TravTalk India Online Magazine
Known for hosting large, elegant weddings, The LaLit not only has city hotels for business travellers, but also a host of beautiful resorts located at strategic spots that are perfect for weddings. Rajan Kalra, Head of Sales, The LaLit, speaks about their USP and the transparency the group offers to travel agents while working with their clients.
Hazel Jain
The LaLit Group has a portfolio of 12 beautiful properties across India in cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Srinagar, Bekal, Jaipur, Udaipur, Goa and Khajuraho. Strategically located, they are great for M!CE and the wedding segments. The LaLit Mumbai is right next to the international airport which makes it perfect for M!CE and business travellers. Meanwhile, The LaLit New Delhi is in the heart of the city in Connaught Place. The one in Bengaluru is next to Vidhana Soudha, and in Kolkata it is next to
Eden Garden.
Underlining the group ethos, Rajan Kalra, Head of Sales, The LaLit, says that these are prime locations and that has always been one of the group’s strong points. “Our properties that are best suited for weddings have panoramic views like The LaLiT Golf & Spa Resort Goa is next to Raj Baga Beach, The LaLiT Grand Palace Srinagar is located right next to Dal Lake and has one of the largest gardens in Srinagar. The LaLiT Laxmi Vilas Palace Udaipur is overlooking the Fateh Sagar Lake. Room size is also one of our USPs. The LaLiT Golf & Spa Resort Goa for instance is an all-suite hotel with the room size of 605 square feet, which is a starting category. It can host large weddings with more than 500-600 pax. It also has nine villas. So, all LaLit properties are built grand,” he says.
One of the group’s key offerings is also wellness, and all its properties have spas that offer a holistic experience.
Weddings in India
The LaLit Group is known for hosting large weddings. Kalra says, “There is a huge change in trend today. Weddings are now more personalised and intimate, but still extravagant. For us, this segment has grown by 7-8 per cent annually. We also see a rise in pre-wedding functions such as engagement ceremony. Couples now want themed weddings like Bollywood theme. We also see a change of attitude among couples and families. While traditional weddings are still taking place, the entire story of love and commitment is changing. We are getting wedding inquiries for non-saya dates as well. We are packed this year, even though there are not too many saya dates in June this year. And this will change in the coming years.” He adds that couples are also asking for sustainable weddings and he sees a shift towards this in the last two years with more eco-friendly events. “Hotels are also adjusting to this, but we, in general, are following sustainable SOPs,” he further adds. All LaLit hotels also have in-house wedding decorators.
Unexplored Khajuraho
Speaking about new and unexplored properties, Kalra says that the group does have something coming up in Ahmedabad in a year or so. But more details on that later. Meanwhile, for the travel agent partners, he says the group offers complete transparency. “We are one of the few chains that are strong in rate parity and encourage agents to book with us. They will get complete transparency with us. I would suggest them to look at Khajuraho which has not been explored much,” he adds.
