More to do: Local tourists and holidaymakers walking along Armenian Street in George Town. Many are choosing to stay in the city centre instead of beachfronts.
GEORGE TOWN: With a long weekend coming up in Penang early next month, more tourists are heading to city hotels rather than those with beachfronts, says the Malaysian Association of Hotels.
Its vice-president Datuk Khoo Boo Lim said city hotel bookings are filling up fast ahead of the George Town World Heritage City Day on July 7 and the Governor’s birthday that weekend.
“Tourists, especially domestic tourists, may not necessarily come to enjoy the beach.
“There are a lot of things to do in the city and staying in Batu Feringghi can be difficult if they want to drive to town.
“Now, when locals come here, they want to check out the Michelin star restaurants and other attractions that are mostly located in the town area,” he said.
Khoo said prices for beach hotels are higher as well.
“In town, the rates are reasonable and more competitive for local tourists,” he said.
The Granite Luxury Hotel general manager Moh Wei Ken said it is 80% booked for that coming long weekend and expects to be fully booked closer to the dates.
“Bookings are still coming in and we notice that they are mostly by locals with families.
“Even for this past weekend and weekdays, we have seen a 65% to 70% occupancy. This is mainly due to holidaying Singaporeans as I think it is their school break season,” he said.
Berjaya Hotel Penang business development senior manager Hoo Shyh Miin said it is currently almost 55% booked for the coming long weekend, and the number is expected to go up.
“We expect there to be plenty of last-minute bookings and it will probably go up to more than 70% occupancy during that stretch.
“Lately, the trend seems to be last-minute bookings rather than those who do so months in advance.
“After Chinese New Year, the market was slower, but we did have foreign guests from China and Indonesia to balance it out.
“Usually, a long weekend does help boost occupancy,” said Hoo whose hotel is located along Burma Road.
Shangri-La’s Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa and Golden Sands Resort communications director Suleiman Tunku Abdul Rahman said while hotels in town might experience higher occupancy rates, it might not be the case for beach hotels.
“Normally, if there is a public holiday falling on a Friday or Monday, there will be more people visiting as there is a long break.
“Our occupancy is quite high but not like before and city properties have a different occupancy rate compared with us.”
