With new wave, hotels hoping to earn during wedding season brace for losses

NEW DELHI: With Delhi government ordering The Suryaa to be converted into an extended Covid care facility for Holy Family Hospital, there has been a sudden shift in their plans of hosting multiple wedding functions from next week, apart from catering to the heavy “saya” dates from this weekend.
Greesh Bindra, the hotel’s VP (operations), said that from being fully booked to being inundated with cancellation calls after being labelled as a “Covid facility”, the hotel has already lost a lot of revenue.
After Delhi government’s notification listing hotels and banquet halls to be converted into extended Covid facilities, many popular wedding venues are looking at huge revenue losses. Crowne Plaza at Okhla and Rohini, WelcomHotel Dwarka, Radisson Blu Paschim Vihar and The Suryaa are among those on the list that are popular wedding venues. From next week till May end, these hotels were fully booked for weddings on dates that were considered auspicious.
Bindra, whose hotel was attached last year too, said hospitals already had beds available and attaching hotels would badly impact a beleaguered industry hoping for some revival from the wedding business. “A hospital refers a patient to a hotel once its beds are full. A patient pays the hospital, which further pays the hotels. With hospital beds not fully utilised, no patients will be referred and the hotels will remain vacant,” he added.
Executives at Fraser Suites, Mayur Vihar and Svelte Hotel, Saket said they had not received any instructions so far regarding conversion to a Covid facility, but would promptly do so if asked. A hotel representative expressed concern over the safety of staff and long-term guests. He said many hotels were popular among people visiting their relatives in the vicinity as they offered five-star experience at an affordable cost.
Speaking from last year’s experience, Bindra said, “Hotels can never provide critical care to serious Covid-19 patients. Patients who don’t need hospitalisation go under home isolation. Hotels will have to invest in converting their existing premises into Covid facilities and bear losses if no patients are referred there by hospitals.”