Thomas Latt
Yangon to develop new hotel zone
By Mark Elliott, 8 January 2013, Tuesday 6:34 AM
Myanmar is planning to develop a new hotel zone in Yangon, to cope with the expected influx in visitor numbers in the coming years.
Demand for accommodation in Yangon is surging
China’s Xinhua news agency reported that the country is conducting a feasibility study with a view to developing an 81-hectare plot of land in the Dagon Myothit area of the city. The move is in response to an expected surge in hotel developments in Myanmar in the coming years. The Myanmar Ministry of Hotels & Tourism has already started planning new hotel zones in areas between Yangon International Airport and the new Hanthawaddy International Airport, which lies approximately 80km from Yangon. According to Xinhua, land in the Mingaladon, Htaukkyant and Hlegu districts have already been earmarked for development.
Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels recently released a report predicting that international quality hotel supply in Yangon is expected to grow 37% per year from 2012 to 2016. Currently, official figures show that there are only 11 four- and five-star properties currently operating in Myanmar’s largest city, and a further 13 three-star properties. The lifting of economic sanctions and other investor-friendly policies have encouraged several major international brands to look at the possibility of developing properties in Myanmar. These include Best Western, whose Vice President of International Operations for Asia, Glenn de Souza, told Travel Daily late last year that his company was considering setting up hotels in Yangon, Mandalay and other Myanmar destinations.
Despite this influx of new rooms, the increase in demand for hotels in Myanmar is expected to outpace the addition of new supply in the coming years, causing rates to rise sharply. A government-implemented US$150 cap on room rates was introduced last year to help curb rate rises, but it is only applicable to lead-in rooms sold to travel agents and tour operators, and is due to expire at the end of March 2013.