Two Chinese firms are to invest more than $1.5 billion in hotel developments and commercial centres, according to the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC).
CDC said Xin Da Shi Jie International Hotel Co Ltd is to build a 1,500-room five-star hotel in Sihanoukville, with capital investment of $331.5 million.
The second project will see BOCC Development Co Ltd build a commercial centre, a 1,600-room five-star hotel and a four-star serviced hotel apartment on Phnom Penh’s Diamond Island, with capital investment of $1.181 billion, it added.
Combined, the projects are anticipated to create some 8,879 new jobs.
Preah Sihanouk provincial Department of Tourism director Taing Sochet Kresna said it was unlikely the province would again face a lack of accommodation, but he predicted that there could be a shortage of hotel rooms as infrastructure improved.
“At the moment, the demand for hotel rooms in Preah Sihanouk province is not a major problem, but it could be shortly, especially for international tourists.
“I am really pleased that Preah Sihanouk province has received this investment for a five-star hotel,” Sochet Kresna said
The arrival of the five-star hotel would not only attract high-income tourists, but also potential new investments, he added.
Association of Travel Agents of Cambodia president Chhay Sivlin told The Post that while lower-tiered hotels below three-star were easier to book than before, higher-end hotels above four-star were struggling to meet demand.
She added that while five-star establishments in Phnom Penh may be overbooked, the same was not true of Preah Sihanouk province.
“I want to see more high-standard options in the hotel industry in Cambodia to satisfy tourists,” Sivlin said.
She expressed optimism that with a 10 per cent rise in foreign tourist arrivals this year, greater visitor numbers next year would see increased demand for hotels.
