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TAGAYTAY
CITY—SM Hotels Corp.’s Taal Vista Hotel is targeting a
100-percent increase in room occupancy by next year with
the completion of its P650-million expansion in
November.
Ikuo
Itoi, general manager of Taal Vista, said in an
interview the expansion will add 133 guest rooms to the
existing 128 rooms, which already had undergone
refurbishments in 2003. At present, the occupancy rate
averages 62 percent. “We intend to increase that by more
than 100 percent,” he said.
Many of
the new rooms, he explained, will offer an unparalleled
view of the Taal lake and volcano. Hotel rooms facing
the lake include private balconies, while the rest of
the rooms have a view of Tagaytay’s unique scenery
through panoramic windows.
Itoi
admitted that the rising fuel prices, as well as the
repairs at the South Luzon Expressway (Slex), had
somewhat affected the number of visitors to the hotel
such that in July and August, “we experienced a drop [in
visitors].” He said the hotel management checked with
the PNCC South Luzon Tollways Division, which confirmed
that the “Slex posted a 10-percent decline in weekend
[travelers].” But overall, Itoi said, “from January to
July, we were better than last year,” although he
declined to reveal actual visitor figures.
One of
the major highlights of the expansion is the
construction of a 1,359-square-meter grand ballroom to
accommodate more conventions and special events. It will
have a capacity of 1,200 for banquet setup and 1,500 for
cocktails.
Itoi
expressed confidence that the hotel, now on its 71st
year, will be able to attract the lucrative “M.I.C.E
[meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions]
market” once the expansion is completed. “We will have
the biggest convention facility in the area.” Tagaytay,
because of its proximity to Makati and Manila, is a
favorite destination for company conventions and
excursions. But the only large venues available for such
a purpose are the Tagaytay International Convention
Center, the Development Academy of the Philippines
Conference Center and the San Miguel Management Training
Center.
Owned by
the SM Hotels Corp.—the hotel investment arm of the Sy-led
holdings firm SM Investments Corp.—Taal Vista Hotel is
now being managed by the Fuego Hotels & Properties
Management Corp.(SMIC) after the Barcelo Group of Spain
pulled out from the Philippines. The SMIC bought Taal
Vista from the Taal Management Corp. in June 1988.
SMIC
recently reported a 14-percent increase in net income in
the first half of the year to P6.5 billion, pushed by
the property and retail divisions. For its property
group alone, SMIC earned P700 million from January to
June 2008, up a staggering 113 percent from the P300
million earned in the same period last year. The hotel
group accounted for 2 percent of the first half’s 2008
profit.
Aside
from the additional rooms and grand ballroom, there will
be six new indoor function rooms, while the existing
dining outlets will also be refurbished.
At
present, Itoi said 83 percent of the visitors to Taal
Vista are Filipinos including balikbayan, while
the rest are composed of Japanese and European tourists.
“Many balikbayan come here for the halo-halo,” he
said, referring to the patrons’ favorite snack since the
1960s. He added the hotel can also arrange golf trips,
scuba-diving excursions and trekking tours around Taal.
The
hotel is also now being actively marketed for the
regional Asian travelers, especially in Singapore,
Malaysia and Korea. “This is supposed to be a
destination resort hotel with five-star facilities,”
Itoi said, adding that the hotel has kept its
family-friendly image. As such, even its superior rooms,
which are the lowest-priced guest rooms available, can
fit at least two children aside from the couple. One of
the best-selling promos of the hotel, for example, is
its “Family Moments” package which is an overnight stay
for four (two adults and two kids 12 years old and
below), which is priced at P5,600 net on weekdays and
P6,900 net on weekends for a superior room with
breakfast.
Taal
Vista Hotel, formerly known as Taal Vista Lodge, was
built in 1937 with 12 cabanas, managed by the Manila
Hotel Corp. The lodge was a favored venue of then
President Manuel L. Quezon for his Cabinet meetings.
It has
been owned or managed by different companies through the
years, like the Resorts Hotels Corp. (1975-1984); the
Development Bank of the Philippines’ subsidiary Hotel
Development Corp. (1984-1988); the SM Group with
Epiticio Borcelis Jr. as manager (1988-1991); and
Southern Breeze Realty Development Corp. (1991-1999).
The
lodge closed its doors in 1999 then reopened on March
27, 2003, after undergoing extensive renovation. It is
now managed by Fuego Hotels & Properties Management
Corp., the same company that operates Pearl Farm Beach
Resort in Samal Island, Davao; Club Punta Fuego in
Batangas; and Hotel Vida in the Clark free-port zone.
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