By Nishel Fernando French hospitality group Accor is bullish on Sri Lanka and has tipped its MGallery boutique collection as the ideal fit for the island, while eyeing the beaches down south, cultural heartland and east coast for its next hotels after debuting Pullman through two Softlogic-owned properties in August, a senior company official revealed. Accor Vice President Development South Asia Balvinder Sahrawat, speaking on the ‘Developing Paradise: The Next Wave of Hospitality Growth’ panel, at THINC Sri Lanka & Maldives 2026, at Hilton Colombo, last week, told the delegates that the island’s real opening lay on the supply side. “You do not have a good supply of branded, good-quality hotels and that’s where the opportunity lies. So, we at Accor, are quite bullish about this market,” he stressed. Paris-headquartered Accor is one of the world’s largest hospitality groups. It operates more than 5,800 hotels across over 110 countries, under some 45 brands, which range from luxury names such as Raffles and Fairmont to the economy ibis chain. “Clearly the demand is back,” Sahrawat added, citing 2025’s record 2.36 million visitors. However, he conceded that 2026 has been flat, describing the year as “more of a pause than a problem”. The cumulative arrivals stood at 1,771,547 by October 15, 1.3 percent behind the same period last year, even though the first half of October posted a 3 percent year-on-year gain. For the next three to five years, Sahrawat identified the south coast as Accor’s clear priority, with the cultural heartland next in line and the east coast also under discussion. The group is also “very particular” about the conversion opportunities, he noted, since the island already has a long-established stock of hotels. “If you put the right brand in the right location, maybe the Collection brands, you will be able to support this asset. Conversion would be smarter and faster,” he explained. Accor’s own entry followed that route. Pullman Colombo City Centre and Pullman Bentota Resort & Spa opened in August in partnership with Softlogic Holdings PLC and both were rebranded from the existing Softlogic properties. The 219-room Colombo hotel previously operated as NH Collection Colombo, while the 165-room Bentota resort occupies the riverside site of the former Centara Ceysands Resort & Spa. He was asked to name the one brand from Accor’s portfolio that would do the most justice to a destination offering beaches, wildlife, culture and climate. Sahrawat picked MGallery, pointing to its beautiful boutique properties. Launched in 2008, MGallery is Accor’s collection of upscale boutique hotels, each shaped around its own character and story. It counted 128 hotels, with 14,843 rooms worldwide as at June 30, 2026, which averages about 116 rooms a property. He also observed a shift in how people travel, with holidays growing shorter but far more frequent. “What used to be like twice-a-year holidays is soon getting converted into six-times-a-year holidays,” he remarked. Meanwhile, asked whether Sri Lanka’s growing casino market changes Accor’s approach to the destination, Sahrawat made clear that the group has no plans in the casino space on the island. “Essentially we are not looking at developing hotels around casinos,” he clarified. Instead, Accor would programme its hotels with the right food, accommodation and entertainment events to capture the long-weekend demand that such attractions generate. Pitching Accor to the owners in the room, Sahrawat argued that with 45 brands, the group matches a brand to the asset rather than pushing one. He added that its standing as one of the largest hotel operators in India opens the door to Sri Lanka’s biggest feeder market. India had generated 466,737 arrivals by October 15, about 26 percent of the island’s total and 17.8 percent more than in the same period last year. “We are hungry, you know; we’re not as big as others,” he remarked, pledging maximum support to the owners.
Anne Thursday, 22 October 2026 03:20 PM
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