Special holiday packages for hotel guests

Special holiday packages for hotel guests

T. Sima Gunawan, Contributor, Jakarta

If you open an old English dictionary and take a look at the
meaning of the word "hotel", you will see that it more or less
means a building where travelers get meals and lodging.

But along with the development of the hotel industry, a newer
edition may explain that hotels also provide entertainment and
various personal services for the public.

In order to make guests feel at home, hotels offer delicious
food and comfortable rooms with various facilities, from a mini-
bars to direct-line telephones that can be connected to the
Internet. Star-rated hotels may have several restaurants, cafes,
bars, meeting rooms and a ballroom, as well as a gymnasium or
even a spa center.

Hotels are more that just a place to serve travelers.
Seminars, conferences, birthday parties, wedding receptions,
fashion shows and musical concerts often take place in hotels.
Many people come to a hotel to have lunch or dinner in the
restaurant, to exercise in the sports center, to have a drink and
enjoy the music in the cafe, or just to hang around.

During holiday seasons, as in the upcoming year-end holiday,
hotels will usually arrange special packages for their guests.

"In general, the year-end holiday will see more locals,
especially those from Jakarta," said Hana Hoed, public relations
manager of Gran Melia, the majority of whose guests are
expatriates from Asia-based multi-national companies.

She said that there is a change in the occupancy trend during
the year-end because most of their frequent guests go home to
celebrate the Christmas and New Year in their own country.

At Hotel Nikko Jakarta, the majority of guests are Japanese,
but it is expecting more domestic guests during the holiday,
especially on New Year's Eve.

"There is a high demand from domestic guests to spend New
Year's Eve at our hotel, as seen from the room reservations that
we receive every day," said Sugeng Purnomo, the hotel's Assistant
Public Relations Manager.

Many Jakartans stay in the city's hotels during the holiday to
experience a different atmosphere, to get relaxed and
entertained.

Special room packages in rupiah, instead of dollars, are
offered by hotels to attract guests. Most of offers are valid
only for Indonesians and expatriates who hold temporary stay
cards (KITAS). Lavish dinners at Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve
are available at the hotels' restaurants with special menus and
live entertainment.

JW Marriot Hotel offers a special Christmas room package from
Dec. 24 through Dec. 26. The rate starts from Rp 780,000 (plus
tax and service) per night for a deluxe room.

Shangri-La hotels offer a room rate of between Rp 898,000 and
Rp 1.5 million per night from Dec. 15 through Jan. 2.

For Christmas, the hotel offers its exclusive presidential
suite Christmas package for Rp 11.65 million, including Christmas
Eve or Christmas Day dinner for four persons in either the
Margaux or Nadaman restaurant.

The room package for Christmas celebration from Dec. 24
through Dec. 26 for Hotel Borobudur's Superior Room is Rp 588,000
for two persons. The rate for the Junior Suite is Rp 999,999, the
Deluxe Room is Rp 1.24 million and the Club Suite Rp 1.74
million.

As for New Year, a package that is inclusive of dinner at
Bruschetta Italian Restaurant for two persons and breakfast at
Bogor Cafe costs Rp 2.19 million for the Deluxe Room, and Rp 2.79
million for the Club Suite.

Hotel Nikko Jakarta offers room packages starting from Rp
700,000 per night with a minimum stay of three nights with a
bonus free fourth night. New Year's Eve room rate at Sari Pacific
is between Rp 850,000 and Rp 1.45 million.

Top singers - locals and foreign - are ready to entertain
guests during New Year's Eve parties at many hotels.

Internationally acclaimed singer Peabo Bryson will mesmerize
the audience with his golden voice at Hotel Mulia during the New
Year's Eve.

Guests will enjoy a show following a special dinner in the
Grand Ballroom. Kuh Ledesma from the Philippines and Aminoto
Kosin are also scheduled to perform during the night.

Tickets for the gala dinner cost Rp 3.3 million each, and
anyone who books two tickets will receive a 10 percent discount
on one New Year room package.

The New Year room package is offered from Dec. 29 through Jan.
4 with minimum two-night stay with two nights going for around Rp
3 million.

Big fans of Indonesian pop diva Krisdayanti should not miss
her show at the Mutiara Ballroom of Gran Melia at the gala dinner
during New Year's Eve. She is expected to make the night a
special one giving the audience an unforgettable memory to
welcome the New Year. The exclusive dinner for VIPs is Rp 1.5
million per person, and for VVIP cost is Rp 2 million per person.

The hotel offers a room and dinner package for Rp 3.8 million
for two persons, while the room-only package starts from Rp
950,000++ for two persons.

Heidi Yunus and Rita Effendy will perform at the New Year's
Eve dinner at Le Gran Cafe of Gran Mahakam. Tickets for the
dinner are available for Rp 848,000. From Dec. 30 through Jan. 2,
2005, the hotel offers a special package for deluxe rooms of Rp
898,000 per room per night, or Rp 798,000 per night with minimum
stay of two nights.

Based on their experience, all hotels expect to enjoy a robust
business during the year-end festivities with occupancy rates
reaching 100 percent.

"Usually, December sees an increase (in the number of guests),
especially on New Year's Eve when rooms are fully booked. We hope
that we will reach our target of a 100 percent occupancy rate,"
said Lira Dachlan, marketing communications manager of Gran
Mahakam.

"On New Year's Eve, guests are mostly locals, especially
families," she added.

The Crowne Plaza Jakarta hotel will also offer a special
holiday package for its guests celebrating Christmas and
welcoming the coming of the new year.

"Our chef and his team will, for example, be preparing
traditional roast Turkey with all the trimmings on Christmas Eve
in our Branda Cafe," said Tati Haryo of Crowne Plaza's Marketing
Department.

Tati said that for New Year's Eve, the hotel would use Latin
Carnaval as the theme of the celebration featuring El-Caballo,
the best Latin band in the capital that will perform in the
hotel's lobby.