Ravi Chandran of Laguna Resorts and Hotels shares his plans for the India market

Spread over 1,000 acres of parkland and with a 3km stretch of beach, Laguna Phuket, set up in 1987 in Thailand is one of Asia’s premier integrated resorts with five hotels and an 18-hole golf course. Business Today spoke to Ravi Chandran, CEO, Laguna Resorts and Hotels on his plans for the India market, promoting golf tourism and what ails the hospitality sector. Excerpts:

BT: What are your plans for the Indian market?

Ravi Chandran: Laguna has been around for 35 years and is well established in the European markets. But we never really focused on India. Indians have always come to Thailand but it was never a big market share of Laguna. They preferred Bangkok and Pattaya.

But because of our golf course, we know that there is a class in India that plays golf. So we thought we could target that Indian market. People who like to play golf and now that there are direct flights to…