Hoteliers in Malaysia have been quick to adapt and innovate in order to survive since the ongoing movement control order (MCO) was reimplemented, prohibiting hotels from accepting leisure guests.
Since then, a slight rolling back of restrictions now permits hotels to provide dine-in services at their F&B outlets, capped at two persons per table. However, the rule of travel within a 10km radius from home still applies, while interstate travel remains banned.
Under these trying circumstances, some local hotels are thinking outside the box to generate some much-needed income – looking beyond food takeaways and meal deliveries, which has become the norm during MCO 2.0.
The team at G Hotel Gurney in Penang, for example, has recently started offering a drive-through laundry service where guests can drop off their dirty linen for washing.
It is also selling its in-room amenity collection, hand sanitisers, face masks, anti-bacterial wipes, and Eloura eco-friendly toiletries repackaged as corporate giveaways.
G Hotel Gurney’s general manager, Michael Hanratty, shared: “As the crisis continues to evolve, we will get through this by being able to adapt and outlast the pandemic, and come out even stronger. It is no doubt that international tourism will not recover anytime soon, but we believe that the tourism industry in Malaysia will rise again.”
Terrapuri Heritage Village in Kampung Penarik, Terengganu, which houses a collection of 22 traditional Malay houses, ranging from 100 to 250 years old, has also had to pivot its business model to survive.
Its CEO, Alex Lee, who has a love for antiques, said the hotel is selling vintage furniture and handmade decorative items on its website and social media platforms, while also providing consultations on interior design and landscape gardening for a fee. Lee said: “We are just about surviving.”
Kingston Khoo, director of sales and marketing at Mutiara Taman Negara, said the resort is promoting buy now, stay later packages which are valid until the end of the year – a move which has helped pump up cash flow.
He said: “These are well-received because of the long validity period, attractive rates and flexible conditions.” Rooms are going for nearly 50 per cent off pre-Covid rates which were running at RM680+ (US$168) for a three-day/two-night all-inclusive package with activities.
Customers are also not required to fix a travel date, and are allowed to postpone or cancel their trip by giving a 24-hour advance notice.
Phuket’s sizeable mega-villa property sector has experienced an unexpected surge in multi-million-dollar sales over the past year as Thai buyers sought refuge in the global Covid-19 crisis.
Over five billion baht (US$167 million) in primary and secondary high-end properties transacted at the height of the pandemic.
According to new market research from C9 Hotelworks, transactions in 2020 in top-tier real-estate hit its highest level in five years, despite flat trading levels in the broader marketplace. Expansive tropical island mansions with four, six or more bedrooms have struck a chord with wealthy Thais who have been unable to travel overseas and are fatigued by mounting air pollution issues in the nation’s capital.
Speaking about the transaction-charged revival in the island’s mega-villa sector, C9’s managing director Bill Barnett said that “country living and estate villas in the age of pandemic are a strong reaction driven by both internal and external factors.”
He added: “Thailand’s wealthy have been effectively stranded in the country for nearly a year and the impact has seen them revisiting and falling in love with Phuket. Resort real estate remains an emotional proposition and this is a contributing factor in reigniting luxury property sales.”
Aside from the Thai segment, there is more to the Phuket real estate backstory. There’s off plan and completed properties in the primary market, whereas secondary or resales has seen some deep discounting of large villas to overseas buyers. C9’s research has identified one source of these to be the global luxury marketplace Concierge Auctions, which has effectively harnessed competitive tension by means of an auction and induced demand though the perception of value creation.
Locations recording mega-villa trades are all on the West Coast of the island, namely, Millionaires Mile in Kamala, Layan and Nai Thon Beach, revealed C9 data. On the East Coast, Cape Yamu continues to perform strongly with the new Headland project. Phuket’s luxury footprint is now also firmly expanding over the Sarasin Bridge into a Greater Phuket catchment with the Aquella integrated golf course community underway.
Noting how proximity of projects is key to success and that there is often only one degree of separation between buyers in mega-villa estates, Barnett pointed out that “one of the most successful twining of projects last year has been the ultra-luxury Layan Residences by Anantara and Avadina Hills by Anantara. The synergy of having a hospitality overlay and hotel-style management to the developments has helped enormously”.
While forecasting how 2021 and beyond will see the Phuket luxury property market fare, Barnett voiced optimism for primary residences, saying that “we are seeing considerable interest from Bangkok high-net worth individuals and key regional capitals like Hong Kong and Singapore who are drawn to the island by clean air and space, quality international schools, and strong support infrastructure”.
He added: “We are on the cusp of seeing a series of new inland integrated communities such as Tri Vananda in Thalang come on stream and this is expected to shift a larger slice of demand towards luxury single family homes. Covid-19 has refocused an entire generation on the value of work-life balance and proven work from home is a viable ongoing alternative.”