Hotels seek progress with pilgrims

Chains are eyeing pilgrims visiting cities like Haridwar and Amritsar

KOLKATA: The pilgrim hospitality segment, so far dominated by the large unorganised sector, is set to see some action with branded players gearing up for a big time play.

The market, which offers about 5,000 rooms in the organised space, is growing at about 12% per annum.

This may not be as impressive as the 30% annual growth recorded in the leisure tourist space or even the 16-20% growth shown in business travel over the last three years. 

But, analysts argue, for branded players, this is a good market to tap. Pilgrim tourism is season inelastic and insulated from political and economic vagaries, which help room occupancy levels to sustain through the year.

So far, a tourist’s image of facilities at pilgrim destinations has always been run-down dharamsalas and tacky hotels. But now, the Leela Group is mulling an entry into this space while Sarovar is keen to play a more dominant role. 

Leisure Hotels, a comparatively small player, with a strong presence in Char Dham and Hardwar, is planning to set up more properties at Pushkar, Bhubaneswar, Kedarnath and Badrinath.

These would comprise 30-50-room hotels and camps. The Leela Group has plans for Leela Gardens- resort-like properties with a green haven-for spiritually thirsty souls.

“Our entire focus at this point is to consolidate our expansion plans. However, there is a potential that needs to be explored and we will look at budget and pilgrim hotel facilities at the appropriate time,” Captain C P Krishna Nair, chairman of the Leela Group, told DNA Money.

Sarovar Hotels is looking at 100-room properties each at Hardwar /R and Amritsar, said Ajay Bakaya, executive director, Sarovar Hotels. 

Sarovar’s 60-room Portico at Badrinath has shown a 60% increase in occupancy since it opened last year while the Tirupathi traffic feeds almost 50% of occupancy at its 90-room Chennai hotel.