It’s been a strong year for Caribbean hotels, with hotel occupancy climbing every month from January to June. Unsurprisingly, in July, that changed, the direct result of the passage of Hurricane Beryl.
Indeed, July saw a 1.9 percent reduction in hotel occupancy compared to July 2023, but average daily rates and revenues per room actually improved, rising by 3.2 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively.
For the year, occupancy is still up 3.1 percent, standing at 70.8 percent Caribbean-wide, with rates up 7.8 percent to $374.12 and revenues per room up 11.1 percent to $265.01.
Recent data from analytics firm ForwardKeys showed that most of the destinations hit hard by Hurricane Beryl rebounded quickly from the storm, and it’s likely that the trend should continue in August.
STR’s data survey 2,117 hotels comprising almost 284,000 rooms across the wider Caribbean region.
CJ Expert Take: The Caribbean has vastly improved its position as a year-round destination, in large part due to travel industry shifts resulting from the pandemic. Given the upheaval caused by Beryl, an only 1.9 percent decrease in occupancy is a very positive sign.
