The Washington Inquirer EditorBakuriani Inn, a member of one of Georgia’s leading hospitality companies, Inn Group, has won the Golden Brand award for being Georgian customers’ and experts’ favorite ski hotel.
Bakuriani Inn features 154 rooms, a gym, hair and nail salons, and a famous spa center that includes a swimming pool, jacuzzis, massage rooms, saunas, and a steam room.
The hotel also boasts a conference hall, winter garden, a bar and a game zone, where guests can play pool and other table games.
It is also one of the very few hotels that offer three meals a day and one of the very few pet-friendly hotels not only in the region, but in the whole country.
All things considered, Bakuriani Inn is hands down the best choice for price- and quality-oriented guests.
Lana Bliadze, Head of PR and Marketing Department at Inn Group, talked about recent developments at Bakuriani Inn hotel in an interview with Golden Brand.
Q. Bakuriani Inn has won the Golden Brand award for successful activities of the previous year. Please summarize 2022.
A. When you work in the hospitality sector, your service is appreciated and you are rewarded for it, so there is obviously no greater incentive than that. Each new award is an even greater responsibility for us and appreciation of the work of those employees who take care of the hotel and comfort of every guest. This award is the merit of every employee at Inn Group and every guest who stays with us.
Overall, it can be said that the season passed normally, although it should be said that we did not really have a favorable weather situation. Snow started to fall in the second half of February, and by the beginning of March there was no snow, and sales of a mountain-ski resort, as you know, are tied to the weather forecast. Despite this the season was successful, because for the first time in Bakuriani’s history there were more foreign guests than Georgians, which is obviously because of the 2023 FIS Freestyle Ski and Snowboarding World Championships.
Q. Bakuriani was a partner of the Championships, hosting some athletes and Championship insiders. Please tell us more about this partnership.
A. It was a great honor for us to host athletes participating in the championship. In total we hosted about 300 skiers from sixteen countries. Many of them said that they will visit our hotel next winter, this time with their families. So it wasn’t just mountain resorts that benefited, but each hotel where these athletes stayed.
Preparations for this championship actually started a few months ago. We had reservations far in advance and so we knew that we’d be fully booked.
As you know, Bakuriani traditionally had mainly Georgian vacationers. This year, for the first time, we had a higher number of foreigners among our guests. I believe and hope that Bakuriani will become more recognizable and attractive to foreign skiers.
Bakuriani is an extraordinary resort and it would be a shame if we didn’t take advantage of its full potential.
Q. Bakuriani Inn also hosted the Women’s Para-Skiing Championship. Why did you decide to join?
A. The building of Bakuriani Inn hotel is adapted for people with disabilities. The hotel provides all the amenities that a disabled person may need for rest, so para-athletes visit us often.
Q. Bakuriani is a four-season resort and summer is the perfect time for family vacations. What attractions do you offer in summer?
A. The number of vacationers in Bakuriani increases especially in winter and summer. Because Bakuriani Inn hotel offers full service to vacationers, starting with three-course meals, a high-level spa center and entertainment spaces, the number of guests is also high.
Bakuriani Inn’s yard is lovely in summer, where about 300 coniferous trees create a wonderful aroma and environment. Bakuriani Inn is especially comfortable for family vacations owing to its child-friendly environment.
We expect quite a successful summer season as well.
Q. Please share some of Inn Group’s plans for the future.
A. Inn Group is opening a new hotel in Akhaltsikhe in the south-western region of Samtskhe-Javakheti. Akhaltsikhe Inn will be a 115-room, five-star hotel which will feature a restaurant, swimming pool, sauna, gym, entertainment spaces with billiards and board games, a courtyard and conference halls.
The hotel will be suitable for foreigners, locals, and corporate clients.
Q. Inn Group has entered the real estate market with a new company in its holding — Inn Development. What are the factors that led to this decision?
A. Construction is not a new field for Inn Group, because every hotel that the Holding incorporates is built by us, as well as buildings in the Vashlijvari district of Tbilisi and apartments in Bakuriani. Each of them sold successfully, so we decided to position ourselves in the construction sector in 2022.
Currently, Inn Development is involved in the Inn Development Didi Dighomi project, which
involves the construction of four residential buildings over 14,000 sq.m. of territory with
playgrounds for children and football pitches, recreational areas and two-level parking lots.
As for the building itself, it is designed to withstand a level-8 earthquake. So only
certified, high-quality materials are used in the construction process.
In addition, the buildings in the residential complex are energy-efficient. The buildings utilize heat-insulating material, which will help our residents to save on their
utility bills. Of course, the buildings are also fully adapted and comfortable for people with
disabilities as well.
