Beijing, Shanghai and

what's next?

Next is Dongguan, a city located in South China's Guangdong Province between Guangzhou, the province's capital, and Shenzhen Special Economic Zone.

The city houses 15 five-star hotels, accounting for 5 per cent of China's total and nearly twice that of the province's capital, Guangzhou.

Driving along the winding roads linking the 32 little towns of Dongguan, you would think they are no different from other parts of China: drab buildings from the 1980s, small mom-and-pop restaurants and stores, and little factories.

But the next minute you will be at a lavishly decorated hotel with marble floors, crystal pendant lamps, plasma TVs, Jacuzzi tubs and a crystal clear swimming pool surrounded by palm trees.

Local investment

The hotel industry of Dongguan attracted more than 25 billion yuan (US$3.2 billion) of private investment in the past 10 years. More than 90 per cent of the 95 hotels are owned by local millionaires. Just two decades ago, the southern city was just a village.

What makes the private investors confident is the prosperous business travel market in Dongguan.

More than 8 million business people visit Dongguan every year. Some attend the exhibitions held almost twice every month covering different industries, from furniture to textiles, from electronics to sweaters and shoes. Some are business executives with the more than 15,000 foreign-invested enterprises and 300,000 private enterprises in Dongguan.

The average occupancy rate of hotels in Dongguan is 58 per cent, while four- and five-star hotels have a much higher rate at 70 per cent.

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(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)