THE NEWLY-opened Radisson Suites Bangkok Sukhumvit is looking to strengthen relationships with travel agents to gain a firm foothold in the market.

General manager Mark Bulmer said the 150-key hotel, which opened November 1 and was already running at peak occupancy last week, received the majority of its bookings from online travel agents and its own reservation system.

Business from traditional travel agents and direct corporate accounts had also started to pick up, he added.

“We will be aggressive with rates, but we will not drop rates to gain business,” said Bulmer.

Bulmer also ruled out contracting parity rate with major players to avoid being tagged as a hotel for certain markets. “As a new hotel, we have to ensure that we are fair with all markets,” he explained.

The hotel is targeting an equal mix of leisure and corporate markets in its first year of operation and plans to increase the corporate mix later.