High-Paying Foreign Guests Are Still Missing in India, Oberoi Hotels Says

India’s domestic travel boom is cushioning luxury hotels from a geopolitical tourism shock, but not completely replacing high-spending international travelers. EIH Limited, owner of the Oberoi and Trident hotel brands, said international guest arrivals fell at its hotels during the most recent quarter as the Middle East conflict held back overseas travel to India. The company expects that weakness to persist through the current quarter. “We would expect that trend to continue just given what is happening in West Asia,” EIH Managing Director and CEO Vikram Oberoi said on the company’s earnings call Wednesday. The company hopes international business will strengthen in the third and fourth quarters if conditions in the region stabilize. The shift in demand is significant for luxury hotels: “international guest propensity to pay is higher” than that of domestic guests, said Oberoi. EIH responded to the shortfall by spending more