Despite the slow return of international travellers to Queensland, occupancy levels at Accor’s 96 hotels across the state are surging beyond 2019 occupancy levels thanks to strong domestic travel and the lure of major concerts and events.
Speaking to media at an event in Novotel Brisbane South Bank on Tuesday afternoon, Accor Pacific Chief Executive Officer, Sarah Derry, emphasised the importance of sport, arts and entertainment in filling hotel rooms in major cities and towns.
“Taking Magic Round as an example, when you think about the opportunity we have with events like that – 130,000 spectators bringing in AU$28 million into the economy. That’s phenomenal. And that’s the power of events and sport,” Derry said.
“Equally so, we’re passionate about investing in the arts and entertainment,” she added, highlighting Accor’s numerous partnerships including with Stadium Australia in Sydney, Opera Australia, Tina Turner the Musical, and numerous festivals around the country.
With Queensland’s international holiday visitor numbers from China at barely 30% of 2019 levels, boosting inbound traveller numbers is a key focus for the state’s hotel and tourism businesses in the state, including Accor.
Derry pointed to the state’s slower reopening from the pandemic and low international air capacity as major factors impacting growth.
“We’ve seen [increases in airline capacity] mainly through the Sydney market initially, and we’re seeing more growth in Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth now as well, which is great,” Derry told HM.
“Queensland has been reliant on the Chinese market and the Japanese market, which were some of the later countries to come back. We’ve also got big markets we can tap into like India.”
Road to 2032
Not one to rest on its laurels, Accor has its sights set on a major global event, the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games, and building a strong hospitality network to support the returning tide of international travellers.
“Accor absolutely wants to be a major accommodation partner to the Games,” Derry told HM exclusively. “And showcase the best of Australian hospitality because people will be going to the events but also staying in our hotels and dining in our food and beverage experiences.”
Growing Accor’s hotel network in the state into triple figures is front of mind with city, suburban and regional areas all on the roadmap.
“We need to make sure that we have enough accommodation in and around Brisbane, and in those more regional areas as well,” Derry said.
“I truly believe that regional areas and certainly suburban areas of cities as well as deserve truly high-quality accommodation, and food and beverage offerings, and I think that’s where a call can play a really important part.”
Prior to the media event on Tuesday, the Accor Pacific boss had visited areas such as Townsville and Magnetic Island to explore new sites and meet with owners.
“We have owners who are purchasing in places like Tully, Charters Towers and regional towns that may have only had a motel or the local hotel as accommodation offerings,” she revealed.
First Nations people to the fore
Derry also sees hotels playing an important role in communicating the story of Australia’s First Nations people to the world during this milestone event.
“I think we’ve got a responsibility to tell the unique history of Australia through our First Nations story and I think we can do that in our hotels and obviously through the Games,” she told HM.
“I think there’s no better way to tell the story of our First Nations community, the people, and our team than to have them working in hotels, running our hotels, being in senior leadership positions, and tourists having the opportunity to talk to our team and experience that form of hospitality.”
Derry also pointed to stories of place, design, food and beverage as opportunities to delve into the land’s history and culture.
“It’s an incredibly rich history that I think we’ve got to tell, and I think the Olympics is going to be a great opportunity to make sure we do that,” she said.
Sustainable hotels
Through a strategic partnership with Ecotourism Australia, Accor is on a mission to have all of its hotels, apartments and resorts across Australia and the Pacific certified as Sustainable Tourism through the organisation’s new Sustainable Tourism Certification program.
On Tuesday, Accor kicked off the first phase of the program in Queensland with properties Novotel Cairns Oasis Resort, ibis Styles Brisbane Elizabeth Street, Pullman and Mercure Brisbane King George Square, Novotel Brisbane South Bank, Sofitel Noosa Pacific Resort and Sofitel Brisbane Central all participating.
Speaking to media on Tuesday, Accor Pacific’s Director of ESG, David Young, shared an insight into the robust certification process.
“What we’re focusing on with this eco certification is challenging our environmental action plans to understand what we’re doing around food, around plastics around waste and how we better connect with the community,” Young said.
“In 2022, we took out 43 single use items from guest facing areas in over 80% of our hotels. We’re not stopping there – that was just the first step.
“This year the big focus is on removing plastic water bottles from our rooms. Australian hotels use just over 50 million plastic water bottle every year. By the end of this year – November is our deadline – we aim to have no hotel with a single use plastic water bottle either in the guest room or in the public spaces.”
Once hotels achieve the global Sustainable Tourism Council guidelines, they will appear as independently verified green hotels in Australia across all major booking sites, capitalising on demand from travellers for more sustainable travel options.
“Our plan is to roll that out across our entire network over the next 12 months which will be a first for any hotel group in the region,” Young added.