Suncrest refurbishment nears completion
The Suncrest Hotel is set to re-open on March 21 after a three-month, Lm500,000 refurbishment programme. Much of the money has been spent on upgrading the all-important technical plant, such as airconditioning, piping, catering equipment and lifts."We...
The Suncrest Hotel is set to re-open on March 21 after a three-month, Lm500,000 refurbishment programme. Much of the money has been spent on upgrading the all-important technical plant, such as airconditioning, piping, catering equipment and lifts.
"We will eventually install a reverse osmosis system as hotels will no longer be able to use seawater to flush toilets," CEO Philippe Lonfat said.
The guest bathrooms were also given a make-over, while most rooms got new mattresses and wireless internet, larger televisions and tiled balconies. The public areas were largely left as is but re-polished and redecorated, with the addition of touch-screen information systems.
Much has been done to the conference facilities, ranging from recycled parquet floors from the Verdala Hotel to new sound and visual systems.
"We believe that the hotel - indeed the whole of Qawra and Bugibba - has the potential to attract conference and incentive business. The construction of so many five-star hotels with good facilities had hit the area and the four-star hotels - but with upgrading, there is no reason why we should not be able to target four-star events," he said.
Mr Lonfat believes there is also no reason why Qawra should not become a year-round destination, especially if the four-star hotels work together.
"Why should we not be able to compete with St Julians but in the four-star market? The peninsula has a splendid promenade. The government would need to upgrade the rest of the area, as it has done with the square, the promenade and the perched beach. And there is nothing to attract people out of season. Even at Christmas, there was not a single decoration put up.
"But the tourism industry also has to ensure that it provides services that are up to standard if we want to break away from the summer-only image."
Closing a hotel has serious implications for staff but the Suncrest was able to reach an agreement with the UHM for which Mr Lonfat was full of praise.
"We managed to safeguard the employment of the staff, thanks to the agreement. Sales and administration work continued uninterrupted but other staff were given the option of helping with the refurbishment works. Some took unpaid leave while others banked their hours so they got paid leave now but will work those hours in summer. This is a very innovative approach that worked because of our good relation with the union," he said.
The closure was also a good time to restructure and reorganise, with new staff being taken on at all levels. A recruitment day was relatively successful given the time of year, attracting nearly 150 applicants. Around 20 recruitments are in the final stages.
The hotel, with 453 rooms, remains the largest of the island (it has two more than the Intercontinental, although the latter has more apartments). Does it still make sense to have such a large hotel?
"Yes. If you want to attract high volume conferences you have to have rooms. And we have the infrastructure to cope with the catering requirements of conferences. We can cope with 1,200 meals in-house and 5,000 when you include our other outlets.
"In summer, it is not a problem to fill the rooms; obviously it is more of a challenge in winter. But this is where conferences and local business help. In fact, we kept Tal-Kaptan open as it is so popular with the Maltese, while the La Piazza bar opened once a week with its resident live band."
Another aspect also ruled out is taking on another franchise. The hotel's relationship with the Spanish Sol Melia chain had ended in somewhat of a financial disaster.
"I am convinced that we can survive without a franchise. You have to remember that they are very expensive. We have a much better, interactive website and are ranked top on Google searches for hotels in Malta because we update it regularly. It is proving to be very popular with Scandinavians. We are also linked to the Ryanair site as the low-cost airline will definitely help our 17 time-share units."
"And we also have to use our own sales team and ensure that there is an incentive package, backed up by good and friendly service."
The clock is now ticking. A group is already confirmed for March 21 and the hotel will have over 80 per cent occupancy a few days later, when a large group is coming for its regular annual stay.
"I know that March 21 is the start of spring but for me it is the start of summer," Mr Lonfat joked.
"We will eventually install a reverse osmosis system as hotels will no longer be able to use seawater to flush toilets," CEO Philippe Lonfat said.
The guest bathrooms were also given a make-over, while most rooms got new mattresses and wireless internet, larger televisions and tiled balconies. The public areas were largely left as is but re-polished and redecorated, with the addition of touch-screen information systems.
Much has been done to the conference facilities, ranging from recycled parquet floors from the Verdala Hotel to new sound and visual systems.
"We believe that the hotel - indeed the whole of Qawra and Bugibba - has the potential to attract conference and incentive business. The construction of so many five-star hotels with good facilities had hit the area and the four-star hotels - but with upgrading, there is no reason why we should not be able to target four-star events," he said.
Mr Lonfat believes there is also no reason why Qawra should not become a year-round destination, especially if the four-star hotels work together.
"Why should we not be able to compete with St Julians but in the four-star market? The peninsula has a splendid promenade. The government would need to upgrade the rest of the area, as it has done with the square, the promenade and the perched beach. And there is nothing to attract people out of season. Even at Christmas, there was not a single decoration put up.
"But the tourism industry also has to ensure that it provides services that are up to standard if we want to break away from the summer-only image."
Closing a hotel has serious implications for staff but the Suncrest was able to reach an agreement with the UHM for which Mr Lonfat was full of praise.
"We managed to safeguard the employment of the staff, thanks to the agreement. Sales and administration work continued uninterrupted but other staff were given the option of helping with the refurbishment works. Some took unpaid leave while others banked their hours so they got paid leave now but will work those hours in summer. This is a very innovative approach that worked because of our good relation with the union," he said.
The closure was also a good time to restructure and reorganise, with new staff being taken on at all levels. A recruitment day was relatively successful given the time of year, attracting nearly 150 applicants. Around 20 recruitments are in the final stages.
The hotel, with 453 rooms, remains the largest of the island (it has two more than the Intercontinental, although the latter has more apartments). Does it still make sense to have such a large hotel?
"Yes. If you want to attract high volume conferences you have to have rooms. And we have the infrastructure to cope with the catering requirements of conferences. We can cope with 1,200 meals in-house and 5,000 when you include our other outlets.
"In summer, it is not a problem to fill the rooms; obviously it is more of a challenge in winter. But this is where conferences and local business help. In fact, we kept Tal-Kaptan open as it is so popular with the Maltese, while the La Piazza bar opened once a week with its resident live band."
Another aspect also ruled out is taking on another franchise. The hotel's relationship with the Spanish Sol Melia chain had ended in somewhat of a financial disaster.
"I am convinced that we can survive without a franchise. You have to remember that they are very expensive. We have a much better, interactive website and are ranked top on Google searches for hotels in Malta because we update it regularly. It is proving to be very popular with Scandinavians. We are also linked to the Ryanair site as the low-cost airline will definitely help our 17 time-share units."
"And we also have to use our own sales team and ensure that there is an incentive package, backed up by good and friendly service."
The clock is now ticking. A group is already confirmed for March 21 and the hotel will have over 80 per cent occupancy a few days later, when a large group is coming for its regular annual stay.
"I know that March 21 is the start of spring but for me it is the start of summer," Mr Lonfat joked.