Courtyard Marriott Formally launched in Agra

By Shantanu Jain MARRIOTT International formally launched Courtyard by Marriott in Agra on February 19, 2015. This is the 12^th Courtyard by Marriott property in India and the 28^th Marriott Group hotel in the country. The hotel is also the 1000^th Marriott property to be opened in the world. BW Hotelier was there at the launch and found out a little about the operational side of the hotel. Vishal Bharti, the General Manager of the Courtyard by Marriott, Agra takes over the property after spending seven and a half years with the Trident in Agra, where he served as the General Manager last. According to Bharti, the hotel has a staff strength of 200, an approximate room to staff ratio of 1:2. The hotel currenty has an occupancy rate of 40 per cent, which according to Bharti, should reach 65 per cent within 3 years. ’The opening of Courtyard by Marriott Agra marks our entry into one of the most important leisure cities in India and we are excited to offer business and leisure traveler’s the best in class customer service, where every guest experience will be curated to perfection,’ Bharti added in his exclusive chat with BW Hotelier. Others in the Bharti’s management team include Executive Chef Vivek Kalia, who has been with the Marriott Group since 2004 and was working as Executive Sous Chef at the Mariott Goa previously. Rajneesh Kumar from Courtyard Ahmedabad is the current Banqueting Manager for Courtyard by Marriott, Agra.-Kumar worked with the Taj group in Hyderabad before joining the Marriott group in 2008. He was Director Food and Beverage at the Courtyard by Marriott, Bilaspur, before this. Courtyard by Marriott, Agra started operations on January 19, this year, with a soft launch and is currently offering specially tailored room packages to attract customers. According to senior sources in the hospitality business in Agra, a lot of focus is being given to getting customers from the shoe and leather business based out of the city. Rajeev Menon, Area Vice President, South-Asia, Marriott International, who was also present at the formal launch of the hotel thought the hotel was a testimony of the group’s vision for and its standards of excellence. ’With this launch, Marriott International is now present in the Golden Triangle, with hotels in Delhi NCR, Jaipur and Agra,’ he added. Shantanu Jain is Junior Correspondent, BW Hotelier.