OKURA Hotels and Resorts has entered the Philippines market with the 380-key, five-star Hotel Okura Manila at Bayshore City Resorts World.
The move is in line with Okura’s overseas development strategy of focusing on developing Asian markets. Five of Okura’s 18 hotels are outside Japan, namely Shanghai, Macau, Taipei, Bangkok and Amsterdam.
Hotel Okura Manila, together with The Westin Hotel Manila, Genting Grand and Crockfords Tower, will provide a total of 1,500 keys when the Bayshore City integrated resort opens in 2018.
Local travel consultants welcomed the additional supply, saying it could help pull down the high room rates in Manila.
Ine Faustino, general manager, CCT 168 Travel and Tours, noted that there is a market for Okura hotel, especially for the Japanese, who are currently the third largest source market for the Philippines. Businessmen and MICE travellers will also be drawn to Okura since it is located in the Manila Bay MICE area.
She added that the debut of new properties will force existing hotels to compete by renovating their facilities though this might in turn lead to even higher rates.
However, Francisco Lim, general manager, Adkins Travel Agency, said: “Manila’s occupancy and room rates in general are still good despite the addition of new hotels in recent years.”
But he commented: “Mushrooming hotel investments reflect investors’ confidence in the present government. Whether this confidence can be sustained will depend upon the result of the May 2016 presidential elections.”
