Hundreds of hotels, but never 100% occupancy in Majestic

Hotels in Bengaluru's Majestic area struggle with declining occupancy due to emerging transport hubs and lack of parking.

Bengaluru’s Majestic area, once the prime transport hub, has hundreds of hotels offering lodging to the tourists who come in every day as both the Kempegowda Bus Station and Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna Railway station are located here.

Today, most of these hotels see only 50 – 60% occupancy and sometimes even lesser, as more transport hubs have emerged around the city, along with hotels being established all across the city, and the central business district is not the only hub for business anymore.

Standing tall right opposite the bus station is Hotel Mayura, which has more than 120 rooms of different varieties. There was not much activity in the hotel. “Only around 70 rooms are booked on most days now. Before the metro connected the city, we used to get customers who would routinely stay here, especially businessmen and industrialists. They used to book taxis to Peenya Industrial Area from here. But now there are hotels in Peenya itself. So, they do not have to stay here. Plus, this is not the only place where you can find connecting buses now. They can be found in every direction of the city,” said Srikanth, receptionist at the hotel.

Sticking to its old-school methods, the hotel does not accept online bookings and only accepts walk-ins. The other reason why hotels in Majestic don’t get as many customers now is due to the lack of parking in the crowded area. “When they can both park their car and avoid the crowds in other areas, why would they come here?” Mr. Srikanth asked.

While these hotels are not the first choice for families like it was earlier, government officials and the corporate crowd still choose these as their base. “Our bookings are all mostly corporate now. We also have a conference hall, so they host conferences and make their staff stay here. Even if someone wants to go sightseeing, Majestic is the perfect spot to start from as it’s in the heart of the city. During the season of conferences, we generally get good bookings, but there have been days when we have had zero bookings too,” said Shaqil at the Canary Hotel.

At Hotel Sanman, also near the bus station, were a couple who had come from Chikkamagaluru. When asked why they chose a hotel in Majestic, they said, “We are here only for one night as we have to catch a train from the railway station. It just made sense to get down the bus and get the nearest hotel,” said Pratap, who runs his business in Chikkamagaluru.

With inflow of such customers, hotels have continued to stay afloat amidst the stiff competition in the growing city. But for how long will this continue, the hoteliers themselves don’t have answers.