MANY hotels throughout Myanmar have reported a welcome increase in bookings for the main tourist season, which runs from October to the end of March.

A survey by The Myanmar Times has found that the average occupany rate for the season at many hotels has increased by up to 20 percentage points over the same time last year.

And for one hotel in Bagan, a reason for the increase is an annular solar eclipse next January.

The Bagan Thande Hotel has had a surge of group bookings from those wanting to watch the eclipse on January 15, said its assistant manager of sales and marketing, Daw Su Su Mon.

Bookings for the season indicated an average occupancy rate of 70pc, up from an average of 50pc over the same period last year, said Daw Su Su Mon.
Most of the bookings were for group tours, mainly from Germany, Spain and France, she said.

Daw Su Su Mon said November and January attracted the heaviest bookings from Europeans, while most Japanese visitors came in March.

A spokesperson from Aureum Palace Hotels and Resorts said advance bookings for October to February at its hotels at Bagan and Ngapali were up by as much as 15 percentage points on last year.

The hotel expects an average occupancy rate of between 40pc and 45pc, compared to about 30pc at each hotel during the tourist season last year, said Daw Khin Ma Ma Moe, the executive director of Aureum Palace Hotels and Resorts.

At the Sunny Paradise Resort in Ngwe Saung, advance bookings made a year ago were about the same as last season but bookings through travel agents had risen by an estimated 20pc, said Daw Su Su Khaing, the sales and marketing manager at the resort’s Yangon office.

“We’re expecting a better tourist season from last year because the condition of the road [from Yangon via Pathein] is better than last year,” said Daw Su Su Khaing.

“Most guests are Swiss and German but the resort is beginning to attract more French visitors,” she said.

Some big Yangon hotels are reporting an expected increase in occupancy rate of at least 10 percentage points over 12 months ago.

The director of sales at Traders Hotel, Daw Yinn Mar Nyo, said the outlook for the season is positive compared to last year.

“We’re expecting an occupancy rate of between 60pc and 75pc from October to March; last year it was about 60pc,” she said.

Most advance bookings were for October to February, Daw Yinn Mar Nyo said.
The Chatrium Hotel expects an occupancy rate of at least 66pc, up from about 60pc last year, said its director of sales and marketing, Daw May Myat Mon Win.
However, some hotels said advance bookings were at about the same level as last year.

They include the Sein Sein Hotel in Mandalay, whose general manager U Soe Thura said bookings were running at about 50pc occupancy for October to March.

Some hotels reported slightly lower advance bookings than last year.
Bookings at the Mandalay Swan Hotel between October and February stand at about 30pc, down from 40pc last year, said U Aung Thet Paing, a sales executive at its Yangon office.

The Yuzana Garden Hotel in Yangon also reported a decline in average occupancy rate from October 1 to April 1, said front office manager U Thet Zaw Oo.

Confirmed bookings through travel agents indicated a 20pc occupancy rate for the season, down from about 29pc for the same period last year, he said.