Bangladesh's unrest impact: Hospitality sector hit in Dhaka, rooms empty at hotels

Dhaka: The recent anti-government protests that rocked Bangladesh for over a month have hit the hospitality sector hard in the capital Dhaka with the majority of rooms at several luxury and economy hotels here going empty in the aftermath of the unrest.

Dhaka is both the political and financial capital of Bangladesh and home to several landmark commercial properties managed by international hotel chains which cater largely to business travellers.

Senior managers at many of these hotels say, the "heaviest impact" was felt in July when huge booking cancellations took place resulting in a "big financial loss".

PTI spoke to front office employees, managers and restaurant staff at some of the luxury chains as well as economy hotels located in plush areas, and they all painted a sombre picture of the current condition of the hospitality sector in Dhaka.

"The situation is now a bit better, but still far from normal in our sector as the majority of the rooms are still empty. While a certain section of business travellers are still coming, after the unrest in the country, the number of guests occupying rooms have dramatically shrunk," a senior manager in the sales department of a luxury hotel told PTI on the condition of anonymity.

This five-star hotel operating under the current brand name for a year-and-a-half is located in a towering building near Gulshan enclave -- an affluent area which also houses several diplomatic missions of foreign countries in Bangladesh.

"We have 150 rooms of different categories -- standard, premium, junior suite and executive suite. Currently, about 35 rooms are occupied. The numbers are slowly increasing," the senior manager said.

He recalled the situation in the area on August 4-5 when the unrest had reached its peak leading to the ouster of embattled Bangladeshi leader Sheikh Hasina as the prime minister, plunging the country into a state of crisis.

Several hundreds of people have been killed in the protests in Bangladesh, triggered by the reinstatement of a quota system for the allocation of jobs in civil services, and injuries suffered in its aftermath.

The protests began in July and local residents and staff at multiple hotels still talk in a hushed tone about the police action that took place in the third week of July and later days to halt the protests. However, the police crackdown only infuriated the masses which eventually led to the fall of the Hasina-led government.

"For July, the mass cancellations of booking for rooms, food and beverage services and banquet and catering services led to the loss of Tkk 1.2-1.3 crore, and the financial loss suffered in the first week of August was about Tkk 35 lakh," the senior manager at the five-star hotel added.

As the situation had escalated, the hotel administration had asked its women staff to stay at home on August 4-5 while arrangments were made for the stay of male staff within the premises of the hotel building which is a huge landmark in the area with Gulshan Avenue and Kemal Ataturk Avenue being major thoroughfares.

Recalling the challenges faced on August 5, the day the Hasina government fell, he said, on that day there were Germans, Russians, Swiss, Indian and Bangladeshi people among the guests and some members of the diplomatic community, at the hotel.

"We ensured their safety by sealing the hotel and not allowing anyone to venture in or out" and even though protesters marched in front of the hotel building, "no harm was caused to our property," he said.

Managerial and front office staff at other hotels PTI visited in the past two or three days had a similar tale to tell.

An Indian national who works at one of these luxury hotels in a senior managerial position, and did not wish to be named, told PTI on Tuesday evening that he has "not faced any difficulty so far" and therefore chose to continue to stay in Dhaka after having arrived here few months ago.

A front office staff at another luxury hotel running since 2007 and operated by an international hotel chain said, "the situation in the hospitality sector is not good due to the impact of the unrest the country has seen recently".

"In the last two weeks of July, amid thick protests in Dhaka, a large number of cancellations happened and the company lost about Tkk 3-4 crore. Our room services start from USD 200 and go up to USD 1,000 for a luxury suite," he told PTI here.

The starting category of the 250-room hotel is deluxe with 180 rooms in that category and goes up to suites having four categories -- executive, junior, chairman and presidential. Most cancellations happened in the deluxe category leading to severe loss, the staff added.

Even restaurants at luxury hotels are getting a handful of guests these days, further putting a financial strain on their management.

Economy or three-star hotels in Dhaka are also feeling the pinch of the economic fallout of the political situation despite an interim government under Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus as the Chief Adviser in place since August 8.

Hotel Lake Castle, a nearly 25-year-old property in the quiet Gulshan area had just "six rooms occupied" till August 19.

"We have 71 rooms including suites, but guests are not coming. We hope the situation will improve. It has impacted our operations," a senior manager at the hotel said.

On Wednesday, the hotel resumed its buffet breakfast service after a gap of several days as more guests are scheduled to arrive on Thursday, a staff said.

Hospitality is a major component of Bangladesh's economy and Dhaka being its nerve centre is reeling under the impact of the current situation.

An outlet of a Malaysian restaurant chain in Dhaka had just three to four tables occupied on Tuesday night.

"These tables would otherwise be filled till late night, but due to the current scenario, we are not getting many guests, locals or foreigners," a staff on duty said.