Indian Hotels Company Ltd (IHCL), which runs the Taj chain of hotels, plans to set up its first luxury hotel in China next year.
The company will be the first Indian hotel major to set foot in China, said Mr Raymond Bickson, Managing Director, IHCL, while outlining the hotel chain's expansion plans in the country and overseas.
IHCL plans to add a total of 13 hotels and 1,840 rooms in 2011-12. It also expects to add 19 hotels and 2,591 rooms in the next two years, said Mr Bickson during a presentation.
As of September 2011, the Taj Group has 110 hotels and 13,237 rooms.
Expansion plans
IHCL runs the upscale or four-star Vivanta hotels, the low-budget Ginger hotels and the three-star Gateway hotels along with the Taj chain of hotels.
It plans to add five new Vivantas, seven new Gateways and ten Ginger hotels in the next two years.
Giving specifics on overseas expansion, Mr Bickson said the company plans to set up a 160-room Taj Palace hotel in Marrakech, Morocco, by February.
Emerging economies
It is also looking at other emerging economies to expand its presence. Singapore, Vietnam and Tokyo are still untapped regions for the company, said Mr Bickson.
Although Indian Hotels has experienced some stress in the US, it hopes to turn around the operations in the next 14-15 months, he said.