Vijayawada hotels see low occupancy despite rush for Dasara and two other events

Three events, Dasara celebrations, Vijayawada Utsav and Saras Mela, are taking place simultaneously in the city, but the festive rush has not translated into more business for hotels, say hoteliers.

Despite the heavy festive rush that the city is witnessing every day, hotels, including the budget ones, are reporting occupancy of only 50-60%. “While the city is in a celebrative mood, it is a grim scenario for the hospitality sector,” said P.V. Ramana, Vijayawada Hotel Owners’ Association president.

The city has around 1,000 hotels and more than 100 are located in Hanumanpet, which is close to the Kanaka Durga temple. Even those located close to the temple have reported poor business, said Mr. Ramana.

He said that although the Dasara season was never a busy time for hotels, the dip in guest numbers had been more pronounced in the past two years. One reason was that the city had seen a 25% growth in the number of hotels in the past two years, especially after clarity emerged over the State’s capital, he added.

“Now, there are more accommodation options and lower footfalls,” he said, adding that the hotels had seen a 35% drop in their business. The rise in the number of devotees in the past two years, which he attributed mainly to the Stree Shakti scheme, had led hoteliers to hope that their situation might improve.

But that had not happened because most of the devotees using the scheme came directly to the temple and returned home by evening, Mr. Ramana added.

Nageswara Rao, an owner of six budget hotels in the city, said even the food and beverage business had declined. “The events, such as Vijayawada Utsav and Saras Mela, are happening on the outskirts of the city. Food courts have come up there, and people attending these events eat at these food courts,” he said. He added that many temples offered annadanam and people preferred eating prasadam to having food at hotels and restaurants within the city.

Mr. Ramana said that business had been better during the previous government, mainly because the YSRCP government had offered many freebies, which people had spent on food and liquor.

“While it is good that the city is becoming a more happening place, the government should tie up with hotels and restaurants and offer package tours to devotees during festive seasons. This may spur some activity in the sector,” Mr. Ramana said.