The Grand Hotel Taipei (圓山飯店) aims to increase food and beverage revenues to mitigate the pain of a sharp decline in Chinese travelers.
The 64-year-old hotel, which has been used by the government to entertain foreign officials, especially those from China since 2008, saw its occupancy rate fall to 45.56 percent in June, lower than 67.15 percent for the sector in Taipei, tourism bureau data showed.
“We have placed more emphasis on independent travelers, as well as dining facilities, to cope with the business slowdown,” hotel president Johnson Chiang (蔣祖雄) said.
Chinese tourists accounted for 30 percent of the hotel’s guests and almost dried up after Beijing suspended official exchanges with Taiwan after President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) failed to mention the so-called “1992 consensus” or the “one China” principle in her inaugural address on May 20.
Occupancy rates stood at 58.92 percent in May and 52.93 percent in April, significantly lower than 67.8 percent and 71.57 percent for the industry in respective months, government data showed.
Economic weakness and the waning importance of Taipei as a venue for international technology trade fairs exacerbated the downward trend, analysts said.
Food and beverage sales currently generate about 50 percent of overall revenue for the hotel and management is seeking to push it up to 60 percent in the second half, Chiang said.
“The goal is achievable after the addition of a steak house in April and the coming peak season for wedding banquets and family feasts,” Chiang said.
An expensive steak house is almost a standard amenity in five-star hotels in Taiwan and the Grand Hotel does not want to be an exception, Chiang said.
In addition, the hotel’s Cantonese restaurant has invited a chef from Macau to cook for Taiwanese foodies between yesterday and Aug. 23, Chiang said.
Cantonese cuisine and dim sum have proven popular with Taiwanese customers of all ages, despite their constant changes in taste, Chiang said.
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