The Advocata Institute expresses concern over the recent proposal by the Sri Lankan Tourism to impose minimum room rates (MRR) on hotels in the city of Colombo.
This proposal, set to take effect from October 1, 2023, stipulates rates of USD 130 for 5-star hotels, USD 100 for 4-star hotels, and USD 80 for 3-star hotels. While the authorities argue that this measure aims to counter under pricing by higher-tier hotels, this policy threatens to undermine the growth and vitality of the tourism sector. It places an unnecessary burden on hoteliers already grappling with the challenges posed by the global pandemic and subsequent economic crisis. Further, it undermines the country’s competitiveness in the regional tourism market.
If prices fail to accurately represent the services provided, customer dissatisfaction can ensue, especially when compared to more competitively priced options in neighboring countries such as Thailand and Vietnam.
This is supported by a comment made by the Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators (SLAITO) which states that “before implementing such prescribed rates, it is crucial to generate demand and interest in Sri Lanka as adopting these rates will render Sri Lanka uncompetitive and result in a loss of clients, even when compared to hotels in New Delhi, with which they are currently competitive”.
Sri Lanka has previously attempted to implement price controls between 2009 and 2019 but failed and was scrapped. The imposition of MRR restricts hotel owners’ flexibility in setting prices in accordance with market demand and effectively stifles healthy competition among various establishments. The tourism industry experiences fluctuations in demand that correspond to seasonal and weekly trends. Such demand patterns necessitate the ability for hotels to tailor their pricing strategies to capitalize on peaks and optimize profitability.
Every hotel has its unique room pricing considerations depending on factors such as location, size of the hotel, market demographics, level of competition, and type of service offered to name a few. The uniform imposition of minimum rates disregards the diverse range of hotels and accommodations available in Sri Lanka, catering to various budgets and preferences.
Imposing minimum room rates on a certain type of accommodation whilst disregarding alternate forms of accommodation available within the city of Colombo such as guest houses and Airbnbs, undermines the effectiveness of this policy. This policy undermines competition and oversteps in a serious way the role of government in a competitive market economy, the stated policy framework of the government.
The Advocata Institute strongly urges to reconsider this ill-advised proposal.
