• ‘Every week that goes by we’re growing’

• Out Island resorts ahead of 86% target

• Smaller hotels do better in COVID chase

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamas’ key visitor source markets are “all up double digits” on tourism demand, it was revealed yesterday, with New York and Florida ahead by 56 percent and 40 percent respectively.

Fred Lounsberry, the Nassau/Paradise Island Promotion Board’s chair and chief executive, told the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association’s (BHTA) board of directors meeting that while figures measuring 12-week rolling demand were “moving in the right direction” this nation still has further to travel to match 2019.

While The Bahamas was “not where it needs to be as we move into Spring and summer”, he added that “every week that goes by we’re growing. We’re seeing demand improve week after week”.

“New York is up 56 percent, Florida 40 percent,” Mr Lounsberry said. “We’re all up double digits, 40 percent, 50 percent, in key markets. They are big numbers related to percentages.... Our strength markets remain strong. New York, despite all its issues, is still number one followed by Philadelphia, Dallas, Boston and down the line.”

When it came to persons hitting the Promotion Board’s website, he added that “visits” were up by 23 percent for the first two months of 2022 with “conversions” - turning visitors into actual customers - ahead by 177 percent compared to the same period last year.

“The last two weeks versus 2021, we’re seeing significant growth week over week. We’ve ramped up marketing to the degree we’re able to. We’re pretty much at peak for the next two-three months in those markets you saw earlier.”

Mr Lounsberry’s presentation showed that flight search demand for The Bahamas was up 33 percent during the first two months of 2022 compared to the prior year, while “search demand” for The Bahamas, Nassau and travel to this nation had also improved after a “ramp up” in late 2021.

“We’re moving up,” he confirmed. “Search demand for The Bahamas, Nassau and travel continues to improve. We’ve a long way to go. We’re up over 2021 but still below 2019, although we’re still improving week-to-week and month-to-month. There was a big drop-off in January. It is moving in the right direction but we have quite a ways to go.”

Meanwhile, Kerry Fountain, the Bahamas Out Islands Promotion Board’s executive director, told the BHTA meeting that its member properties are on target to beat projections that they will achieve collective room revenues equivalent to 86 percent of pre-COVID performance in 2022.

Having forecast that room revenues will be 86 percent of 2019 levels, he revealed that current predictions placed them on target to reach 90 percent of pre-COVID performance for the 2022 first quarter.

And, for room nights sold, Out Islands Promotion Board member resorts are projected to be only slightly off full-year forecasts of 95 percent of pre-COVID business levels, coming in at 93 percent for the three months to end-March 2022.

The data unveiled by Mr Fountain suggested smaller Out Island resorts are performing better against projections than their larger counterparts, who are defined as hotels with 50 rooms or more. Such properties are “hitting about 80 percent” of pre-COVID levels on room nights sold.

However, while mixed, smaller hotels with less than 50 rooms were performing much better in several areas of The Bahamas. Properties in the north were said to be at 96 percent of pre-COVID room nights sold in the 2022 first quarter, while those on the southern Bahamas were at 124 percent, indicating they are ahead of 2019 performance.

Smaller Promotion Board properties in the central Bahamas, though, are on track to match just 73 percent of pre-COVID room nights sold for the 2022 first quarter. And larger properties with 50 rooms or more were also forecast to match just 71 percent of room revenues generated in 2019 during the first three months of this year.

Mr Fountain said member hotels in the northern Bahamas with 50 rooms or less are on course to beat pre-COVID performance with room revenues standing at 115 percent of 2019 comparisons. Room revenues at resorts in the central and southern Bahamas are forecast to be at 87 percent and 90 percent, respectively, of pre-pandemic levels.