Terengganu's RM4.5 Milion Ming Star Hotel opens its Doors

THE 41-room, RM4.5-million Ming Star Hotel has opened its doors for business and is the first hotel to be completed since the Barisan Nasional (BN) government returned to Terengganu in 2004.

This is also the new dawn for the hospitality industry in the State, with 10 more hotels scheduled to open in the next three years to meet the shortfall of rooms during the peak tourist season here.

Three hotels that will be opening next year itself are D'Ibai Resort, Terrapuri Heritage Village and the Felda Business Residence.

In all, the 10 hotels will provide an additional 3,000 rooms.

State Tourism and Industrial Development Committee chairman, Datuk Mohamed Awang Tera, acknowledged that Terengganu lagged behind in terms of opening new hotels.
"But that is about to change. Prior to BN taking over, the economic environment was not conducive for hotel operators.

"They (hotel operators) had then adopted a wait-and-see policy. Now with so many tourism-related programmes organised by the State Government, there will be a chain reaction to what is happening," he told reporters yesterday after launching the hotel here.

Mohamed said he was also looking into upgrading the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibition) facilities in the State to help expand the market.

Currently, only the Primula Beach Resort and the Terengganu Heritage Bay Club have facilities for such events.

"To lure the MICE market, we need more five-star hotels here as these are what such participants would require," Mohamed said.

Despite still being in its infancy stage, Ming Star Director Chong Fah Ming said that during the first two months from its soft-opening in late April, the two-star hotel saw a 100 per cent occupancy rate.

Chong has already set sights to add another 90 rooms and include a convention centre by 2008.

The expansion will cost about RM15 million.



Source : NST
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