VietNamNet Bridge – Hotels in Vietnam have become less competitive than those in regional countries due to unpredictable room rates and a lack of strong brands, heard a recent seminar in HCMC.

The Vietnam Tourism Association (VITA) organized the seminar on strengthening of the competitiveness of hotels on the sidelines of the three-day international exhibition Food & Hotel Vietnam 2015, which kicked off at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC) in District 7, HCMC on April 21.

Do Thi Hong Xoan, vice chairwoman of VITA, said hotel room tariffs in the country have become unpredictable in recent years. Room rates are sometimes higher than those of the same ratings in other regional markets, making it difficult for travel firms to sell their tours.

However, a number of hotels often reduce service quality and undercut room tariffs to lure guests, eroding the prestige of the hotel sector in the country.

Le Tien Dung, general director of Hoi An Tourism Service Joint Stock Company, described the strong spike of hotel room rates in busy periods as a failure of the country’s tourism since guests tend to shun the destinations with high hotel tariffs.

“Room tariffs in Hoi An are 30% higher than in Danang, which is not far from the ancient town, but are stable and the quality of services is value for money. These are the reasons why the percentage of our repeat guests is high,” Dung said.

Travel firms complained that many hotels and restaurants offer high room and service prices at the beginning of the year but knock them off at the year-end when guests have already walked away. However, tour operators feel their hands tied as room rate discounts come late.

Meanwhile, service companies in Thailand and Malaysia keep prices stable throughout year to help travel firms actively design package tours with competitive prices to woo many guests.

Vietnam had had 16,000 hotels, resorts and guesthouses with a combined 332,000 rooms as of end-2014. Of which, there were 75 five-star, 191 four-star, 381 three-star, 1,180 two-star and 2,460 one-star hotels.

More local hotel chains have been up and running, but up to 94% of them are small and fail to meet the requirements of travelers.

Le Khac Hiep, vice chairman of Vingroup, the investor and operator of the Vinpearl hotels and resorts, said local hotels need to offer more value-added services if they want to become a magnet for guests.

Hiep said Vingroup has developed recreational and golf facilities in the premises of its hotels and resorts and this investment has paid off.

“We have wooed many travelers from Northeast Asia to our golf courses and a huge number of guests, especially families, to our Vinpearl Land on Phu Quoc Island and Nha Trang City,” Hiep said.