Development of a four star hotel in the Bavarian Altmühl Valley Bachelor Thesis for Obtaining the Degree Bachelor of Business Administration In Tourism & Hospitality Management Submitted to Gabriel Kacerovsky Anna-Lena Listl 1111577 Vienna, 15 th May 2014
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Development of a four star hotel in
the Bavarian Altmühl Valley
Bachelor Thesis for Obtaining the Degree
Bachelor of Business Administration
In Tourism & Hospitality Management
Submitted to Gabriel Kacerovsky
Anna-Lena Listl
1111577
Vienna, 15th May 2014
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Declaration of authorship I hereby affirm that this Bachelor’s Thesis represents my own written work and that I have
used no sources and aids other than those indicated. All passages quoted from publications
or paraphrased from these sources are properly cited and attributed.
The thesis was not submitted in the same or in a substantially similar version, not even
partially, to another examination board and was not published elsewhere.
15.05.2014
Date Signature
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Table of contents
Declaration of authorship ........................................................................................................ 2
Table of contents ..................................................................................................................... 3
List of charts ............................................................................................................................. 5
List of abbreviations ................................................................................................................. 7
Chart 11 Overnights nature park Altmühl Valley 2011 (Geschäftsbericht Almtühltal, 2012)
A glance at the overnight numbers of the district of Kelheim shows that there mainly is
domestic tourism – more than 90%.
District Overnights Change
compared
to last
year (%)
Arrivals Change
compared
to last
year (%)
Duration
of stay
(days)
Overnights
of
foreigners
(%)
Kelheim 730.541 4,0 223.462 1,4 3,3 6,1
Chart 12 Overnights district Kelheim 2011 (Geschäftsbericht Almtühltal, 2012)
3.3 Population and demographic growth Bavaria has about 12.549.150 inhabitants. Its five biggest cities – all with a population of
more than 125.000 people- can be reached in less than 130 km; the fourth biggest city –
Regensburg - is even situated in only 30 km distance. Until 2030 the Bavarian population is
going to decrease to 12, 53 million, but the main two surrounding administrative districts
Upper Bavaria and Lower Bavaria are states with an overall stagnating respectively
increasing population. The county of Kelheim has about 113.996 inhabitants; the city itself
counts around 15.560 people.
All data according to Genesis Online Datenbank, 2014.
3.4 Transportation
3.4.1 Air traffic
Kelheim has a good position between two big airports: Munich Airport can be reached in
less than an hour car ride or alternatively in one and a half hours by train from Regensburg
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main station. The airport is ranked number two of Germany when it comes to passenger
volume and number seven in whole of Europe (Munich airport, n.d.). In 2013 Munich
airport served 19 destinations within Germany. Another international airport that can be
reached within a bit more than an hour is Nurnberg airport. Over 40 destinations within
Germany and Europe can be reached nonstop from here (Airport Nuernberg, n.d.).
Furthermore it is only a three hours’ drive to world’s eleventh largest airport – Frankfurt
airport - which can alternatively also be reached by a nonstop train connection from
Regensburg main station within three and a half hours. Frankfurt airport offers flights to
295 destinations worldwide during its summer flight plan (Fraport, 24.03.2014).
Airport Journey time car Journey time train
Munich <1 h 1,5 h
Nurnberg >1 h 1,5 h
Frankfurt 3 h 3,5 h
Chart 13 Journey times from project site
3.4.2 Shipping traffic
A small marina is located vis-à-vis the property. Prices for anchorages depend on the boat
size and vary from 9,00 - 24,50 € (Yachthafen Donautal, 2014). The port suits ideally for
boats with less than a two meter draft. A slightly bigger marina is located in Saal – about
seven kilometers away. It offers anchorages for boats up to 30 m length and charges
overnight prices from 10,00 to more than 25,00 €. Here guests also have the opportunity to
rent a console boat for 200,00 € per day (excluding required refueling). Additionally a fleet
of seven passenger boats is awaiting the guests in Kelheim. Excursions along the Danube as
well as the Altmühl are available.
3.4.3 Railway traffic and public transportation
A small railway station is located in less than 2 km distance in Poikam. Regional trains stop
here and there is a frequented connection to Regensburg main station. Regensburg offers a
good range of connections with direct links to Munich, Nurnberg, Hamburg, Dusseldorf and
more (Regensburg Hauptbahnhof, March 2014). For further information visit www.bahn.de.
