The Shangri-La Hotel is to spend Bt200 million renovating its four restaurants, spa and Krungthep Wing as well as becoming the first hotel in Bangkok to offer a 24-hour butler service.

The renovation budget has been divided into two portions, with Bt150 million to be spent on the restaurants and spa and Bt50 million on the Krungthep Wing.

Hotel manager Bhada Sinhabhalin said last week the hotel was negotiating the restaurant renovations with contractors and suppliers.

"These restaurants ... usually bring high income to the hotel. We foresee their potential to grow," he said.

The hotel will also renovate the 119 guest rooms of its Krungthep Wing and increase the number of treatment rooms in its Chi Spa from nine to 12. Bhada said the renovations would begin next month and are expected to be completed by March.

"Once the refurbishing is complete, we will offer a 24-hour butler service. We will be the first hotel to offer such a service around the clock. We will also increase the number of service staff," said Bhada.

The Krungthep Wing is the premium product of the Bangkok Shangri-La. The hotel is the third in the Shangri-La Group, following the Singapore and Shanghai hotels, to offer such high-end accommodation.

Bhada said the renovations were intended to help the Shangri-La compete with other five-star hotels located along Chao Phya River, such as the recently opened Millennium Hilton.

Currently, the Shangri-La is running at an occupancy rate of 70 per cent, a figure unchanged from the same period last year. This is expected to increase to 85 per cent in November then fall to 75 per cent in December. While the occupancy rate is the same as last year, average room rates have been increased by 10 per cent.

In June this year, the hotel became the first in Thailand to gain Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point System (HACCP) certification. To achieve this standard, staff were required to strictly adhere to food-safety policies and undertake intensive training on HACCP principles.

The hotel's general manager, Gerard Sintes, said the Shangri-La Bangkok is the third Shangri-La hotel to be awarded HACCP certification, following the group's hotels in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.

Additionally, the Shangri-La chain upholds its own Shangri-La food safety management system (SFSMS), which the Bangkok Shangri-La began implementing in May 2001. The system aims to ensure consistency in food preparation and prevent food poisoning by monitoring food storage and preparation temperatures, food purchasing, pest control and kitchen-staff training and hygiene.

Reviews and audits of the system have been undertaken annually in accordance with policies set by JohnsonDiversey, an international consultant on environmental standards.

Suchat Sritama

The Nation