Reaffirming Kerala’s pre-eminent position as a highly preferred destination for global and domestic tourists, backwater hub Kumarakom has topped in an all-India survey of revenue gained by hotels and resorts in popular leisure destinations, posting the highest revenue per available room (RevPar) in financial year 2022-23, according to a press release.

The survey, ‘Indian Hospitality Trends and Opportunities’, conducted by hospitality consulting firm Hotelivate, also reveals that the famed beach destination Kovalam has earned the third place in a list of top 15 destinations.

RevPar, an industry metric used by hotels to price their rooms, refers to revenue generated per available room whether occupied or not.

According to the 26th edition of the survey, properties in Kumarakom had a RevPar of Rs.11,758 in FY 23 compared to Rishikesh in Uttarakhand (Rs.10,506) and Kovalam (Rs.9,087), which come in second and third positions. Metros like Mumbai (Rs.7,226) and Delhi (Rs.6,016) stand sixth and 11th positions respectively as per the survey.

This is the second year in a row hotels in leisure destinations posted the highest RevPar, it says. The report, which analyses the industry performance by star category, administrative zones and 20 major hotel markets, has a participation base of 1,540 hotels representing a total inventory of 1,65,172 rooms.

“This survey clearly shows that tourism in Kerala has been on a steady surge, completely overcoming from the downturn triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic,” said State Tourism Minister P A Mohamed Riyas.

Set in the backdrop of Vembanad Lake, Kumarakom village is a popular tourist destination dotted with canals and backwaters. Its panoramic rural settings, heritage and lifestyle have a seminal role in the Kerala model of globally-acclaimed Responsible Tourism (RT).

Earlier this year, Kumarakom hosted a meeting of the G20 sherpas. The achievement comes despite the floods in 2018 and Covid-19 posed hindrance to the state’s tourism activities.

Apart from Kumarakom and Kovalam, the top 15 on list include Srinagar (4th position), Udaipur (5), Goa (7), Mussoorie (8), Ranthambore (9), Mahabaleshwar (10), Shimla (12), Varanasi (13), Ooty (14), and Lonavala (15).

Hotels in metro cities have higher year-round occupancy compared to leisure destinations. They also have a large corporate customer base, which have contracted rates that pull down the RevPar compared to leisure destinations.

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The full house event was attended by over 430 top hospitality leaders from the Middle East. The glamorous evening included a reception, a great meal and excellent entertainment, in addition to the actual awards ceremony.

Chris Newman, chief operating officer, Emaar Hospitality Group won the Hotelier of the Year Award while Riad Abi Haider, general manager, Address Boulevard and Address Dubai Mall walked away with ‘General Manager of the Year’ title.

Among the other prominent winners were:-

• Entrepreneur of the Year:- Suneel Bhambhani, managing director, Fusion Food & Entertainment Dubai

• Executive Chef of the Year:- Yoann Grillet, director of food & beverage and Culinary, FIVE Palm Jumeirah

• CSR Champion of the Year:- Eddie Ignatius, corporate director of Quality & Business Excellence, TIME Hotels

• Hotel of the Year (5 Star):- FIVE Palm Jumeirah Dubai

• Hotel of the Year (Best Weekend Getaway):- Hatta Damani Lodges Resort

• Best New Luxury Hotel of the Year:- Caesars Palace Bluewaters Dubai

• Best Hospitality Employer of the Year:- Emaar Hospitality Group

• Inspirational GM of the Year:- Iftikhar Hamdani, Cluster general manager, Ramada Hotels Ajman

• Dynamic HR Leader:- Nawaz Mahmood, senior director HR, Caesars Bluewaters Dubai

• Hotel Team of the year:- Ghaya Grand Hotel, Dubai

The list of all the award winners can be seen at http://www.hozpitalityexcellenceawards.com/award-winners/winners-2019

“We received an amazing response to online voting for the fifth Middle East Hospitality Excellence Awards 2019 with over 175,000 votes for various categories. The awards were presented to recognise top industry organisations which have shown skill, creativity, ingenuity and success in the Middle East & North Africa’s growing hospitality industry,” said Bhatt.

Hozpitality Group also announced the 3rd edition of exclusive awards for Chefs in MEA ‘Chef Excellence Awards’ on June 2, 2020, to be held at Marriott Hotel Al Jaddaf in Dubai. “We are again partnering with Emirates Culinary Guild and ICCA and are looking for a great event together,” said Bhatt.

“Our mission is to bring the hospitality industry closer. The new Hozpitality platform offers a place to connect with people interested in the sector. This empowers people to learn from each other and to better understand the world and the industry,” added Bhatt.

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