A bus station can be found only a few meters next to the property. However it is served
infrequently by only one bus line that goes to Kelheim (VLK, n.d.).
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3.4.4 Road traffic
The property is directly connected to the quayside. It takes only a few minutes to reach the
federal highway B16 that links Kapfelberg with cities like Regensburg and Ingolstadt. In less
than 20 minutes the motorway junction Regensburg (A3 & A93) can be reached. As it is an
extremely frequented interchange the A3 is supposed to be expanded from four to six lanes
(construction start not before 2015). The A3 proceeds from the Dutch border to the
Austrian boarder connecting cities such as Dusseldorf, Cologne, Regensburg and Passau.
3.5 Project site
3.5.1 Location and expanse
The property is located at the eastern border of Kapfelberg. The Danube flows less than 10
m beneath the estate. On the left side are located Kapfelberg’s marina, a snack bar and a
small camping ground, on the other side is also a camping ground. The backside is
surrounded by two hills and fields.
In total the property covers an area of 19.141 sqm, but only about 9.000 sqm are declared
as building ground (Chart 14).
3.5.2 Visibility
The building will be well-visible from all sites; a frequented quay road runs along the
property line. Furthermore passing ships on the Danube have good prospect of the hotel.
Chart 14 Land development plan (see next page)
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3.6 Existing & future supply of competitive facilities
Chart 15 Areal of competitors (radius = 30km)
In 2012 the nature park Altmühl Valley offered in total 1.206 accommodation possibilities,
29 % were hotels and guesthouses (Geschäftsbericht Naturpark Altühltal, 2012). This sector
held 75 % of beds sold. Direct competition to this project arises from hotels in Kelheim, Bad
Abbach and Bad Gögging – which creates a radius of 30 km around the property. Bad
Abbach and Bad Gögging attract their visitors with a range of thermal springs and health
treatments, whereas Kelheim is popular for bicyclists and hikers. Hotels located in the city
of Regensburg were not taken into account, although it would be within the considered
radius. It is assumed that our provincial wellness and conference hotel does not stand in
direct competition with city hotels.
Type of accommodation Number of businesses Number of beds
Hotels/Guesthouses 349 12.592
Boarding Houses 141 742
Holiday Flats 716 3.580
Total 1.206 16.916
Chart 16 Accommodation overview nature park Altmühl Valley (Geschäftsbericht, 2012)
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Chart 17 Accomodation types nature park Altmühl Valley 2012 (Geschäftsbericht, 2012)
Chart 18 Bed division nature park Altmühl Valley 2012 (Geschäftsbericht, 2012)
3.6.1 Bad Gögging
Bad Gögging offers a popular thermal spa with a sulfur spring, thermal water and a moor. It
is one out of two bathing resort within the examined area. A wide range of wellness & spa
treatments is provided by a number of suppliers; furthermore Bad Gögging is a renowned
health centre for a great variety of cures. This site has a long tradition in the sector of
health & spa, relicts of Roman baths can still be visited around the area. Besides that four
hotels also specialized on MICE, two of those being four star superior houses. This range
gets supported by the Bad Gögging Kurhaus that provides its customers with five size
varying rooms. The distance between Kapfelberg and Bad Gögging is about 26 km.
The Monarch Hotel****S & Convention Centre
The Monarch offers twelve different meeting rooms covering an area of 2.500 m², what
makes it to the biggest convention hotel of Lower Bavaria. Its capacity manages
conventions up to 540 participants and basic technical equipment is included into the
convention room fees. Besides that it offers a well-equipped wellness & SPA centre with
remarkably low prices. The cheapest full body massage starts at 49€ for 40 minutes. Only
one hops treatment can be found among their brochure.
Accomodation 2012
Hotels/Guest- houses
BoardingHouses
Holiday Flats
Bed Division 2012
Hotels/Guest- houses
BoardingHouses
Holiday Flats
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Chart 19 Hotel Monarch (busreisen24.com, n.d.)
Facts:
• Year of construction 1997
• Category ****S
• Number of rooms 310
• Conference area 2.500 sqm
• Wellness area 300+ sqm
• Distance to project site 29 km
Marc Aurel Spa & Golf Resort****S
14 conference rooms and a 2.800m² big wellness area belong to the hotel. Highlights
among its treatments are the Ayurveda massages and its spa suite. Furthermore the hotel
tries to conceptualize a Roman theme in all its facilities including three restaurants. On top
of that Marc Aurel tries to attract guest with its house own 9-hole golf course, squash
rooms and a high ropes course.
