AN INCREASING number of international hotel chains are eyeing Sri Lanka, now that it appears to be on the road to recovery following the civil war that ended in 2009.
International chains that already have a foothold in the country include Hilton and Taj, while Thai-based Six Senses recently signed a deal with a local partner to establish two resorts (TTG Asia e-Daily, May 10).
Movenpick Hotels & Resorts, which last December signed a management contract with Sri Lanka’s SoftLogic Group to operate a new five-star, 224-room hotel in Colombo, is now turning its attention to other properties.
In an interview with the Sri Lanka-based Business Times in January, Andreas Mattmuller, Movenpick COO for Middle East and Asia, revealed that along with their SoftLogic partners, Movenpick was scouting for properties to manage on the country’s southern and eastern coasts.
The Swiss group is joined by the likes of Accor, Starwood and Four Seasons, which have also shown an interest in either owning or managing properties in Sri Lanka.
Meanwhile, Banyan Tree yesteday terminated a management agreement for the 77-room Deer Park Hotel in Giritalle, which has been managed under the Angsana brand, in order to focus on developing its own projects in the country.
Banyan Tree revealed in a press statement that its plans for Sri Lanka encompass either single-hotel projects in iconic, pristine areas, or an integrated resort with several hotels, a golf course, residential developments and retail and spa centres.
The model for its envisaged Sri Lanka integrated resort is Banyan Tree’s Laguna Phuket project.
A delegation headed by Ho Kwon Ping, executive chairman of Banyan Tree, was recently in Sri Lanka to visit possible sites.
“We were about to open a beach resort near Colombo when it was destroyed by the Asian tsunami (in 2004),” said Ho. “We are happy to be back and are optimistic about the prospects for this beautiful and now peaceful country.”
