Twin deluxe room at Grand Plaza ParkRoyal in Yangon.

AS Myanmar looks to develop its tourism infrastructure, the number of hotel rooms has grown steadily, especially in the areas most popular with visitors, namely Bagan, Inle Lake, Kyaiktiyo and Yangon.

Where there was previously only state-run accommodation, tourists are increasingly given the option of staying at private-run hotels and guesthouses.

“Only six hotels were operating in Myanmar before 1962, but so far in 2004, more than 500 hotels are operating legally throughout the country, with upwards of 16,000 rooms,” an official of the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism told Myanmar Times.

Of these, at least 20 hotels are run by foreign investors from Singapore, Thailand, Japan, Malaysia and Hong Kong, with the remainder either privately owned or joint ventures with the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism.

Since Visit Myanmar Year in 1996, hotels have been privatised and foreign investors invited to Myanmar, often under a ‘build-operate-transfer’ system whereby a 30-year lease is awarded to the investor, renewable for a further 15 years.

Foreign investment in Myanmar’s hotel infrastructure is set to double to about US$1.2 billion once 13 projects under construction are finished, which will take the total number of foreign-owned hotels in Myanmar to 40. Likewise, the number of international-standard rooms in Myanmar is set to increase from 4520 to 7615 once current developments are completed.

Golden Rock Hotel, a one-hour walk from Myanmar’s most famous rock, is a good example of the evolution taking place in Myanmar’s tourism industry.

The hotel, which offers twin rooms starting at US$32 a night in the low season, is 100 per cent private-owned by Myanmar shareholders who have brought in foreign know-how in the shape of Sri Lankan manager Suresh Navaratnam.

The hotel has seen healthy expansion in its four years of operation, increasing in capacity from 40 to 60 rooms, both standard and deluxe, and attracting about 20,000 foreign travellers a year.

“Normally in the peak season the hotel occupancy rate reaches 90 per cent, while the rate in the off season is about 25 per cent,” said Daw Myint Myint Htwe, the sales and marketing manager of the hotel.

“Our targeted customers are from Europe – who comprise 70 per cent of our total guests – and the rest are from Asia. They not only book directly through travel agencies, but also check into the hotel online,” Daw Myint Myint Htwe said.Mr Suresh said 90 per cent of guests book through regional travel agencies, including Exotissmo, Indochina Services Company and EPG Travel.

The company also has a head office in Yangon. The hotel, in an attempt to attract an ever-increasing number of foreign guests, is spreading its marketing net even wider.

“We are doing marketing at travel agencies and other hotels in Yangon, and occasionally we participate in international travel booths abroad,” Daw Myint Myint Htwe said.

The relatively new Hotel @ Tharabar Gate at Myanmar’s premier tourist destination, Bagan, has also tried to take a more sophisticated approach to marketing.

The hotel, which lies on the fringes of Old Bagan’s sprawling network of temples, has positioned itself in the high end of the market, with rooms starting at $35 in the low season and $60 in the peak season. Like an increasing number of midrange and high-end hotels in Myanmar, it has relied almost exclusively on European guests booking through travel agencies since opening in December 2002.

Hotel @ Tharabar Gate is typically about 29 per cent full out of season, rising to about 63 per cent in the high season.

Palm Beach Resort at Ngwe Saung Beach in Ayeyarwaddy Division is another up-market hotel in Myanmar with an eye for foreign – and particularly European – guests.

Dagon International Company has run the hotel since its inception in 2001, offering 31 deluxe and superior rooms with garden and sea views starting at the top-end price of $110 a night.

“Our main customers are from Europe, especially France and Germany, which make up 80 per cent of our guests in the peak season,” said Ma Ei Hnin Pwint, the marketing director of Dagon International Limited.

Like Golden Rock Hotel, Palm Beach Resort gains most of its customers through travel agencies in Yangon, in this case 80 per cent, while the remainder book online from abroad or through the company’s Yangon office.

“Our occupancy rate has increased significantly from year to year. When the hotel was established in 2001, the occupancy rate was about 40 per cent and increased sharply to 80 per cent in 2003. We are expecting to be 60 per cent full throughout this year,” Ma Ei Hnin Pwint said.

“As far as promotion of the hotel is concerned, every year we take part in the ITB Travel Fair in Berlin. . . . That’s why the majority of our customers are from Germany,” she added.

In popular Inle Lake, Golden Island Cottages has grown steadily and now boasts two resorts on Myanmar’s most famous lake – one in Nan Pan village and the other in Thale Oo.

The cottages at Nan Pan were the first to opened in December 1996 with only 20 rooms. The resort now boasts 52 economy, standard and deluxe rooms starting at $36 a night, with a further 20 rooms at Thale Oo, which opened in 2000.

“Many of our visitors are on package tours arranged by travel agencies. Some reserved rooms through online booking. . . . The number of guests who directly check in to the hotel is negligible,” said U Khun Thein Pe, general manager of Golden Island Cottages Hotel Group.

U Khun Thein Pe admitted that the number of guests at both hotels had fallen in 2003 to just over 5000 from 6000 in 2002, which he attributed to SARS and increased fears about terrorism.

Like most up-market accommodation in Myanmar, the majority of customers at Golden Island Cottages are from France, Australia, Germany and the United States, who make up 90 per cent of all guests.

The two hotels, which lie in an area controlled by the Pa-O National Organisation, have an occupancy rate of about 60 per cent in the peak season and about 35 per cent during the rest of the year, U Khun Thein Pe said.

Holidaymakers who have opted to swap the misty waters of Inle for the sandy white beaches at Ngapali had, until only a few years ago, only two options – Bayview Hotel and Strand Hotel Sandoway, now known as Ngapali Beach Hotel.

In the past few years Ngapali, unofficially recognised as the best beach in Myanmar, has begun to realise its potential. Investors have moved in and tasteful accommodation is springing up all along the beachfront.

Ngapali Beach Hotel is still one of the most popular places to stay after more than 30 years of service. The hotel was established in 1961 by the Steel Brother Company Ngapali Beach, becoming a pioneer of Myanmar’s fledgling tourism sector.

In January 2004, Lone Ma Lay Group took over Ngapali’s most famous hotel but the philosophy remains the same: high-quality rooms and service at high-end prices.

The hotel is 20 minutes by car from Thandwe airport and offers 66 rooms of deluxe and superior quality, which go as high as $130 a night.

Unlike many of Myanmar’s premier places to stay, Traders Hotel in the heart of Yangon relies on the Asian business community, maintaining occupancy rates at about 70 per cent in the high season and about 35 per cent during the monsoon. Many customers are long-stay businessmen, 20 per cent of whom come from Japan.

The hotel, now an integral part of the Yangon skyline has 500 international-standard rooms.

Traders Hotel marked the first foray into Myanmar by the Shangra-Li Group when it opened in 1996.

Among the other international standard hotels in Yangon are Grand Plaza ParkRoyal, Summit Parkview, Sedona and Savoy.

In addition to hotels and guesthouses, in Yangon there are also residences and apartment buildings that again aim directly for the high-end expatriate community.

Among these are Golden Hill Tower, Sakura Residence, Marina Residence, Micasa Hotel Apartments and Grand Mee Ya Htar Residence. Prices start at $400 a month, but many rooms cost more than a $1000 a month, catering to long-term guests and offering attached kitchens, laundry services and even shops in some cases.

As Myanmar’s tourism industry begins to realise its potential, and names like Bagan, Inle and Shwedagon gain common currency in Europe, the US and Australia, accommodation options look set to increase even further.