Chart 20 Hotel Marc Aurel (1golf.eu,n.d.)
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Facts:
• Year of construction 1996
• Category ****S
• Number of rooms 165
• Conference area 800+ sqm
• Wellness area 2.800 sqm
• Distance to project site 28 km
Hotel & Gasthof Eisvogel****
The hotel’s conference facilities are limited. By combining two rooms the maximum
number of 30 participants can be hosted. On the other hand the hotel impresses with a
newly renovated spa & wellness area. Swimming pool, 15 treatment rooms and two private
suites can be found on 1.600 sqm. The family run hotel has one very special feature: It
specialized on hops treatments and even registered its own brand – HopfenWell
(Mittelbayerische, 26.03.2014)
Chart 21 Hotel Eisvogel (Gasthof Eisvogel, n.d.)
Facts:
• Year of construction 1989
• Category ****
• Number of rooms 58
• Conference area 100+ sqm
• Wellness area 1.600 sqm
• Distance to project site 26 km
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3.6.2 Bad Abbach
The Bavarian health resort Bad Abbach is situated only eight kilometers next to Kapfelberg.
The biggest advantage of the location is the renowned Asklepios clinical centre which is
specialized on orthopedics and rheumatology. Additional Bad Abbach has a popular sulfur-
moor bath called Kaiser Therme.
Gut Deutenhof***
There are no hotels worth
considering competition wise in Bad
Abbach, however in its county can
be found a three star superior golf
hotel. With its 13 rooms Gut
Deutenhof is rather small, but it is
perfectly situated at the property of
a popular 27-hole golf course.
Chart 22 Hotel Gut Deutenhof (Hotel.de, n.d.)
In addition, conventions up to 120 participants can be held, after all the technical standards
are limited.
Facts:
• Year of construction 1997
• Category ***
• Number of rooms 13
• Conference area 100+ sqm
• Wellness area -
• Distance to project site 26 km
3.6.3 Kelheim
Kelheim is the next town, just in 8 km distance. As the head of the tourism department –
Barbara Wieben – states: “There is no wellness tourism in Kelheim” (Wieben 2014). Besides
the following hotel there is no supplier with wellness facilities – or remarkable conference
equipment in Kelheim.
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Carathotel Wittelsbacher Hof Kelheim****
The newly renovated hotel offers a
combined fitness and wellness facility,
but there is no pool. Massages can be
arranged with an external service
provider in-house. Moreover MICE are
attracted by the hotel’s possibility to
host up to 550 guests in its biggest hall
Ludwigssaal and up-to-date technical
equipment.
Chart 23 Hotel Wittelsbacher Hof (Carathotel Kelheim, n.d.)
In total four conference rooms are offered. A special advantage is that the Ludwigssaal is
accessible for cars, making car presentations possible. As the production sites of
internationally known car companies such as Audi and BMW can be found in the
surrounding area, this feature is of great advantage. “The Wittelsbacher Hof possesses
technical equipment that is absolutely unique around this area, even in Regensburg you
can’t find something comparable” (Wieben, 2014).
Facts:
• Year of construction 2010
• Category ****
• Number of rooms 84
• Conference area 700+ sqm
• Wellness area 200+ sqm
• Distance to project site 26 km
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Chart 24 Location of Competitors
Hotel Category
Rooms
Single Double Suites Total
Price DR
(€; incl. BF)
The Monarch Hotel &
Convention Centre ****S 163 133 11 310 119,00
Marc Aurel Spa & Golf
Resort ****S 13 136 16 165 160,00
Hotel & Gasthof Eisvogel **** 7 45 6 58
119,00
Gut Deutenhof *** 1 10 2 13 85,00
Carathotel Wittelsbacher
Hof Kelheim **** 8 73 3 84
119,00
Total ∑ 192 399 36 627
Ø 38 80 7 125 120,40
Chart 25 List of competitors (prices according to 05/05/14)
3.7 Assessment The results of the evaluation of the micro site can be summarized as follows:
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Strengths Weaknesses
• Danube across the street
• Marina in direct neighborhood
• Affinity towards tourism of site
(adjacent camping ground)
• Central location within several
industrial locations
• Proximity to Munich and Nurnberg
airport
• Relatively outlying position
• Car necessity
• Lack of public transportation
• Not recognized as touristic
destination
Opportunities Threats
• Position along popular hiking and
bicycle tracks, e.g. Jurasteig
• Stromtreter project for e-bikes
• Location within nature park
• Various golf courses close-by
• Use of two destination brands
(Nature Park Altmühl Valley & TA
Eastern Bavaria)
• No selfsame competition among
the regional market
• Tourist magnet Regensburg in
proximity
• Flood (about every 10 years Danube
reaches dangerous high-tide)
• Seasonality (Low season from
November to February)
• Weather dependency
Chart 26 SWOT Analysis Kapfelberg
One of the biggest opportunities for this project is definitely that there is no significant
competition within a close radius. Even Wieben, the head of Kelheim’s tourism department,
states that she sees “great potential in the field of conference business” (Wieben, 2014)
and that there is a gap in supplies in the wellness sector. However, demand exists. On the
other hand there is the need to come up with innovative solutions to fight the threats of
weather dependency and seasonality.
