Although most activities in the country reopened at the end of August, hotel occupancy levels are still low and business people fear they will be forced to cut more jobs or close operations.
Corporacion Camino Real, Radisson, Hyatt, Marriot, Adriatika, Hilton Garden and Holiday Inn are some of the large hotels that have suspended operations in Guatemala due to the health and economic crisis affecting the world.
As a result of the covid-19 outbreak, the Real Intercontinental Hotel suspended operations from April 1 and according to its managers, the reopening will depend on government regulations.
Between 2010 and 2015 the number of tourist accommodation establishments went up by 73%, and the total number of available rooms increased by 53%.
Data from the Central American Integration System (SICA) indicates that in 2010 Nicaragua registered 8,880 rooms and had 771 business establishments used to accommodate tourists.At the close of 2015, there were almost 14 thousand rooms and 1,057 establishments such as hotels, hostels and cabins.
Up to December 2015 2.559 hotels with 47,452 rooms were registered in the country, of which 70% are located in the city and at the beach.
Market figures have not yet reached the levels recorded before the crisis of 2008, when the Costa Rican Chamber of Hotels counted 2,599 hotels in operation, spread across different areas of the country, but are instead concentrated in the large metropolitan area and coastal areas.
For the first time in two years, Panama will achieve a hotel occupancy rate of 60% during the days of the Summit of the Americas, which will have an economic impact estimated at between $50 million and $80 million.
The visit which will be made by 35 presidents of the Americas and 25,000 people who make up their delegations have changed the landscape, at least for a few days, of the Panama hotel sector, which expects to achieve an occupancy rate of at least 70% from 6 and April 11.
The American chain La Quinta Inn has announced that in 2015 it will begin construction of three hotels in Managua, Guatemala City and Quetzaltenango.
From a statement issued by La Quinta Inn and Suites:
IRVING, Texas, Aug. 12, 2014 / PRNewswire / - La Quinta Holdings Inc. (NYSE: LQ) ("La Quinta" or the "Company"), owner, operator and franchisor of La Quinta Inns & Suites, announced it has signed franchise agreements for new hotels in Nicaragua and Guatemala, marking the entry of the company into those countries.
Although the number of tourists coming to Panama City continues to grow, there is still an oversupply of rooms, and in the last 3 years average occupancy has fallen by 10%.
The prevailing oversupply in the sector has begun to affect hotels, whose financial profits have been reduced by 20%. Currently the supply of rooms is 40 thousand, 8000 more than in and 2009 and although the number of tourists arriving in the country has not reduced, the percentage of unoccupied hotel rooms has reached 45%. The Panamanian Chamber of Tourism recognizes that the situation is worrying and is demanding institutional action in order to increase occupancy by 2015.
The current occupancy rate of 57% can be explained by the increased supply of rooms and the relative decline of San Jose as a business destination.
The increased supply of hotel rooms in the capital is one of the reasons for the low level of occupancy, which as of January stood at 57%. This occurs mainly in hotels that attract business travelers or tourists who spend up to two nights prior to departure.
In 2014 the number of hotel rooms in Panama on offer will exceed 17,000, for which an inevitable price war is foreseen.
The other problem revealed to entrepreneurs is the lack of skilled labor to service clients in sophisticated environments where mastering a second languages is essential.
The Panamanian inventory of hotel rooms in 2010 indicated the supply of 10,000 rooms.