Semi-commercial flights might fill slots
RELEASED: 16 Mar 2021 at 06:02
State Quarantine (SQ) hotels are prompting the federal government to open the marketplace to Thai returnees showing up on semi-commercial flights, requiring a clear timeline if there are strategies to end this program.
Thienprasit Chaiyapatranun, executive director of Patra Hotel, among the SQ centers in Bangkok, stated numerous SQ hotels deserted the program as they might not cover the operating expense due to soft need.
At present, SQ hotels can just get Thais flying in on repatriation flights, which take some time to procedure due to long waiting lists, minimal seats and more costly tickets compared to semi-commercial flights.
Patra Hotel’s tenancy rate dropped from 72% to 50% in February and plunged down even more to 40% this month.
Need for Thai returnees throughout Songkran stays unforeseeable as SQ hotels get forward reservations just a few days beforehand.
He stated the decrease in quarantine time might assist produce need, however a much better alternative is if Thai returnees who take semi-commercial flights can select to remain in SQ hotels. Hotel operators would then have the chance to satisfy space supply.
There are 22 SQ centers with 7,114 spaces, of which 11 hotels lie in Pattaya, followed by 10 hotels in Bangkok and one hotel in Samut Prakan.
Under the program, the federal government pays SQ centers 1,000 baht per one space night, that includes 3 meals. Nevertheless, late payment from the federal government is another obstacle.
” Throughout this crisis, operators do not have enough liquidity to run. The federal government needs to accelerate deals to SQ centers,” Mr Thienprasit stated.
Whether the federal government continues the program or not, a choice needs to be made and revealed a minimum of one month ahead to permit operators to prepare, he stated.
Phisut Sae-Khu, president of Thai Hotels Association’s eastern chapter, stated there are rumours this program will end in May. He recommended it ought to be lengthened up until the country has herd resistance from mass vaccinations.
SQ hotels in Pattaya saw comparable down patterns in March as the typical tenancy rate dropped to 40%, having actually begun to fall in December.
Mr Phisut stated being SQ centers assists operators preserve company compared to those keeping open for tourist. The latter hotels have just 5% tenancy on weekdays.
Leaving out vacations, tenancy rates in Pattaya reached 50-60% on Saturdays.
