Shangri-La's HK hotels thrive on travel boom

Increased business and leisure travel has lifted Shangri-La Asia's hotels in Hong Kong to another record year with profits hitting levels not seen since the heyday of 1997.

Chief executive and managing director Giovanni Angelini yesterday announced 33 per cent growth in attributable profit to US$150.99 million for the hotel operator last year, saying robust demand spilling into the first three months of this year had pushed room rates and occupancy levels at its two hotels in the city to new highs.

Island Shangri-La and Kowloon Shangri-La saw their combined average occupancy rate rise 15 percentage points, while room rates jumped 18 per cent during the quarter.

'Last year's results were very good. We went back to what we used to be in the good years of 1996 to 1997,' Mr Angelini said. 'This year will be even better.'

Island Shangri-La outperformed with an average occupancy rate of 85 per cent and a record US$340 per room per night during the quarter, surpassing the US$300 levels of the 1996-97 boom, he said.

Kowloon Shangri-La, which had its rooms 82 per cent filled, charged US$250 per room per night on average during the period.

Mr Angelini expected demand would lift the average room rates of the two hotels 6 to 8 per cent in the rest of this year.