Calcutta, July 24: Hotel chains are betting big on religious tourism in India.
Sarovar Hotels & Resorts recently tied up with Africa-based Marasa Hospitality Pvt Ltd to set up four hotels in religious destinations at an estimated investment of Rs 180 crore.
In the next five years, the Sarovar group plans to expand to more religious locations and has earmarked investments worth Rs 400 crore. While Varanasi, Dharmasala and Puri are on the radar, the group is exploring possibilities in Bengal as well.
“Religious tourism has a big future in India as the country is endowed with ancient temples, pilgrimage locations and religious festivals. Branded accommodation and services in most of the holy cities are in short supply. Therefore, it was only logical on our part to take advantage of this situation,” said Anil Madhok, managing director of Sarovar Hotels & Resorts.
According to Madhok, Bengal offers a big opportunity for the group and projects are in the pipeline.
The four hotels will come up at Rajkot (70 rooms), Bodhgaya (60 rooms), Tirupati and Rishikesh (120 rooms each). These hotels with a star count of up to four will be operational by 2013.
As part of the tie-up, Sarovar Hotels will provide technical assistance, besides managing the operations and marketing.
“The monetary aspects of the operation shall be entirely looked at by Marasa. The total investment of Rs 180 crore will include a mix of debt and equity,” said Madhok.
Starwood and Hotel Leelaventure are also looking to set up hotels in religious destinations.
Starwood is setting up a 180-room property under the Sheraton brand in Amritsar, which is likely to be operational in the next two years.
Hotel Leelaventure is working on a plan to set up three-star hotels at locations such as Banaras, Mysore, Haridwar, Rishikesh and Nalanda under the Leela Gardens brand.