City hotels opt out of the bubble
City hotels in Colombo continue to cater to locals for business and not foreign visitors due to the bubble concept that is in place for tourists.
At present there are only two Level 1 hotels in Colombo, City Hotels Association President M. Shanthikumar told the Business Times on Tuesday pointing out that most of the city hotels continue to obtain business from
Sri Lankans that patronise them.
Every hotel, he noted is making a tremendous loss as they are compelled to function amid a number of regulations imposed by the health authorities.
They are restricted to 150 people for banqueting for a wedding and also the restaurant and bar business continues under strict guidelines, he explained.
Hotels are compelled to remain open and pay salaries for staff already in the hotel including their service charge, Mr. Shanthikumar said insisting that “whatever service charge they (the hotels) are being paid to the staff”.
Moratoriums have been extended until December 31 and the bar license has been waived off for this year as well, he noted.
However, hotels are still in for a rude shock this week since they have been asked to pay up their electricity bills on or before March 21. Hoteliers had been granted a delayed payment of three months and now they would be appealing to the authorities again for a further extension as they continue to face difficulties in paying their bills. “Our priority is to pay staff and so all other payments are delayed,” the City Hotels President stated adding that the Tourist Hotels Association has already made an appeal for a further extension and they believe there will be a favourable response.
At present hotels are sustained through business in the restaurant, bar and banqueting that keep the cash flow going but due to competition there is a severe drop particularly in deliveries.
Mr. Shanthikumar explained that today anyone involved in the catering business provides delivery services hoteliers face tough competition from individuals and even small catering outlets around the city.
There is a drop of about 50 per cent in those patronising the hotels for food compared to two years ago, he said.
Hoteliers believe that the current vaccination drive could ease regulations on tourists arriving in the country.