As the Cricket World Cup Final draws closer, nearly every starred hotel room in the city has been booked.
If you insist, you can be on the waiting list, in case of last-minute cancellations - not that there are likely to be any what with this being a) the first time a host nation has contested the Cricket World Cup final on home soil and that b) Sachin Tendulkar is up for reaching his 100th Century and that c) Muttiah Muralitharan will be bowling his last ever overs in competitive cricket. This is India and this is cricket after all.
"The position is extremely tight. We don't even have enough rooms for prominent guests," said Kamlesh Barot, president, Hotels & Restaurants Association Western India (HRAWI) which has a membership of over 1,200 hotels in the western region of Maharashtra, Goa and Gujarat.
There are around 9,000 rooms in star-rated hotels in Mumbai. According to hotel industry sources, even the approximately 11,000 hotel rooms in the unorganized sector have been booked.
"There are waiting lists. In case of last-minute cancellations, people will be accommodated," Barot said.
Guests from across the country and even from abroad are making a beeline to the city's hotels. Hotel industry sources said it was high time a city like Mumbai expanded its capacity of hosting guests by increasing the number of rooms.
"The availability of 9,000 rooms in star-rated hotels is very low for the financial capital. Cities like NYC, Los Angeles and London have abundant resources for tourists and guests," a senior corporate official who travels frequently across prominent cities said.
A senior government official said the guests, including major corporates, who had booked stands and pavilions at the Wankhede, had made bulk bookings. "There is no option for others but to wait or they can go to hotels in the unorganized sector, including lodges," said the official who could not book rooms for his guests.
"The position is extremely tight. We don't even have enough rooms for prominent guests," said Kamlesh Barot, president, Hotels & Restaurants Association Western India (HRAWI) which has a membership of over 1,200 hotels in the western region of Maharashtra, Goa and Gujarat.
There are around 9,000 rooms in star-rated hotels in Mumbai. According to hotel industry sources, even the approximately 11,000 hotel rooms in the unorganized sector have been booked.
"There are waiting lists. In case of last-minute cancellations, people will be accommodated," Barot said.
Guests from across the country and even from abroad are making a beeline to the city's hotels. Hotel industry sources said it was high time a city like Mumbai expanded its capacity of hosting guests by increasing the number of rooms.
"The availability of 9,000 rooms in star-rated hotels is very low for the financial capital. Cities like NYC, Los Angeles and London have abundant resources for tourists and guests," a senior corporate official who travels frequently across prominent cities said.
A senior government official said the guests, including major corporates, who had booked stands and pavilions at the Wankhede, had made bulk bookings. "There is no option for others but to wait or they can go to hotels in the unorganized sector, including lodges," said the official who could not book rooms for his guests.
My money is on India by the way. And for Tendulkar to get his 100th century..
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