Sugbutel opens business class accommodations

CEBU, Philippines - Complementing the country’s bid to attract eco-tourists and boost domestic tourism, the Carlos A. Gothong Holdings Inc. (CAGHI) expanded its “bed and bath” hostel facility in Cebu, the Sugbutel.

The first-ever hostel facility in Cebu, Sugbutel recently opened its first class fully air-conditioned 86-bed dormitory type accommodation equipped with WiFi.

The additional business class cluster is in addition to its 314 beds available for transients, back-packers, students, that only charge P250 per night, while business class accommodation is pegged at P300 for an overnight stay.

“Sugbutel is not a hotel, nor a pension house. We are a hostel,” said Brenda Gothong-Samson CAGHI president.

Since this is a new concept in Cebu, if not in the Philippines, Samson said the company is moving to aggressively promote the facility nationwide, “to give opportunity for Filipinos to go to Cebu without spending too much in accommodation expenses.”

Hostels provide budget oriented, sociable accommodation where guests can rent a bed or a bunk- bed, in a dormitory and share a bathroom, lounge, and sometimes a kitchen.

In few countries, such as United Kingdom, India and Australia, the word hostel sometimes also refers to establishments providing longer-term accommodation, especially for budget-conscious travelers, like backpackers and students. In Japan, it is called “capsule” hotel.

CAGHI opened Sugbutel in December last year, and now offers over 400 beds, with hotel-like facilities. Although, this is new for Filipino travelers, Samson said it is enjoying an encouraging occupancy rate.

“We have confidence that tourism and the economy in general will pick up,” she said adding that the company is filling the gap in providing accommodation option to travelers.

This is the first time that CAGHI enters into the hospitality business, diversifying from its core business in shipping.

CAGHI, converted the company-owned building located in North Reclamation Area (NRA) to provide this first-of-a-kind hospitality service in Cebu, using the two floors (2nd and 3rd) of the five-story building called Don Carlos A. Gothong Port Centre.

The rest of the floors are opened for lease for tenants, like call centers, ESL schools. While part of the hostel’s lobby is opened for commercial establishments.

Sugbutel also established a “Pavilion” function room that will accommodate an average of 200 to 300 people, for bigger events and functions.

Since it opened, the facility has been running in an average occupancy rate of 30 to 40 percent. Samson said the company targets to achieve at least 50 percent average occupancy for this year.

At this early, she said the hostel is attracting growing number of foreign guests, such as surfers from Norway and Germany, also Koreans.

Part of company’s short term plan is to expand the number of beds to 700. While long term plan is to create a chain of hostel facilities across the country, especially in Metro Manila and other key cities.

Earlier, Department of Tourism secretary Joseph Ace Durano mentioned the lack of budget-friendly accommodation in some tourism destinations including Cebu, saying as the country moves forward to attract eco-tourists--budget friendly accommodations are also need to attract all segments of travelers. —Ehda M. Dagooc