Opportunities amid crisis

Trip.com Hong Kong — one of the sub-brands of Trip.com Group — said its bookings for luxury hotels have increased during the pandemic, with a 213 percent rise in the third quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2019, and a 10 percent surge in overall bookings from two years ago.

The latest data shows that staycations have continued to lead the industry trend this year. The first two quarters of 2021 saw year-on-year growth of more than 200 percent in Hong Kong's domestic hotel bookings compared with 2019. Local hotel bookings in the third quarter were up 187 percent from the third quarter of 2019 — up 108 percent year-on-year.

Hong Kong people have been shifting their interest from traveling overseas to staying in the city. There has been a growing demand for local trips, said Hillman Lam, general manager of Trip.com Hong Kong.

"People tend to be booking something more high-end. They are looking for something that's worth more and don't mind paying more for it," he said. They are getting accustomed to experiencing the quality of staycation as traveling abroad is less free than before, and a family flying to a neighboring city or country costs more, he added.

The multinational online travel company has launched various types of staycations according to customers' needs as the pandemic eases in Hong Kong. They include luxury, midrange, and some affordable ones, ranging from around HK$500 to HK$3,000 per night for each person. These staycation hotels do not simply offer accommodation, but also dining credits, children and family activities, and even input theaters, depending on the price of the room.

To arouse people's interest in staycation in the initial stages, Trip.com rolled out a livestreaming campaign to allow customers to visualize the hotel experience, such as cozy restaurants with breathtaking views, as well as a sound hygienic environment.

Consumers are also allowed flexible cancellation of bookings, rebooking or refunds to avoid penalties and losses, according to Trip.com's report.

The uncertainties arising from the pandemic have seen an increase in shorter booking windows for travelers, with most of them booking one to three days in advance of travel. According to the company's global data, the length of hotel booking windows had dropped from 32 days in the first half of 2019 to 10 days in the first half of this year.