HOTELIERS in Singapore are confident that room rates will continue to rise, even with the latest Hotels.com index showing the destination already has the priciest accommodation in Asia-Pacific and a supply pipeline of more than 4,000 keys.
Speakers at this morning’s Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP) UPDATE panel discussion on ‘Betting big on Singapore!’ projected rate hikes of between four per cent and eight per cent this year.
“There is still room for growth,” said Mohd K. Rafin, senior vice president, Park Hotel Group. “Singapore has reinvented itself and, if we can sustain that, plus the growth of regional traffic and further expansion by low-cost carriers, I think we can still get a good upside to the RevPAR.”
Asked if Singapore rates would eventually hit a ceiling, Tan Kim Seng, executive vice president, Meritus Hotels & Resorts, said: “I don’t think so. Singapore may be an expensive place to stay, visit and invest, but there is value in high-priced (investment), and if you need to come here and see your money grow (referring to increased wealth management in Singapore), you just have to pay the room rates.”
Paul Logan, InterContinental Hotels Group senior vice president development AMEA, said: “I would go along with the national projection of a four per cent increase in rates in the coming year, provided demand remains and supply growth is low.
“Singapore has a unique set of attractions – no other regional competitor has the range it has,” he added.
OCBC Investment Research last month projected “solid hotel room demand growth (for Singapore) at 6.4 per cent per annum, which would exceed overall room supply growth of 3.8 per cent per annum”.
The report added: “The hospitality landscape (in Singapore) continues to have positive developments with upcoming attractions and the opening of the International Cruise Terminal in 2Q12, which should boost the business of the integrated resorts and cruise operators.”
“The government has also just announced that it will inject S$905 million (US$718 million) into the Tourism Development Fund. Visitor arrivals should grow at 6.6 per cent per annum to reach the Singapore Tourism Board’s target of 17 million in 2015.”
