After Selina opened its first establishment in Antigua, Guatemala, the international chain announced that next year plans to open five new hotels in different parts of the country.
The chain's representatives informed that for the opening of the new hotels, which will be in the departments of Solola, Escuintla, Guatemala, Alta Verapaz and Peten, an investment of approximately $6 million will be made.
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.
This year 11 new hotels are expected to open, adding 696 more rooms in different parts of the country, with an estimated investment of $149 million.
Details from the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT) show that there are 11 establishments in the process of completing paperwork with the entity to declare themselves of tourist interest.
It has been announced that a hotel will be built under the Curio brand, owned by Hilton, called Botanika Osa Peninsula, in the southern zone of Costa Rica.
From a statement issued by Hilton Hotels:
Hilton (NYSE: HLT) today announced the signing of the Botánika Osa Peninsula to Curio - A Collection by Hilton. Botánika Osa Peninsula, Curio - A Collection by Hilton, is slated to open in 2018 and the project developer is Sinergo Development Group.
Three out of four hotels reported not having shown an improvement in their operations in 2015.
Results from the study "Tourism sector 2015, challenges to overcome, "prepared by the Association for Research and Social Studies (ASIES), underscores the need to modernize industry, improve strategies for promotion and attracting tourists (50% of the hotel respondents claimed to have no website).
On October 12 in Managua entrepreneurs will be meeting to discuss issues such as hotel operations, techniques for hotel marketing and use, and the advantages of new technologies.
The event is being organized by the Hotel Association of Nicaragua (Ashotnic) and will be held at the Hotel Crowne Plaza Convention Center.
Elnuevodiario.com.ni reports that "...The Ashotnic's goal is to surpass the results achieved in the edition of the fair in 2015, which was attended by 50 companies, who promoted 80 brands of hotel services, and accessories for that sector. "
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.
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.
Tax incentives for the construction of hotels in the interior of the country are behind the increase in the number of operating permits issued since the implementation of the law in 2012.
With up to six years to start their projects, investors interested in developing hotel infrastructure in the interior of the country have until 2020 to benefit from the tax incentives which include total exemption from import tax, including transfer tax on goods and services (ITBMS), for a period of 20 years for the purchase of equipment, furniture, fittings and equipment used in the construction and equipping of the complex.
60% of hotels operating in the country have less than 30 rooms, in a market with oversupply in certain areas and a demand that is not growing.
Of the 2,515 hotels reported by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute, more than half are small establishments and family-run structures, while the others corresponds to large chain hotels, with a greater number of rooms.
In Costa Rica the investors of Altara El Tucano Trust rejected a proposal for refinancing, leading to the subsequent execution of the guarantee and possible sale.
After having created a trust to issue debt of $7 million to buy the hotel, the group of investors rejected the option to suspend the execution of the guarantee, which uses as collateral the hotel, valued in an appraisal made in July 2012, at $16.5 million.
The intention is to revive the hotel Cerro Verde, an investment that could be around $10 million and would be developed as a public-private partnership.
A feasibility study conducted by consulting firm Urani Pitarch Associated Advisors SL (PAX Consulting), demonstrates the viability of developing the project entitled "Renovation of Cerro Verde Mountain Hotel, Canton Las Lomas Santa Ana" which could resume operations in about two years.
Having hotel guests take home a product marked with your name or brand is the best way to differentiate yourself from competitors.
Competition is very tough and the internet has made global hotel deals transparent, so positively differentiating yourself and making clients remember you is vital for getting a return stay at your hotel.
Julie Weed's article (The New York Times), published in Elnuevodiario.com.ni, remarks that it is no longer enough to have bathrobes, bedding and pillows monogrammed if you want to secure the hotel brand in the customer's mind and make them decide to return.
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.