In the wake of the global economic meltdown having a negative impact on the Indian travel and tourism industry, the tourism ministry has suggested hoteliers to slash room tariffs by 10% to 15%. This was conveyed by secretary, ministry of tourism, Sujit Banerjee in a meeting with the members of the Federation of Hotels and Restaurants Association of India (FHRAI) on Wednesday. 

The five member FHRAI delegation comprised of Vivek Nair, vice-chairman, Leela Group, Rajindra Kumar, Hotel Taj Ambassador, Delhi, Salim Sherwani, Sherwani Hospitalities Ltd, Dr Sunil Gulati, Uttarakhand Hospitality and Major Harish Sud, secretary general, FHRAI. Some more meetings with stake holders in the tourism sector are slated in next few days. 

Despite the slowdown, India continues to be one of the most expensive destinations as far as hotel prices are concerned. A recent business travel report by American Express expects hotel rates to rise by 16% to 20% in the year 2009. This is the highest in the APAC region, ahead of countries like China, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore. 

According to Manoj Chacko, head and VP, business travel, Amercian Express, the steep rise in hotel rates in the country ahead of the APAC region can be attributed to the demand and supply gap in India which is keeping the prices high despite a slight slowdown in demand. 

"The average room rate continues to be high. While there could be some softness in rates in leisure tourism destinations like Goa or Jaipur, demand in places like Bangalore, Delhi or Mumbai will continue to be good, as they are flocked by corporates," he added.
 

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