PKF: Caribbean Hotel Revenue Fell Nearly 12 Percent Last Year
PKF: Caribbean Hotel Revenue Fell Nearly 12 Percent Last Year
A new study has confirmed what most Caribbean hoteliers already knew: Hotel revenue and profit registered double-digit declines in 2009. That’s the bad news. The good news is that things are picking up in 2010.
“It is evident that Caribbean hotels and resorts suffered one of the worst declines in profitability during 2009,” said Scott Smith, senior vice president of the Atlanta office of Colliers PKF Consulting USA, an advisory and real estate firm specializing in the hospitality industry.
“Being a global destination for leisure and incentive group travelers, the worldwide recession resulted in significant declines in hotel performance. It may still be hurricane season in the Caribbean, but we are starting to see the storm economic seas begin to calm in 2010.”
PKF reported an 11.9 percent drop in revenue from 2008 to 2009. There was a 13.6 percent falloff in room revenue, a 3.7 percent drop in occupancy and a 10.1 percent decrease in average daily rate.
This had a domino effect on hotels' other revenue sources, such as food and beverage, golf, spa, retail and casinos. To combat the decline in revenues, many hotels cut rates last year, some by as much as 10.5 percent.
This move, however, did not overcome the 11.9 percent revenue falloff. Hotels also made staff cuts and implemented a number of energy-efficient practices to control utility costs, which did prove successful. Currently, data from Caribbean properties indicates growth in demand and average daily rate through 2013.
