More Bad News on India’s Hotel Scene
November 27th, 2006 Posted in Cheap Asia Travel, Destination reports, Travel industry
We reported back in August that hotel prices were going through the roof in India. The situation seems to have gotten even worse according to this article: Travelers to India’s Cities Scramble for Hotel Rooms.
Granted the problem is worse at the top end of the scale, where the luxury properties are packed and are pretty much able to charge whatever they want. For now, backpackers at the cheap places are mostly spared. In the middle range though, it’s getting tougher to find a nice place for a nice price–mainly because the Indian middle class is expanding rapidly and they are traveling more. Whereas 10 or 15 years ago it would mostly be foreign tour groups at the $60 a night places, now it’s as likely to be domestic guests.
So, unless you are a shoestring traveler, you are liable to experience some sticker shock in a country that used to be one of the cheapest on Earth. Of course all this is due to the old rules of supply and demand rather than a major shift in local incomes. The per capita GDP is still less than one night at a nice Oberoi hotel, so you can still expect plenty of bargains on food, train tickets, and taxis. When it comes to hotels though, there’s a lot of pressure driving up demand and prices. Take exploding tourism numbers, add a rise in foreign business travelers dealing with all the outsourcing and partnerships, then stir in a few million more domestic travelers stretching their legs and their wallets. It’s going to take quite a while for supply to catch up.
