Johar Prince to open

JAKARTA (JP): The Johar Prince, a two-star hotel, will open in February amid the tightly competitive hotel business, a hotel executive said yesterday.

The hotel's general manager, Alex Adrian Prasetyo, said the 41-room hotel is owned by PT Toraja Cottage, a private firm controlled by businessman Francois P. Tomasoa. It is located on Jl. Jaksa, a Central Jakarta street well-known among international backpackers.

"Under an agreement signed yesterday, the hotel will be managed by PT Sarana Horeca Tiara. Sarana currently runs two other hotels in Depok, south of here, and in Cisarua, West Java," he said.

He said the five-story Johar Prince was constructed with an investment of Rp 5.7 billion (US$2.4 million).

There are currently several properties categorized as one to three-star hotels in the Jaksa area, including the Arcadia, Ibis Tamarin, Sabang, Paragon, Sofyan Betawi, Cipta, Cemara and Karya.

The Jaksa area is well-known for hotels featuring reasonable room rates.

Alex admitted, however, that the Johar Prince would offer room rates between $70 and $105, because the hotel planned to offer four-star amenities and facilities. (icn)