KATHMANDU, July 15: With the Covid-19 pandemic now off the radar, the country's star hotels are slowly reopening. In the past two years, three new five-star hotels have been built in response to the arrival of an increasing number of foreign tourists and their activities in the country.
According to the statistics of the Department of Tourism, there are currently 148 hotels operating across the country. Among these establishments, a notable 18 hotels have been awarded the prestigious five-star rating. In March of this year, the esteemed Hotel Ichchha received official recognition as a five-star establishment, contributing to the country's tally of 18 top-tier hotels.
Hotel Ichchha opened in Bara's Simara has been upgraded from four to five stars. Shakti Kumar Golyan of the Golyan Group is the owner and shareholder of the hotel, which was built with an investment of Rs 2.8 billion. The hotel has 150 employees, 89 rooms and is of 100-bed capacity.
According to the statistics of the department, two five-star hotels were built in 2078. The Kingsbury Hotel was opened at Bhagwan Chowk in Jhapa and Hyatt Place was opened at Tahachal in Kathmandu.
The first five-star hotel to open post-Covid-91 is Hotel Kingsbury in Jhapa. Prakash Gotame is the director and shareholder of Hotel Kingsbury, which has come into operation at a cost of Rs 2 billion. There are 150 workers in the hotel. The 100-bed hotel has 82 rooms.
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Similarly, after the construction of Hotel Kingsbury, Hyatt Place in Tahachal was opened. The hotel, in which Shakti Kumar Golyan is both the operator and shareholder, was constructed with an investment of Rs 2.8 billion. The hotel has 183 workers, 360 beds and 153 rooms.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, no five-star hotels were able to open in 2077. However, in 2076, the year before the onset of the pandemic, two five-star hotels were established. The Kathmandu Marriott Hotel in Naxal and the Hotel Aloft in Thamel commenced operations during that year.
The total capital of the Marriott Hotel, owned by Sumit Kumar Agarwal and Kiran KC, is Rs 2.666 billion. According to the statistics of the department, the Marriott Hotel has 300 workers, 344 beds and 225 rooms.
Similarly, Maheshwar Prakash Shrestha is the operator and shareholder of Aloft, established with an investment of Rs 5 billion. It has 180 workers, 216 beds and 165 rooms.
With the opening of the Soaltee Hotel in 2029 for the first time in Nepal, five-star hotels started operating in the country one after another. From Soaltee Hotel to Ichchha Hotel, the history of five-star hotels dates back to 51 years. Eighteen five-star hotels have been opened in these 51 years.
According to the statistics of the department, a total of 18 five-star hotels are currently in operation, including one in Koshi Province, one in Madhesh Province, 11 in Bagmati Province, two in Gandaki Province and three in Lumbini Province. There isn’t any five-star hotel in Karnali Province so far.
Meanwhile, the number of four-star hotels has reached 33. According to the statistics of the department, 37 three-star hotels, 47 two-star hotels and 42 one-star hotels are currently operating in Nepal.
According to the department, one deluxe, three deluxe heritage, two luxury heritage boutiques and one normal heritage hotel are also operating under the five-star hotels.
Investors seem to be investing in the hotel business with the expectation that the arrival of foreign tourists will increase in the country.
According to the Department of Tourism, 12 new star hotels and three new resorts have come into operation in the last 11 months. Radhika Giri, officer of the hotel branch of the Department of Tourism, said that 15 well-equipped hotels were registered from May to February 2022.
