As the year-end approaches, in previous years, major hotels would have already seen a rush of annual meeting bookings. But this year is different. Under the influence of the "austerity trend," many enterprises and institutions have seen their annual meeting budgets "shrunk," leading to a sharp decline in traditional hotel annual meeting orders. In contrast, vacation apartments, which offer high cost-performance advantages, are seeing booming bookings and have become the new favorite in this year’s annual meeting market.
Hotel annual meeting orders plummet; star-rated hotels lower their standards to seek new paths
Even before the chill hit the annual meeting economy, the catering industry had already suffered a decline in business revenue due to bans such as the "strict investigation of 'the three public consumptions'" and "putting an end to extravagance and waste." As the year-end nears, annual meeting orders have also significantly shrunk compared to previous years, with current bookings at many star-rated hotels only about 50% of those in previous years.
"In previous years around this time, the grand ballrooms were in such high demand that they were fully booked well in advance. Last year, we started to see a decline, but this year the impact is even greater — orders have dropped by more than half," said a manager of a five-star hotel in Beijing. "Orders from large state-owned enterprises and public institutions have completely disappeared this year."
Currently, the competition in the high-end hotel market is already extremely fierce, and the emergence of vacation apartment rentals has further weakened hotels' competitiveness, making the competition even more intense. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to grab a share of the annual meeting market. Some star-rated hotels have opted to lower their standards and offer on-site services as a way out. A person in charge of a star-rated hotel in Fujian explained: "Compared to holding banquets in hotels, on-site services allow for more flexible venue setups and greater opportunities for creativity. Additionally, on-site services mostly offer buffets rather than sit-down meals, which is also more appreciated by companies." Meanwhile, many five-star hotels are also launching group deals, discounts, and more affordable dishes to "attract customers" !
Vacation apartment bookings surge, becoming the new favorite in the annual meeting market
Unlike the hotel industry, bookings for resort and scenic area vacation apartments remain strong and have become the new favorite in this year’s annual meeting market.
Annual meetings are seen by many companies as an indispensable "family gathering" each year. The purpose of an annual meeting is to make employees feel the company's warmth, let everyone have fun and fully relax, boost morale, and enhance cohesion and unity. "Compared to the traditional, procedural banquet-style annual meetings in hotels, vacation apartments actually allow employees to have more fun. Our vacation apartments have billiards, mahjong tables, and KTV rooms. For small teams, eating, drinking, and having fun here is not only cozy but also offers great cost-performance," a staff member from Tujia.com told reporters. "The Tianma Xiangcheng ‘Dijingyuan Cozy Garden View Villa Tujia Apartment,’ priced at 1480 yuan per night, can accommodate six people, which is less than 240 yuan per person per night. Two villas provide ample space for a small team of over ten people to enjoy themselves. Plus, they can take advantage of Tujia’s 'buy more, get more' promotional policy. Team-building events next time can also use experience vouchers to offset accommodation costs at Tujia experience rooms."
Reporters learned that as companies cut their annual meeting budgets, many have shifted from hosting lavish annual meetings at five-star hotels to tea gatherings or vacation-style annual meetings. Vacation apartments represented by Tujia not only offer great cost-performance and a cozy, homelike feel, but also provide a variety of room types — from one to three bedrooms and villas — and feature large living rooms, making them more suitable for team annual meetings. This is one of the main reasons why vacation apartments are so popular in the annual meeting market.
Fun, travel-style annual meetings gain popularity and may become mainstream; vacation apartments could soon be in short supply
A survey asking "What format would you most like your company’s annual meeting to take?" showed that 21% of respondents hope to go to a hot spring resort, 15% want to attend a banquet-style annual meeting at a star-rated hotel, 10% prefer to hold an internal party-style annual meeting at the company with colleagues, 14% want to go to the suburbs for an outdoor adventure-style annual meeting, and the largest group — 40% of working professionals — prefer a travel destination-style, fun annual meeting.
"This year, we’re holding our annual meeting in Bali," Ms. Zhao from a financial firm excitedly told reporters. "Our company, with nearly a hundred employees, is covering all airfares for a collective trip to Bali, and we’ve also booked several villas through Tujia.com. Sunshine, beaches, and a big house — just thinking about it is exciting..." Reporters also found that traveling to tourist destinations has become a common way for many financially strong companies to reward their employees.
With economic development, the diversification of annual meeting formats, and the push from the "austerity policy," compared to traditional hotel banquet-style annual meetings, vacation apartments represented by Tujia, with their high cost-performance, living rooms, kitchens, and encouragement for employees to cook and collaborate in a "thrifty annual meeting," may become the mainstream. At the same time, vacation apartments may also see the same kind of high demand that traditional hotels once experienced. Industry insiders analyze that vacation apartments in popular year-end getaway cities are in very short supply, advising those who wish to book to act early and reserve in advance.