Ramana said.
Most visitors reserved rooms online for the two days immediately after the swearing-in date was announced (June 11th and 12th).
The boom in the hotel business for the first time in a long time came as good news to hoteliers in the city. “In contrast to the dismal situation we have experienced over the past five years, occupancy rates in all hotels have reached 80% every day since the election results came out on June 4,” Mr. Ramana said.
He said the number of hotels in the city would be higher today if owners had not rented them. “Most hotels in the city came up towards the end of TDP rules. However, a lull in construction activities during the YSRCP rule also affected the hotel business. The pandemic only made things worse. We were operating the hotel at 40% occupancy until last year. Many people who cannot afford to continue operating due to poor profits have taken up rentals,” Mr. Ramana said.
That has changed, he said, as thousands of people are now expected to attend the swearing-in ceremony and the city is finding it difficult to meet demand. “We are hoping that with the renewed focus on Amaravati, hotels in Vijayawada and Guntur will see good business in the next five years,” he said.
