NEW DELHI: Cross-segment hotel chains have stepped up safety and hygiene measures as the country experiences a new wave of coronavirus infections. Hotel occupancy has increased in many hotels that take long-delayed vacations in popular travel destinations such as Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Goa. However, this has led to an increased risk of the disease spreading.
“Hotels are in a vicious circle to deal with the hustle and bustle (at least in selected travel destinations) and to ensure the safety of guests,” said Dilip Datwani, spokesman for the Hotel and Restaurant Association of West India (HRWAI). “It is high time hotels take hygiene and distancing protocols seriously. Adhering to strict standards is the only option or they will have to shut down because the industry has received no relief from the government.”
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Datwani said closing properties can save owners costs (taxes / salaries) but reopening would be a major challenge.
Hotel companies such as Hyatt, InterGlobe and Oyo Hotels said they had stepped up their hygiene and safety efforts to ensure the safety of guests and employees. These measures include strict compliance with contactless check-ins, limiting the number of guests in public areas, serving the buffet on individual tables, and improving the ventilation systems in the hotels.
Dhruva Rathore, vice president of real estate and development – India, Hyatt, said the hotel chain is following social distancing protocols in all restaurants and hotel public areas.
“The guests are not close together when it comes to tables in the restaurant. For example, we have a buffet service where the food is served at individual tables instead of the guests having to go to the buffet tables. Similar initiatives are being taken More digital tools are being used on the Food & Beverage side to keep human contact to a minimum, “he added.
Hyatt also places hygiene and wellbeing leaders in each property to ensure hygiene and safety measures are followed.
InterGlobe Hotels, which operates the Ibis brand in the country, said although there has been an increase in some cases, their hotels are equipped with security measures that were put in place last year. “Our hotels manage the steps through our contactless check-in and buffet service, as well as a well-maintained and improved ventilated system,” said JB Singh Singh, President and CEO of InterGlobe Hotels. “The efforts and plans of our hotels to regularly renovate the public areas and rooms after each check-out and to constantly review the security measures were very much appreciated by the guests with an occupancy rate of over 55%.”
In the meantime, the budget hotel chain OYO Hotels & Homes announced that it has taken initiatives such as “Sanitized Stays” and “Sanitized Before Your Eyes” to ensure that high points of contact or surfaces are disinfected in real time in front of guests. Health examinations upon entry, the accessibility of safety equipment for employees and guests, and SOPs for deep cleaning are also carried out in our houses.
In order to reduce the human interactions between guests and employees on site, the chain has established contactless check-ins and chatbot Yo! Help to support guests with questions from the pre-booking to the subsequent booking.
“At this point in time, hotels can limit the spread of the virus by doing their part in following required government guidelines and digitizing the ecosystem to enable social distancing throughout the customer journey,” said OYO spokesman.
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