Impact of COVID-19 on City Lodge Hotel Group’s operations

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Following President Ramaphosa’s pronouncement of a 21-day nationwide lockdown, which the City Lodge Hotel Group fully supports, and the ongoing, significant impact of COVID-19, coupled with the imposition of the ban on international arrivals from most countries and restrictions on domestic travel on the already challenging operating environment, the group is experiencing a significant downturn in occupancies.

Prior to the announcement of the lockdown, the group had planned for the temporary closure of 24 of its 62 hotels. However, given the extraordinary circumstances we find ourselves in following the announcement and the forecast additional impact thereof, this is under review and will no doubt result in further closures. The extent of further closures will be dictated by the degree to which the group is called upon to provide support to government and essential and critical business continuity services, as well as other enabling services in the form of either quarantine facilities or staff accommodation. Good discussions have taken place in this regard and we stand ready to support such initiatives as part of a coordinated response to this pandemic.

The group remains well-positioned to re-open any of its hotels on very short notice as circumstances improve.

During this period, core central office functions will continue to operate remotely and all booking channels, including the group’s website, www.clhg.com, will remain open for all our hotels for reservations for any period in the future.