Holiday Inn & Suites Jakarta Gajah Mada, part of the IHG Hotels network and one of the leading hotels in Jakarta, has been awarded numerous prestigious national and international recognition and awards under the helm of its inspiring leader. With an extensive professional background in the tourism and hospitality industry, Murti Kartikasari, or Tika as she prefers to be known, is the hotel’s General Manager.
Located in Jakarta’s Chinatown entertainment and business district area and a little over 22 kilometres from the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, the Holiday Inn & Suites Jakarta Gajah Mada offers easy access to various landmarks and attractions in the city, such as the National Museum, National Monument, and Jakarta’s History Museum in Fatahillah Square. For retail therapy, there are plenty of shopping malls within a 4km radius, including LTC Glodok, Grand Indonesia, Plaza Indonesia, Mangga Dua Mall, Glodok Electronic Mall, and Gajah Mada Plaza.
The Holiday Inn & Suites Jakarta Gajah Mada offers a variety of room types starting from 40 square metres. Meanwhile, for long-stay guests, spacious studios and suites with one or two-bedrooms will make you feel at home. Extended-stay rooms also feature kitchenettes, a dining and living room area. The hotel is also an ideal venue to host MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions) and social events in different kinds of lay-outs to meet your requirements.
The Holiday Inn & Suites Jakarta Gajah Mada has proved extremely profitable post-pandemic, continuing its strong growth after re-opening to the public in 2022. Adapting to the market’s enthusiasm for culinary concepts, Tika saw this as an opportunity, especially with the hotel nestled in the heart of the Old Town of Glodok with all its street food and destination eating venues. “By creating ‘Teras Gajah Mada’, we bring Gajah Mada’s favourite popular food to the scrumptious Friday night buffet. Now, it’s become the most anticipated evening for food aficionados, to try delectable, authentic, traditional, or fusion dishes” explains Tika.
Especially for family weekenders, some room types are transformed into family rooms. “Our team decorates these rooms with unique themes that kids love, and they are on high demand on most weekends”, Tika adds. Additionally, with the high occupancy all year long and the strategic location among legendary restaurants and street food, Tika saw this opportunity as added value to offer to the guests staying in the hotel.
Adapting to the current infrastructure and technology developments, especially with the ongoing MRT Phase II in the surrounding area, Tika is confident that the Holiday Inn Jakarta Gajah Mada is the ideal choice for business travellers and families alike, with all its supporting facilities, services, and surrounding attractions that enliven the guest experience. “Continual improvement and consistency in challenging ourselves to innovate and be creative are key. These have helped us to achieve so much as a team”, Tika explains. Among the other IHG Hotels in the region, Holiday Inn & Suites Jakarta Gajah Mada achieved the highest overall satisfaction (Guest HeartBeat Survey) in Indonesia and SEAK YTD 2022 and highest loyalty recognition in Indonesia 2022 (IHG One Rewards).
Born and raised in Semarang, Tika finished her education with a diploma from the Indonesian College of Tourism Economics (STIEPARI Semarang). The first hotelier role was as Duty Manager / Night Manager at The Mayflower, Jakarta – Marriott Executive Apartments. Afterward, she joined Holiday Inn Resort Batam where she was gradually promoted from Duty Manager to Front Office Manager before transferring to Holiday Inn Jakarta Kemayoran as Quality & Continuous Improvement Manager, then Holiday Inn Express Jakarta Pluit Citygate as Express Assistant Manager, as well as the Task Force for the opening of Holiday Inn Express Bangkok Soi Soonvijai. Prior to her current role, she was Cluster General Manager of Holiday Inn Express Jakarta Matraman and Holiday Inn and Suites Jakarta Gajah Mada. A passionate hotelier, with a genuine willingness to help everyone and empower others, Tika achieved the 2023 SEAK IMPACT AWARDS – Talent Impact Award for Holiday Inn and Suites Jakarta Gajah Mada and 2022 SEAK IMPACT AWARDS – Colleague Heartbeat Impact Award for Holiday Inn Express Jakarta Matraman competing with other hotel leaders in the industry.
Though she realizes that career and family are the two most precious things in her life, many female leaders find it difficult to decide on priorities. Tika’s answer to this has been to build good communication and compromise into her support system. She firmly believes that by doing good things for others, good things will come to you. “This helps us to feel content and always want to do more for others. This value will forever remain in our hearts whenever and whatever position we are in”.