The following hotel types are suitable for the estate.
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Chart 27 Suitability hotel type
4 Hotel Project
4. 1 Idea and concept As previously described the aim of this project is to develop an upscale wellness and
conference hotel for the underlying property. But for this special location that is not
enough: The hotel concept must have a distinct character, so that the hotel is going to be
recognized over the county’s borders. Dipl.-Ing. Barbara Wieben correctly stated among our
interview:
“What we permanently recognize is a new trend: There is an increasing desire for the
countryside; we call it Landlust. People are seeking small, dreamy houses, nativeness,
something original. And that’s where Kelheim is able to score” (2014).
The idea of escapism perfectly suits the property: Embedded by two green hills, with view
to the Danube on the one and to fertile fields on the other site, it is the ideal escape for
anyone looking for originality and unsophistication.
Furthermore it is highly recommended to adopt the concept of organic, regional food. The
area offers a great choice on the supply side covering various products: For instance, the
meat of the Altmühl Valley lamb – a local landscape conservation project in the Altmühl
Valley.
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Moreover the connection to the world’s largest hops region should also be reflected in the
hotels concept. It’s the base of two ideas:
• Creating a hops & beer themed wellness area
• Offering a “show brewery” in the restaurant
Positioning By implementing the above ideas clear distinction to the surrounding competitors is
achieved. A concept that combines nature, regional products, wellness and convention
does not exist in a radius of at least 30 km. The hotel will be a clearly outstanding highlight
in the region.
Due to the quality and monopolistic position of the concept a category lower than midscale
can’t be recommended.
I perceive the following guest segment as crucial for the planned hotel:
• Seminar and conference guests
A business center with totally up-to-date equipment and variable room sizes
through movable walls is awaiting its guests. The surrounding car manufacturers
are targeted with a special car entrance to one of the conference rooms.
• Guests of incentives
The hotel suits perfectly the needs of smaller incentives. On the one side wellness
and conference facilities are covered on the other side guests can choose from a
grand variety of outdoor activities, such as rafting tours on the Danube or a bicycle
tour to some of Bavaria’s most magnificent beer gardens.
• Individual tourists
This group is supposed to be especially attracted by the idea of escapism. Nature
experience, sport activities and a well-equipped SPA offer a great time-out.
• Tourist groups
Though aiming at the four star classification, group travels – especially couch
parties ‒ are attractive for the hotel, particularly off-season. The hotel is perfectly
located as a vantage point to discover the attractions of the Altmühl Valley situated
in the West, as well to explore the UNESCO world heritage site Regensburg and its
surroundings in the East. Bus parking lots will be provided.
• Weddings
The hotel is an ideal place for all couples who are looking for a magnificent wedding
location surrounded by a gorgeous landscape. Various in-house facilities sum up to
a multifunctional wedding location.
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Chart 28 Suitability guest segment
Golf
Golf tourists are going to be a crucial part of the hotel’s guest segment as the area is known
for its quantity of magnificent golf courses. In a radius of only 55km are situated six 18-hole
courses.
• Golf-Club Bad Abbach – Deutenhof
Distance: 8 km
• Gut Minoritenhof Golf & Countryclub
Distance: 15 km
• Golfclub Thiergarten
Distance: 36 km
• Golf-Club Straubing
Distance: 52 km
• Golfclub Schmidmühlen
Distance: 55 km
• Altmühlgolf Beilngries
Distance: 51 km
In a later stage of planning it is seeked to negotiate special greenfee rates for our guests.
Special treatments for golfers, such as pre-golf massages are going to be available in the
SPA. Additional a storage room for golf euipment will be available.
