Ukrainian hoteliers predict the late start of the summer season in the country (not earlier than July), at the same time, country hotels will be able to adapt more quickly and start working after the long quarantine.
“Few people want to open summer hotels and beaches before July. The work of restaurants, entertainment centers will also depend on this. Events such as the Odesa Film Festival or concerts in the summer are unlikely to take place. Given the need to keep the pandemic from spreading, the start of the season in June is unlikely,” Managing Director of the five-star Kadorr Hotel Resort & Spa (Odesa) Olena Kalynovska said during the online conference entitled “Hotel Market in Times of Crisis.”
According to Director General of the five-star suburban complex Edem Resort Medical & Spa (the village of Bibrka near Lviv) Oleksiy Voloshyn, it will be easier for resort and country hotels to recover after quarantine ends.
“After quarantine, some hotels and restaurants will not open at all, some will open on the first day, some will decide to wait and open a little later. I believe that resort and country hotels will rise faster than business hotels that are more focused on foreigners and air travel,” he said.
Voloshyn said that the crisis will not hit hard, including Edem Resort Medical & Spa.
“My forecast is very positive: I think that by the end of April we will reach the indicators that we had. This summer we were provided with advance payments for about 40-50 events. These are mainly weddings and celebrations. Today, we don’t have any request for a refund,” the CEO said.
The owner of the family hotel complex Taor Karpaty (the village of Lastivka, Lviv region, 9 km from Skhidnytsia) Olena Sozanska also confirmed the guests’ interest in accommodation outside the city, including during the quarantine period.
“For many guests, this is an opportunity to escape from large cities with their families and protect themselves from infection while living in high-rise buildings. I think there is a demand for such self-isolation in the Carpathians,” she said.
According to Sozanska, the last guest left Taor Karpaty at the end of March, but the facility is ready to receive guests upon request with accommodation for at least five nights.
“We don’t want to close completely, because we are preparing for the summer season and then it will be difficult to start… We are ready to open, but we will receive guests who are willing to check in for a long time – for five and more days. That is, we do not accept booking for one or two days,” she said.
The Good Zone Hotel, a family country complex, is completely quarantined, except for technical services. According to Managing Director Serhiy Rudko, now the facility does not count on a quick resumption of operations.
“Country hotels will come to life a little earlier. Nevertheless, we previously determined two dates when the market would be ready to consume services: optimistic and pessimistic – June 15 and August 15… Removing the quarantine does not mean that demand will recover. Yes, there will probably be domestic tourism, but only in the medium plus segment and above,” he said.
