"It's a hard battle. But better products and services will separate us apart," says Sally Su, assistant manger of communications at the Lengendale Hotel Beijing.

Everyone has different styles and gimmicks. The newly established five-star Lengendale that will open in July is European style, reflected in its interior and exterior decor, which Su believes makes it stand out from its Beijing peers. Some new establishments expect to attract the guests with hi-tech gadgets. Hilton Beijing Wangfujing and Novotel Beijing Sanyuan have iPod docking stations in each room. Others bet on superb service, such as Marriott, which has long focused on developing and training its people for service it believes is a cut above other hotels.

A good sales strategy is also important. And the international hotel groups with strong global sales networks enjoy advantages over their domestic counterparts, says Su.

The hotel is owned by a Macao investor and managed by a Chinese, not an international hotel group. "Without a global network, it is really difficult to get them (guests), especially those from overseas," Su says.

But not any hotel group is short sighted enough to bank on just the Olympics. Sustainable economic growth is their goal.

The Beijing Tourism Bureau has predicted that the Beijing tourism industry will continue growing, unlike the post-Olympics slump suffered by other host countries such as Greece.

The number of overseas guests is predicted to grow at around 30 to 60 percent annually, rising to a peak in 2010, and the average occupancy rate will increase to more than 72 percent in 2009, the tourism bureau believes.

"We are not worried about the post-Olympics," says Su.

(China Daily June 23, 2008)