The month of April saw many hotels opening new lodges. Sample this. Brussels-based Radisson Hotel Group launched its luxury life-style brand Radisson Collection in Srinagar. “We are proud to introduce the first Radisson Collection hotel in India, located in the enchanting city of Srinagar,” says Nikhil Sharma, managing director & area senior vice-pres-ident (ASVP), South Asia, Radisson Hotel group. “With this debut, we are looking forward to many such opportunities to collaborate with the right partners and build a unique collection of iconic properties under the Radis-son Collection brand in the country”. The company has partnered located in the same state, has also seen the entry of Royal Orchid Hotels, which too has 42 rooms.
The US-based and listed company, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, a hotel franchising entity, which operates a portfolio of 24 hotel brands (including Trademark Collection, Ramada, Micro-tel, Days Inn and Wyndham), has col-laborated with the Amritsar-based Earth Suites & Resorts and has started operating a lodge in Amritsar with 57 rooms. The lodge operates under the Trademark Collection brand.
Enriching experience The Mumbai-headquartered Pride Hotels has opened shop in Himmatnagar, a town in Gujarat. Atul Upadhyay, executive vice-president, Pride Hotels group. “We ensure a memorable and enrich-ing experience at Biznotel by Pride.”
Listed outfit Lemon Tree Hotels has made its debut in Nepal. According to Patanjali Keswani, chairman & managing director, Lemon Tree Hotels, “We are pleased to start 2024-25 on a high note, with the launch of our first hotel in Nepal, Lemon Tree Premier, Budhanilkantha, Kathmandu, while also crossing the 10,000 room mark.”
In collaboration with the Thiruvananthapuram-based Joys Resorts & Hotels, Indian Hotels Co (IHCL) will operate a 205 room lodge in Kollam, Kerala. “In this venture, we will part-ner with IHCL, recognised as India’s hospitality leader,” says Chacko Paul, owner, Joys Resorts. “We will contrib-ute well for the development of this resort.”
The UK-based and listed company InterContinental Hotels group has opened a new hotel near Bengaluru. According to a company release, the lodge, located near the Bommasandra-Jigani Industrial area, is operating under the brand name ‘Holiday Inn Express’. InterContinental has 19 brands under its belt. Also, Sarovar Hotels & Resorts, having its corporate office in Gurugram, Haryana, and reg-istered office in Mumbai, has opened three lodges on a single day, inform press reports – in Bengaluru, Anjuna (Goa) and Sonipat (Haryana).
These developments capture the mood in the hospitality industry. “With the pace of growth increasing year on year, 2023-24 set new bench-marks with 52 signings, say, one con-tract a week, remarks Suma Venkatesh, executive vice-president, real estate & development, IHCL. “Of this, our recent strategic alliance with Tree of Life resorts contributed 14 new hotels to the portfolio.” Concurs French lodging company Accor: “Following a landmark year for Accor in India in 2023, with a record-breaking sign-ing of eleven strategic hotels and the opening of six key hotels across the country, the group is set to unveil more strategic hotel announcements in 2024 to further solidify its position as one of the largest international hotel groups by rooms in India.”