PUTRAJAYA, Feb 7 — The Tabung Haji Hotel (TH Hotel) at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) in Sepang will be operational by mid-year, before the first outbound flight for Haj pilgrims scheduled on July 13.

Tabung Haji (TH) Group managing director Datuk Seri Johan Abdullah said the building was originally developed as the TH Complex, however, it was changed to TH Hotel to generate commercial income.

"The cost of managing Haj pilgrim complexes is quite high, so we turned it (TH Complex in Sepang) into a hotel. That is why some TH hotels (which are situated in TH complexes) have no ratings, because they are considered as complexes.

"With the popularity of TH, and its ‘syariah-compliant’ concept, many people want to stay there, so the hotel concept can be better commercialised,” he said during a press conference after the announcement of Tabung Haji’s annual hibah, or bonus here, today.

He said the four-star rated nine-storey hotel had 333 rooms and a convention centre which could accommodate 500 people.

Johan said another TH Hotel in Kuching with about 200 rooms is also expected to begin operating this year. — Bernama