Amid rapid recovery in Thai tourism, franchisor Wyndham to open over 15 new hotels

The company’s Asia Pacific president, Joon Aun Ooi, said the expansion is part of the hotel's three-year strategic plan to catch up with Thailand's rapid recovery in the tourism industry while also ensuring the hotel can capitalise on rising demand for business and leisure.

The company currently has 22 properties in Thailand.

In an exclusive interview with The Nation, Ooi expressed strong confidence in the Thai market as a result of higher-than-expected tourist arrivals, particularly from China and India.

According to the Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA), the return of Chinese tourists will contribute to the full-year arrival target of 30 million.

Meanwhile, the expected quarter-to-quarter increase in arrivals will continue to play a dynamic role in Thailand's economy, as gross domestic product is expected to grow steadily to US$ 860 billion by 2032.

Despite the encouraging growth trend, Ooi said that Wyndham Hotels & Resorts expects full recovery only in 2024 before returning to pre-pandemic levels.

This was due to the fact that many external factors, such as flight capacity and, in turn, the rise in airfares, inflation, and the global slowdown, had made it more challenging for our hotels to boost overall revival, he said.

"On our part, we have been actively tapping on our global distribution network to promote our hotels as well as engaging travellers from different markets in Asia to visit Thailand and offering them our array of hotel options locally across our suite of brands," he said.

Meanwhile, Wyndham saw a promising expansion of its partner network.

While continued cost increases will have an effect on the success of a hotel opening or a rebranding project, he pointed out that the scenario would be an opportunity for Wyndham as more owners express interest in hotel franchising.

He attributed this to franchising requiring a shorter turnaround time to rebrand those owners' existing properties.

"By partnering with a global franchise leader like Wyndham, hotel owners will have access to robust commercial, operational expertise, and best practices that will give owners peace of mind as they seek to ride the influx of tourism and industry demands," he explained.

He highlighted Wyndham's ability to recognise that each hotel owner is unique and to take into account the individual needs and background of these potential partners.

"As a leading hotel franchisor, we collaborate with hotel owners to provide them with world-class industry practices and standards, while still empowering them to have the flexibility as a hotel owner to maintain their local character and strengths," he said.

Wyndham signed contracts for 169 hotels and opened another 132 hotels across the Asia Pacific last year, resulting in 5% room growth in Southeast Asia and 10% room growth in Greater China (mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan).

"As a testament to our approach, approximately 25% of our new signings in 2022 came from existing owners, showcasing the confidence that our partners have in Wyndham and our world-class brands," he noted.

Meanwhile, Wyndham plans to collaborate closely with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and relevant industry partners to better identify and capitalise on sustainability and medical tourism trends in order to position Thailand as the go-to thematic travel destination.

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts is the world's largest hotel franchising company in terms of property count, with over 9,100 hotels spread across 95 countries and six continents.

Wyndham commands a leading presence in the economy and midscale segments of the lodging industry with its network of approximately 845,000 rooms appealing to the everyday traveller.

The company currently operates a portfolio of 24 hotel brands.