Arrivals are up
There has been a 6.46 per cent increase in the number of long stay visitors coming to this country between January and October this year, compared to the corresponding period in 2016.
According to Chief Executive Officer of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA), Rudy Grant, the overall long stay visitor arrivals moved from 501 380 in 2016 to 533 296 in 2017, with the United States of America showing the greatest growth, some 14.2 per cent. He was speaking yesterday morning during the BHTA’s Fourth Quarterly General Meeting held at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.
Grant further indicated that the growth recorded out of Canada was 9.86 per cent; Trinidad and Tobago increased by 7.3 per cent; other Caribbean grew by 4.9 per cent, while the United Kingdom was somewhat flat with growth of only 0.7 per cent. With that in mind, he told those gathered that information obtained from the STR Report showed that for the same period, participating BHTA member properties recorded an increase in occupancy by 1.7 per cent, while the Average Daily Rate was flat with a mere 0.9 per cent increase.
“For the 2017 winter period, we expect that there will be a slight growth in the occupancy for our members and it is interesting to note that our internal surveys highlight that the luxury properties for the winter are expected to grow by some three per cent, and that is interesting because in January 2017 we would have seen some softening in relation to the luxury properties. We would have participated, in collaboration with the BTMI, in specific strategies and those strategies have obviously resulted in growth taking place in the luxury segment of the market. As it relates to the “A” and “B” Class our internal surveys show that is presently flat, but our anticipation is that we will see a slight growth there and that is because we have been observing a lot of late bookings,” he indicated.
His comments came as he spoke to efforts by several members to undertake refurbishments and renovations of their properties, which he said has allowed the country to remain competitive as a destination in this “fiercely competitive global tourism industry”. In this vein, he referred to the new Sandals Royal Barbados which boasts 222 rooms with butler and concierge suites, as well as work done to refurbish such properties as Divi Southwinds, Fairmont Royal Pavilion and Sea Breeze Beach Hotel.
Meanwhile, on the topic of cruise arrivals, Grant indicated that such arrivals saw an almost three times percentage increase over the long-stay arrivals. He explained that the performance of the cruise sector continues to trend upwards with the figures for the period January to October increasing for both cruise calls and passengers. Those, he stated, increased by 18.9 per cent and 18.2 per cent respectively, when compared to the same period last year. An upbeat Grant added that the growth in cruise passengers is expected to continue throughout the winter season. He made the point while noting that both the homeporting as well as the cruise and stay programmes are providing positive benefits for members of the BHTA. (JRT)