80.7 F
Charlotte Amalie
Thursday, March 28, 2024
HomeNewsArchivesHotel Occupancy Holding Steady Despite Hurricane Season

Hotel Occupancy Holding Steady Despite Hurricane Season

Sept. 7, 2007 — The territory's hotels saw a few cancellations when Hurricane Dean passed to the south in mid August, but the next couple of months look pretty good, according to innkeepers and tourism officials.
"We had a half dozen cancellations during Dean," said Matt Balcik, manager at the Westin Resort and Villas on St. John.
That's a far different story from the same time period in 2006, the year after Hurricane Katrina flooded the airwaves with bad news, said Rik Blyth, president of the V.I. Hotel and Tourism Association. Occupancy rates were way down.
"I remember 25, 30 percent," he said. The fact that the 2006 hurricane season had no awful storms hitting the mainland helped allay fears of traveling to the territory during hurricane season.
"People's memories are pretty short," Blyth said. Hoteliers are getting last-minute bookings, thanks in part to cheap fares on Spirit and American Airlines, he said.
In addition, the territory’s 90th Anniversary sale package was extended, which further enticed visitors, Blyth said. The package gives visitors a fifth night free at participating hotels, as well as complimentary and discounted activities and gifts.
August was the best month of the year at Marriott Frenchman's Reef Beach Resort on St. Thomas with a 90-percent occupancy rate, said Lisa Hamilton, director of marketing. But the hotel is looking at anywhere from 50 to 60 percent for September and October.
She attributed the good numbers to the 90th Anniversary promotion, as well as the “No Passport Needed” advertising campaign.
Best Western's Emerald Beach Resort and Carib Beach Resort on St. Thomas will come in for September at around 50 percent and Carib Beach at around 40 percent, said Manager Joel Kling.
"It's mostly last-minute bookings," he said.
Travelers are more savvy than they used to be and wait to see what kind of last-minute deals are available, Kling said. While hurricane season impacts bookings in the Virgin Islands, September is traditionally a slow month for hoteliers around the world, he said. Children are back in school, which means families aren't vacationing, and most people have already had their vacations. But hotels near universities do well in September as parents fill the rooms, he said.
While it appears the larger hotels or those with national affiliations are doing fairly well for hurricane season, the smallest properties are hurting.
Robin Clair, manager at Estate Zootenvaal on St. John, said the property's four units are empty all the way through October.
"I'm washing screens," she said.
However, she said she'll hold off exterior painting until October in case a storm does hit. The leaves shredded by storm winds stick to the buildings and leave stains, she said.
This year is about the same as last, Clair said, but the summer and fall business dropped off after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and never fully recovered.
"We used to get a lot of Europeans," she said.
Claudia Carrington, who owns the five-room Carringtons Inn on St. Croix, called September the month that doesn't exist. But some Septembers are better than others, she said. She had a 20-percent occupancy rate for September and isn’t getting any last-minute bookings.
Carrington pinned part of the problem on the shortage of non-stop flights to St. Croix. Delta flies in several days a week from Atlanta, with American making daily flights from Miami. Last-minute bookers would then have to change planes, which drives up the airfares, she said.
Both Carrington and Clair said things are looking up for the winter season.
The Island Getaways villa-management company on St. John closes in September because it doesn't get enough guests to make justify staying open, said owner Kathy McLaughlin.
"And it's the most active part of hurricane season," she said.
McLaughlin uses the time to take inventory and make repairs in the villas because it's difficult to fit the work in during the rest of the year, she said.
Back Talk Share your reaction to this news with other Source readers. Please include headline, your name and city and state/country or island where you reside.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Keeping our community informed is our top priority.
If you have a news tip to share, please call or text us at 340-228-8784.

Support local + independent journalism in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Unlike many news organizations, we haven't put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as accessible as we can. Our independent journalism costs time, money and hard work to keep you informed, but we do it because we believe that it matters. We know that informed communities are empowered ones. If you appreciate our reporting and want to help make our future more secure, please consider donating.