Big hotels busy with packages for Ramadhan

JAKARTA (JP): In a bid to entice Muslim families and travelers, several big hotels have started offering attractive promotional packages for Ramadhan ahead of the Muslim fasting month that began this Monday.

Most of the star-rated hotels, such as the Grand Hyatt, Jakarta Hilton International, Borobudur Intercontinental, Dusit Mangga Dua, the Acacia, and the Sheraton, will offer free sahur (pre-dawn meal) and buka (evening meal to break the fast) for their room guests.

The meals, with a special daily menu during the entire month, would also be offered to non-staying guests.

Contacted separately by The Jakarta Post on Sunday, some of the hotels' executives and staff, however, had not yet decided whether to design special promotional packages for Christmas, which would fall a few days prior to Idul Fitri, which marks the end of Ramadhan.

Most of the hotels focus their programs more on New Year's Eve even though some of them were still in doubt over the Jakarta Governor's decision last Thursday which stated that all entertainment places, including those in hotels, are to be closed at certain days during Ramadhan and until three days after Idul Fitri.

This year Idul Fitri is to fall on Dec. 27 and Dec. 28.

Many hotel executives said they are currently concentrating only on offering Ramadhan packages.

"We've already received some bookings for our Ramadhan packages," Dusit Mangga Dua's sales and promotion director Imam Syafii said, referring to the packages of a superior room at Rp 355,000++ (US$38) for single and Rp 420,000 for double.

"On ordinary days, the price is the same but without meals," he said.

In an attempt to tantalize the appetite of its Muslim guests, the 320-room hotel would provide three different menus for the sahur in the Ramadhan package, which would include free entrance tickets to nearby Ancol dreamland and Sea World aquarium.

The hotel -- located next to the city's popular shopping center of Mangga Dua -- also plans to hold special programs for needy people and local residents living in the area around the hotel. The management, Imam said, would for example invite 100 orphans to have their evening meal to break the fast at the hotel. On another day, the residents of Mangga Dua would be invited to come to the hotel for the same purpose he added.

For Christmas, some 100 orphans from the Vincentius Putra foundation would celebrate the special evening at the hotel.

The five-star hotel Grand Hyatt on Jl. M.H. Thamrin, Central Jakarta, serves traditional desserts for Ramadhan, such as kolak (sweet compote stewed in coconut milk and sugar) and cendol (a cold drink with rice-flour droplets in coconut milk) for the price of Rp 50,000 (US$5.3)++.

"To have a complete buffet dinner, customers should add Rp 120,000++.

"For Christmas, we'll only prepare the usual buffet for the price of Rp 250,000++, while for New Year there will be a half- hour show by Krisdayanti in the lobby and a special room rate of between $201 and $231 net," she added.

A sales employee at Borobudur, Nunik, said her hotel offered its superior room plus a buffet for two for sahur at Rp 600,000++.

"But it's only for Dec. 23 until Jan. 1," she said.

A Hilton employee, Solehad, said that during the fasting month the Hilton along with several hotels in the capital will hold the evening prayer of taraweh (Ramadhan evening prayer) and invited famous preachers to give the sermon.

"The hotels will take it in turns to conduct the evening prayer and each hotel will hold the prayer at least once during the month. But, we have yet to receive the schedule for it," Solehad said.

Sheraton Hotel near the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport tried to attract guests by offering a special room rate of Rp 425,000++, which would include sahur.

"For buka, we'll have special desserts at Rp 55,000++ every day. For New Year, we will only hold a golf tournament on Jan. 1," a hotel employee said.

The four-star Acacia Hotel, on Jl. Kramat Raya in Central Jakarta offer a special room package of Rp 260,000 including a pre-dawn meal for two persons.

"The package will start on Monday until New Year. We have not yet scheduled any other special event for Christmas or for New Year," the hotel sales officer, Devi said.

Shangri-La Hotel has yet to schedule any special package for Ramadhan or Christmas and New Year's eve.

"Maybe we will decide the schedule on Monday," the five-star hotel staff said. (dja/bsr)