Having soft opened last November, the 347-room Yogyakarta Marriott Hotel is in its early days seeking volume in order to gain visibility in the market.
The hotel, the first under the Marriott Hotels brand in Indonesia, currently features the biggest hotel ballroom in the city, club room and lounge, and is adjacent to Hartono Mall, the largest mall in Central Java.
Winkie Wong, senior director brand and marketing Asia Pacific, Marriott International, said: “Indonesia has immense potential as a growing source market and we see a lot of opportunity there for the Marriott Hotels brand.”
As for the choice of Jogjakarta, Wong told TTG Asia: “In addition to having a great owning partner, Duta Merlin Dunia Properti, there’s a lot of potential in the destination for international leisure and business travellers. Jogjakarta is a hub of art, culture and education as well as a dynamic city that is growing in terms of business and economic development.”
The city has direct air access with Singapore and Kuala Lumpur and is only a 50-minute flight from Jakarta.
The opening of the hotel is also considered timely as the city is expected to have a new international airport by 2020.
Alain Rigodin, general manager of Yogyakarta Marriott Hotel, believes the opening of the airport would be a game changer for the destination. The hotel will officially launch 12-18 months ahead, affording it the time needed to position itself in the market and be ready when the airport is up, he said.
With the biggest, pillar-less ballroom in town measuring 1,870m2, seven meeting rooms and one boardroom, business events will be its primary focus, followed by corporate and leisure travellers, Rigodin said.
During this introductory period, the hotel has benchmarked prices for the lead-in category between one million rupiah (US$77) and 1.5 million rupiah.
“This is reasonable when you compare with other destinations like Jakarta, Bali or even Singapore. where you will see similar offerings for three to five times the price.”
To attract corporate and community gatherings, the hotel is also putting in place various promotions such as nightly all-you-can-eat buffet with different themes, the first such hotel offer in the city.
“We are (currently) looking for volume because want to showcase the hotel and our strategy is to get more people to talk about it – such as through social media,” Rigodin shared.
Originally planned for April, the fourth year of premier gastronomic event Madrid Fusion Manila is put on hold following its sudden transfer from the Philippine Department of Tourism (DoT) to the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB).
TPB is negotiating with Spain-based Foro de Debate, owner of the Madrid Fusion franchise, for the new date of the event, according to Maricon Ebron, TPB’s officer-in-charge, office of the deputy chief operating officer for marketing and promotions sector.
Ebron commented that it is now too late to hold it in April as TPB has yet to issue the tenders for the event management and venue, which in the last three years went to the Philippine Association of Convention/Exhibition Organizers and Suppliers (PACEOS) and SMX Convention Center Manila, respectively.
Holding it in end-July or early-August is in doubt as well because it will clash with mega event World Food Expo. TPB and Foro de Debate are also concerned about the availability of foreign chefs to participate in Madrid Fusion Manila.
Pamela Samaniego, DoT’s project director for Madrid Fusion Manila 2018, explained that the handling of the gastronomy event was transferred to TPB since the latter is responsible for the venue and event management bids, a standard procedure for government agencies.
The gastronomy event has helped put underrated Filipino cuisine and ingredients onto the international table, gaining the attention of critics and foodies alike as the next big food trend.