Global travel between now and 2030 is expected to boom, and the new chairman of Tourism Australia, Bob East, says Australia is in a prime position to entice travellers. He says “we will knock it out of the ballpark. We will kill it.” With 1.2 billion people currently travelling every year, the number is projected to swell by an additional 2.5 billion people by 2030, with a large proportion from China’s growing middle class.

Mantra Group is in a prime position to take advantage of this growth after achieving resounding success at the 2017 HM Awards for Accommodation Excellence on September 1, 2017 in Sydney. Mantra won the top gong of ‘Accommodation Chain of the Year’, plus ‘Midscale Hotel of the Year’ and numerous other highly commended accolades.

At a glance:

• ‘Accommodation Chain of the Year,’ Mantra Group,
• ‘Midscale Hotel of the Year,’ Mantra 2 Bond Street, Sydney
• ‘HM Magazine Australasian Hotelier of the Year,’ Bob East
• ‘Communications Associate of the Year,’ Naomi Hammond
• ‘Economy Hotel of the Year,’ BreakFree Aanuka Beach Resort

This feat comes just weeks after Mantra Group announced its landmark acquisition of the Art Series Hotel Group, due to settle in late 2017 (subject to customary conditions.) It will see seven luxury hotels with more than 1000 suites and apartments added to the Group’s ever-expanding portfolio of 128 properties and more than 21,500 rooms in properties under management across Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia and the recently acquired 1176-room Ala Moana Hotel in Hawaii.

Mantra 2 Bond Street, Sydney won ‘Midscale Hotel of the Year’, following its multi-million-dollar refurbishment late last year to transform the hotel’s guest rooms into a contemporary urban oasis with lashings of New York loft-style charm.

The Group also received highly commended in three categories including ‘HM Magazine Australasian Hotelier of the Year’ (Bob East, Chief Executive Officer, Mantra Group), ‘Communications Associate of the Year’ (Naomi Hammond, Public Relations Manager, Mantra Group) and ‘Economy Hotel of the Year’ (BreakFree Aanuka Beach Resort, Coffs Harbour NSW). 

The annual HM Awards for Accommodation Excellence is highly recognised by the accommodation industry in acknowledging the finest people, departments, properties, brands and chains across Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific.

Annually, more than 1,500 different properties and people are nominated and, after a lengthy voting process by a judging panel, involving 20 industry professionals and travel media, the category and highly commended award winners are decided. Hosted by television personality Larry Emdur, this year's Awards were attended by a record of 730 hoteliers and industry elite.

Mantra Group hopes next year’s Commonwealth Games will boost earnings in its well-known brands as Peppers, Mantra and BreakFree, where it has about 5000 rooms. Despite last year’s Dreamworld tragedy affecting Gold Coast tourism, Mantra managed to generate a 23 per cent lift in overall net profit last year to $45.6 million, with the resort division up nearly 30 per cent. Mantra’s Brisbane, Perth and Darwin markets showed losses while Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra and Hobart recorded growth.

See also:

Mantra CEO Bob East officially announced as Tourism Australia Chairman

Mantra Group acquires Art Series Hotel Group for $52.5m

Asia Pacific hospitality assets remain keenly sought after