By opening a high-end hotel and corporate function centre targeting business travellers, TST Group of Companies is taking advantage of the need for more of these facilities in Port Moresby. Ben Creagh reports.

Laguna Hotel deluxe room

Business developer TST Group of Companies is capitalising on the potential for growth in Papua New Guinea’s tourism and hospitality sectors with the launch of the Laguna Hotel in Port Moresby.

Laguna Hotel is one of several hotels which have either opened or started development in Port Moresby recently, including two new R H Group hotels at Waigani and Port Moresby Airport, and an expansion to the Holiday Inn hotel at Waigani.

This growth has taken place as the PNG Government has reaffirmed its commitment to improving infrastructure supporting the country’s tourism industry, which Finance Minister James Marape described earlier this year as the country’s ‘biggest underutilised resource’.

New direction

Until now, TST has concentrated on building a portfolio of PNG-based businesses in the supermarket, wholesale and retail sectors.

The Laguna Hotel, which was constructed by The Stratos Group in the area that was formerly the Port Moresby Country Club, is the group’s first venture into the hotel industry.

Officially opened in late May, the 60-room hotel is targeting the business-leisure traveller and in its first month of business attracted international visitors from Australia, Singapore, Indonesia, China and Malaysia.

Laguna Hotel manager Pauline Chua, who was part of the team that developed the hotel, says TST Group diversified into the industry after identifying the need for more high-end facilities catering for business travellers in Port Moresby.

‘TST Group sees there is growth in hospitality (in PNG). This is the first and biggest step for them in diversifying their business from retail supermarkets to hotels,’ Chua said.

‘People from all walks of life are already visiting the hotel. They are coming here mainly for business trips—for a couple of days, a week, or even months.’

Boost for business travellers

Laguna Hotel includes a modern boardroom/ballroom complex, which can be customised to suit the requirements of its corporate visitors.

‘This is a major feature of the hotel for the type of traveller we aim to attract,’ Chua said. ‘If we open up the entire area, we can fit approximately 20 tables and 200 people.’

Laguna Hotel also features an outside swimming pool and bar area within a secure enclosure surrounding the hotel.

The hotel’s staff currently consists of personnel from Malaysia, Indonesia, Fiji, Myanmar and the Philippines, although there are plans to train local people in the future.

While TST Group is focused on cementing its new venture’s place on the hotel landscape in Port Moresby, Chua hinted there were plans for the company to grow its hotel business further in the coming years.

‘It won’t be soon but new developments will be coming … maybe in two or three years’ time,’ she tells Business Advantage PNG.