Novotel hotels to open in Lombok and Yogya

JAKARTA (JP): One of the largest hotel groups in the Asia- Pacific region, Accor Asia Pacific, is expanding its business in Indonesia with the addition of two four-star hotels in Yogyakarta and Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara.

Accor Asia Pacific, which has more than 40 hotels in operation or under construction throughout the archipelago, will open Novotel Yogyakarta today.

The hotel's director of sales, Bambang Sanyoto, said here yesterday that Novotel Yogyakarta offered 201 rooms, including 18 suites and a room specially designed for disabled people.

"We are targeting businesspeople and travelers as our guests -- 65 percent foreigners and 35 percent domestic visitors," he said.

He predicted the hotel would reach a 55 percent occupancy rate within a one year period.

Novotel Yogyakarta is centrally located on Jl. Sudirman.

Yogyakarta is known as a center for education, the arts, culture and tourism.

"Yogyakarta's governor Sri Pakualam VIII is scheduled to open the hotel Saturday (today)," Bambang said, adding that the hotel had been operating since Nov. 25.

Situated on a 5,000 square-meter plot, the eight-story hotel was developed with an investment of Rp 50 billion, Bambang said.

The property was owned by the PSP Group's PT Putra Suryagraha Perkasa which also owned the Ibis Slipi hotel in Jakarta, he said.

The number of star-rated hotels in Yogyakarta has significantly increased in the last few years despite the average length of stay being just less than two days per visitor.

The average occupancy rate at star-rated hotels in Yogyakarta has been less than 50 percent annually.

Some 10 five-star and four-star hotels are currently operating in Yogyakarta. Those located along Jl. Sudirman include the Aquila which will be managed by Holiday Inn, Santika, Yogya International, Sheraton Mustika, Ambarrukmo, Phoenix and Jayakarta.

"We have to compete with existing star-rated international hotels along Jl. Sudirman. We are offering something special and new with our services, standards and quality," Bambang said.

The hotel's architecture blended styles from Java and the Mediterranean, he added.

Accor Asia Pacific's Indonesia spokeswoman, Carol Seve, said that the company would open another hotel in Yogyakarta, Ibis Malioboro, on Dec. 15.

Accor also planned to open Novotel Lombok on Dec. 9.

Hotel general manager, Frederic Simon, said yesterday that Novotel Lombok would offer 85 rooms and 23 bungalows.

"The hotel is situated on a two-hectare plot on Serunting Beach. It's the first hotel located in the Mandalika resort complex, a 1,250-hectare project being developed by the PT Lombok Tourism Development Corporation on the arid south coast of the island," he said.

The hotel was owned by PT Istana Putri Mandarika, he said.

There are currently a number of star-rated hotels in Lombok, mainly located on the northern part of the island, including the Holiday Inn, Sheraton Senggigi, Intan Laguna, Senggigi Beach and Oberoi.

Neighboring the famous tourist island of Bali, Lombok is well- known for its unspoiled natural environment with unique cultural interests.

"We are the first hotel in southern Lombok. We expect to see an average occupancy rate of some 60 percent by next year," Simon said.

Domestic, Asian, European and Australian visitors would be targeted for the new hotel.

The Sydney-based Accor Asia Pacific, owned by hotel management and tourism group Accor SA of France, runs hotels under six brand names, including Sofitel, Novotel, Mercure, Ibis and Motel Formule-1.

The company currently manages over 25 hotels -- 12 of which are Novotels -- with some 4,000 rooms. (icn)