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Chart 29 Overview golf courses
4.2 Space & function At this stage of planning the following functions are advised to be integrated into the hotel:
4.2.1 Spa & Wellness
Because of facing quite large spa facilities of the compeititors in Bad Gögging – up to 2.800
sqm – the wellness area needs to be at least 1000 sqm. To differentiate the SPA focuses on
products with ingredients typical for the region: Hops, juniper, herbals and more. Nature
experience and originality are in focus. By offering natural finish treatments, special
segments such as pregnant women shall be attracted. A stay in the hotel is going to be
perfect to prepare for birth and catch some relaxation before the busy time starts. In
general eight treatment rooms and three private spa suites are awaiting the guests.
Highlight is Germany’s very first beer pool filled with clear spring water and house brewed
beer. The beer pool does not only offer our guests an unforgettable experience, but is also
meant to gain supraregional attention.
Design parameters:
• Exclusive beer pool 200 sqm
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• Heated in-/outdoor pool 100 sqm
• 8 treatment rooms á 15 sqm
• 3 Private Spa Suites á 40 sqm
• Sauna (Finnish, Bio) á 20 sqm
• Steambath 20 sqm
• Lounge area 300 sqm
• Relaxation Room 100 sqm
• Fitness Room 80 sqm
• Sun deck 100 sqm
• Library 42 sqm
• Changing areas & bathrooms á 20 sqm
• Reception &waiting area 40 sqm
4.2.2 Conference Center
The hotel’s second specialization lies in the MICE business. Eleven meeting rooms, partly
with possibility to combine two rooms and spacious ballrooms cover not only the field of
business conventions, but also offer great facilities for private events, such as weddings. In
respect of the surrounding car manufacturers the auditorium maximum is car accessible –
making indoor car presentations possible. The conference center elates with a size of 2.500
sqm.
• Seminar I & II (auditorium maximum) á 480 sqm
• Seminar III ‒ V á 190 sqm
• Seminar VI 370 sqm
• Seminar VII ‒ XI 50 sqm
An underground garage with about 80 parking lots will be available.
5 Financial Analysis The following pages contain the preliminary financial analysis. The forecasts were generated on the base of a 120 rooms wellness and conference hotel.
It is foreseen to outsource housekeeping and laundry.
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5.1 Average Room Rate (ARR)
An average room rate of above 112,00 € can be expected for the first years.
5.2 F&B revenue per room
For occupancy rates of 60 %, 65 % and 70 % the expected f&b revenues per room are
shown above.
5.3 SPA revenue per room
For occupancy rates of 60 %, 65 % and 70 % the expected spa revenues per room are shown
above.
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5.4 Revenue details
For the first year a revenue per available room (RevPar) of 67,00 € can be expected. In the
second year the RevPar is going to rise to 73,00 €.
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5.5 Staff planning
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5.6 Operating P&L statement
From the first year on the hotel is going to be in the black. Condition for that is that the
hotel manages to achieve a 60 % occupancy with an ARR of 112,00 €.
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5.7 Investment structure
At this point net total project costs of at least 15.000.000,00 € can be anticipated as
investment sum.
6 Outcome The outcome of this study can be summarized as follows: The regional hotel market -radius
of 30 km around the project site- is not saturated, especially in the field of conference and
wellness tourism lays great potential as there is a very limited number of hotels with
correspondent facilities. However, investors still bear a certain risk when realizing this
project: The tourism regions nature park Altmühl Valley and peculiarly Eastern Bavaria lack
recognition on a national and most notably international level. Differentiation therefore is
inevitable. With Germany’s only and world’s second beer pool has been found a great
solution. Nationwide media recognition can be taken for granted then implementing this
innovative idea. Furthermore the spacious, top modern meeting facilities are going to help
encounter the threats of seasonality. The form of operation – management, lease or
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similar- has to be clarified within further research. A net investment sum of almost 16 mio €
has to be raised in order to realize the project.
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Bibliography Bildergalerie n.d.. Carathotel Wittelsbacher Hof Kelheim., retrieved from
http://www.carat-hotel-kelheim.de/bilder. On April 15, 2014php
Cohen, M.; Bodeker, G. 2008. Understanding the global spa industry – Spa Management.,
Burlington: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann
D’Angelo, J. M. 2006. Spa business strategies – A plan for success. USA: Thomson Delmar
Learning
Eisvogel entdeckt das grüne Gold 26.03.2014. Mittelbayerische., retrieved from