Post APEC prospects bright for Sunrise Kempinski Hotel

Scenic property cluster works to maintain visitor interest following leaders' meeting last year through innovation and variety, as Fu Chao finds out.

Yanqi Lake area, 60 kilometers north of downtown Beijing, boasts beautiful scenery and in early spring offers a refreshing escape from the city.

Driving into the area, people are greeted by a circular sparkling building standing on the shore of the lake, the Sunrise Kempinski Hotel, a must-see landmark.

After hosting the APEC economic leaders' meeting last year, the Kempinski property cluster is now fully open to the public. As well as the iconic hotel the cluster also includes a conference center, 12 boutique hotels and the Yanqi Hotel on Yanqi Island.

Sitting in an office inside the "rising sun", Brice Pan, general manager of the property cluster, talked with great enthusiasm about what APEC brought to the properties, the future after APEC and what a luxury hotel should really bring to guests.

"APEC was a determinate factor for us. We've been riding on the 'APEC wave' very diligently and happily. It gives us huge amount of exposure," said Pan.

"But memory is very short-term. People are already talking about the next APEC this year," the general manager added, with a brief smile.

To maintain interest and to give people a reason to visit, the hotel is looking to "be innovative and to reinvent itself".

Pan, defining the property cluster as a destination with many different products, offers quite a unique marketing package.

"Initially when we thought about marketing the destination, we thought about an airplane. The boutique hotels would be your first class, the Yanqi Hotel will be the business class and the Sunrise is the economy class with a few perks," he said.

Pan explained that all the properties can combine to create variety, which makes it a unique package.

The area's boutique hotels were inspired by the Imperial Gardens and traditional courtyard houses of Beijing and range from 6,000 to 9,000 square meters and each offer 10 to 19 rooms and suites.

The Yanqi hotel, a modern interpretation of the city's traditional quadrangular courtyards, or siheyuan, features 111 luxurious guestrooms and suites.

The Sunrise Kempinski includes 306 guestrooms and suites and offers a resort experience for guests and families.

"The whole destination works and performs much better than we initially anticipated," said Pan.

As the "new face" of Huairou district, the Kempinski's newest and largest property in China owes a lot to the ecology of the district.

Pan said that the owner of the Sunrise Kempinski Hotel put a lot of emphasis on ecology and sustainability during the building process, which is also something Huairou is trying to promote.

The MICE, meetings, incentives, conferences and events, market in Beijing has been influenced by international media reports about the city's air pollution, according to Pan.

The Kempinski destination in Yanqi area creates a new image for Beijing as a MICE destination, he added.

"It is away from all the negative things but still very close to the downtown area," he said.

Since opening, the Sunrise Kempinski Hotel has devised a plan to appeal to leisure travelers and conferences, especially the corporate industry.

The nation's austerity campaign, which aims to cut lavish public spending, impacted high-end hotels in the country that relied on government business.

For a luxury hotel like the Sunrise, Pan said that the campaign and what it caused was not a concern.

The hotel is focusing on different targets and the potential of the Chinese domestic market is still huge, he said.

To cater for business and leisure travelers, the hotel offers yacht and helicopter rental services. For family vacationers, it offers a kid's club and a variety of entertainment facilities.

As an experienced hotelier, Pan has his own ideas about what makes the best service.

"We deliver an experience, not service. The difference between experience and service is that the experience links with emotions. Only if you have emotion, you can remember," he said.

Walking around the hotel, staff members greet visitors with warm smiles. The general manager said they have passion, which is what he cares about most and makes them the "right people for the industry".

Pan said the hotel employees receive free accommodation, meals and a shuttle bus around the Yanqi area.

For people working in downtown Beijing struggling with high rents and pollution, the working environment is an attractive alternative. Pan said it is even more attractive for travelers, given the variety of services provided by the Kempinski destination.

Contact the writer at fuchao@chinadaily.com.cn

Brice Pan, general manager of the Kempinski property cluster in Huairou district. Provided to China Daily