Hotels gear up to meet high demand for New Year
Israr Ardiansyah, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta
December has come. Forget the declining number of tourists visiting Yogyakarta due to the threats of sweeping by militant groups in the wake of the U.S. attack on Afghanistan.
Hotels are now racing neck-and-neck to welcome the best season in the tourist business: New Year's Eve.
No discount.
No drop in rates.
Hotels increase their rates.
Atik Wildan, Hyatt Regency Yogyakarta's public relations manager, told The Jakarta Post the five-star hotel had set higher rates for the peak season.
"In the upcoming peak season, the standard room rate is Rp 599,000 (US$58.70). A package including room and New Year dinner is on offer at Rp 918,000," she said, adding that the standard room rate is usually Rp 329,000.
The three-star Ibis Malioboro also raised the rates for its 147 rooms.
Eunike Martanti, the hotel's communications officer, said Ibis Malioboro's two suites were on offer during the New Year for Rp 850,000 each compared to Rp 500,000 on normal days.
Most of three star to five star hotels here are almost fully booked for the last 10 days of this month.
Scholastika Hasti, Melia Purosani's reservation supervisor, said the majority of the five-star hotel's 299 rooms had been booked.
"There are only a few rooms left, but we're sure they will all be fully booked, including our presidential suite."
Hotel Santika Yogyakarta's communications officer Shodiq Dicky told the Post that the hotel's 148 Santika Suite rooms have been booked from Dec. 25 to early January 2002.
Many local artists will perform at these hotels for the New Year celebration, with the exception of Melia Purosani which will feature a Spanish cabaret group.
Era Binarti, Sheraton Mustika Yogyakarta's public relations officer, said most tourists from bigger cities were seeking something special in Yogyakarta.
"Visitors from Jakarta and Surabaya want to feel something different as well as relax while they are here," she said, adding that the five-star hotel will feature a local band and an illusionist during the New Year's Eve dinner.
Like other hotels, Sheraton Mustika expressed its optimism for the coming year.
"We believe the tourist business in Yogyakarta will recover next year. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations Tourism Forum (ASEAN ATF) meeting in January could be a stepping stone to an improved climate in the tourist industry here," said Era.
To welcome the New Year, hotels give special names to their parties. Hyatt Regency, for example, named its party Sail with the Kiss. Sheraton Mustika chose Love is in the Air while Ibis Malioboro picked Color Fiesta.
But what makes Yogyakarta so attractive to people to want to spend their New Year here and why is the demand to stage celebrations increasing? A sociologist of Gadjah Mada University, Heru Nugroho, said the reason was multidimensional.
"What makes people from the bigger cities wish to spend their money for the New Year? Culturally, it's a question of globalization. It's a global lifestyle where people like to celebrate special events with the consumption-linked rituals," he told the Post.
From the political-economic point of view, the phenomenon explains the trend: to sell a culture within market expansion.
Heru said the trend can be seen by the celebrations in hotels, television stations, cafes and concerts.
Yogyakarta will be increasingly affected by globalization, he said.
"People from bigger cities will always flock to Yogyakarta and spend their money here because the city has politically always been a safe place. In addition Yogyakarta's unique and exotic culture is an attraction to tourists. They love to come here to see local artists perform and enjoy the traditional entertainment and cultural rites."
"It now depends on the authorities to promote tourism. If they can do it effectively, I believe Yogyakarta will be one of the country's main tourist destinations, and not just for the year- end celebrations."