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NEVER in living memory has the Malaysian hotel market experienced such a wild roller-coaster ride in such a short period of time. It just four years, it has gone from the deepest pit to now emerge at the top of its game, reflecting the cliche that what goes down will remerge - sometimes with vengeance.
Reflecting on the past
The beginning of the downturn came in 1997. Already reeling from the aftershocks of the Asian currency crisis, a stock market in free fall and the broad economic recession, the hotel industry reached its lowest point when global travel came to a virtual standstill following two major tragedies.
The first was 9/11, which made the market disappear almost overnight. The two years that followed put every hotelier's survival skills to the test, but before business and leisure travel could regain its full steam, another calamity struck. This time, it was the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome or SARS outbreak in mid-2003.
Once a hive of activity, hotel lobbies quickly became empty and restaurants remained shut. Occupancy rates dropped to their lowest level ever, causing hotel profits to plummet and many employees had to take extended leaves, sometimes without pay. In these dire conditions, hoteliers cut prices and launched aggressive promotions to regain their customers.
But thanks to the quick end to SARS which happened to coincide with a pick-up in the global economy, the cessation of major hostilities in Iraq and the beginning of the peak summer air travel season, business and leisure travel recovered quickly.
Strong support from new markets
Fast forward to recent times and it is obvious the hotel business has bounced back very strongly. In some locations, industry sources say record...