There was a time when people pitied restaurant owners as corona meant shutting down establishments. There was absolutely no business, and neither did the staff have a means of livelihood. Things were gloomy, and there were many theories doing rounds. Thankfully, today, the threat of pandemic has subsided, and this has meant a booster shot of sorts for restaurants and hotels in Hyderabad.

It could be the wedding season. Many hotels in the city are running to optimum capacity. People are booking hotels for various events, and banquet halls are completely full. Both star hotels and budget hotels are claiming to have at least 45% occupancy, and many are even reporting pre-COVID figures. The bookings were the most for the hotels in Begumpet, Banjara Hills, HITEC City, and Gachibowli.

The hoteliers say many people are being particular about the hygiene, parking space, food, and maintenance of hotels. Lodges, too are having about 50% occupancy. In fact, the business is blooming for budget hotels, and Hyderabad has around 3000 budget hotels.

JLL’s Hotel Momentum India Q1 2022 report says that all six key markets, including Hyderabad, witnessed revenue per available room growth in Q1 2022 compared to Q1 2021. According to the report, the recovery of Hyderabad was only second to Mumbai compared to the same period last year. The Finance Ministry, in Budget 2022, extended the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme up to March 2023 and earmarked Rs 50,000 crore for hospitality and related sectors. Online travel platforms like Yatra and Cleartrip announced their partnership to offer wider hotel inventory to customers, according to the report.