by admin on August 3, 2010
One might expect that the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico would be severely hampering business for beach hotels along the gulf coast. But according to recent reports business is doing pretty well:
While I’ve not visited the region yet, from what I’m hearing and reading recently it seems that relatively few of the thousands of miles of beach along the Gulf Coast have been heavily affected and life continues on as usual for most residents and visitors. The Louisiana coast has been hit hardest with multiple beach closures, but as you travel east along Mississippi, Alabama and Florida, the impact is minimal, beaches are open and the hotel business is, well booming.
Booming? Yep, at least in terms of occupancy. According the Smith Travel Research (the go-to guys for hotel industry stats) occupancy rates along the coast Gulf Coast from Texas to Florida were up 7 percent in June year-over-year. In coastal Alabama alone, occupancy was up a whopping 41 percent; in Louisiana and Mississippi it was up 10 percent and 11 percent respectively. Florida and Texas experienced smaller increases, but all were up over last June.
Where is this silver lining coming from? To answer that, I called in some experts.
>Troy Rutman, spokesperson for Best Western*, which has hundreds of hotels in the region, said, “While some beach properties have seen declines, the overall short term outlook has been buoyed by corporate business from clean-up crews and news media. We’ve got our eye on the mid- and long-term economic impact of the spill, and we have solutions on deck to assist our members as needs arise.”
>Travel industry analyst Henry Harteveldt said, “Many of the hotels had ‘clean beach’ guarantees and stepped up their various advertising/PR efforts. Some may have turned to social media as well to get out the word. The online travel agencies have also promoted the area.” He also pointed out that many hotels in the region are having to “buy business with low rates” which are resulting in “profitless occupancy increases.” (Indeed, a recent Expedia report showed average rates down as much as 30 percent in some areas.)
Beach hotels all along the Gulf Coast are dreading the approach of oil slicks from the massive recent massive oil spill. We get this report on Pensacola beach hotels from the AP:
Florida tourism leaders and workers from Pensacola to Key West grew increasingly angry and worried Monday as an oil slick created by a blown out drilling rig off Louisiana moved closer to the state’s shores and threatened their livelihoods.
Gov. Charlie Crist expanded a state of emergency Monday to include 19 counties from Escambia in the Panhandle to Sarasota in southwest Florida. The massive spill caused by the explosion of a BP PLC oil rig two weeks ago has been slowly moving toward Florida and oil might start washing ashore in the Panhandle by Tuesday and could reach the Keys by the weekend.
“We have an ecological and environmental disaster in the making,” U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., said at a tourism meeting Monday in Orlando. “This could not only be an economic disaster for Florida and our $65 billion tourism industry, which depends on pristine beaches but also an environmental disaster because of our bays and estuaries that spawn so much marine life. People in the Panhandle are panicked. They’re about to start their tourism season and they’re facing the oil spill.
“
by admin on April 25, 2010
Police recently determined that a man’s claimed fall from a Rivera Beach hotel balcony was actually a beating that resulted in his death. We get this from a recent report:
Investigators now think a man who said he fell while at a Riviera Beach hotel was a homicide victim.
On Tuesday April 20 paramedics responded to a call at the Sands Hotel at 2401 Beach Court.
51 year old Robert Doyle said that he had fallen and was in pain.
He was transported to St. Mary’s Medical Center where he died a few hours later.
A doctor treating him didn’t think Doyle’s injuries matched those sustained in a fall. He had broken ribs on both sides of his body, bruises on his legs and rib cage and a black eye as well as suspected internal injuries.
An examination by the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner determined Doyle’s death was the result of a homicide.
by admin on April 22, 2010
The economy may be down but it isn’t out. The Sun Sentinel is reporting that winter hotel occupancy at South Florida beach hotels was better than expected. Here are some excerpt from that piece:
Numbers released Wednesday by Smith Travel Research detail the improvements for South Florida hotels in the first quarter. Overall, hotels in Broward County saw revenues per room rise about 6 percent and in Palm Beach County about 3 percent from a year ago.
Occupancy rose about 7 percent in Broward and 11 percent in Palm Beach counties, while average room rates declined slightly in the period, the research group said.
Analysts cite several reasons why hospitality fared better this winter than forecast even in late 2009: a rebound in U.S. economic growth, a slowdown in job losses nationwide, gains on Wall Street and South Florida’s hosting of the Pro Bowl and Super Bowl football games in January and February.
“There was a period last year when people were uncertain, even if they had money set aside for travel. They weren’t sure what would happen in the near term with their employment and money in the bank,” said Bill Cunningham, general manager of the Courtyard by Marriott Fort Lauderdale Beach hotel. “Times are still difficult, but it’s stabilized. People feel that they can predict their financial future a little bit better, so they are starting to spend that travel money.”
Cunningham’s 261-room Courtyard hotel posted a 15 percent gain in revenues per room in the first quarter, with both occupancy and rates up from last year. Rooms fetched about $175 night, considered mid-range on the beachfront that has gone increasingly upscale. Some of the hotel’s 80 employees chose to work overtime hours this winter, an option unavailable in slower times last year, he said.
by admin on April 14, 2010
Lawmakers are considering raising taxes on Rehoboth Beach hotels. And of course when taxes go up, room rates go up to compensate. Here are some bits from a recent article on the subject:
Hotel and motel owners could soon face another expense as officials look to boost revenue through the increase and extension of the city’s rental tax.
The measure would raise the current 3 percent gross receipts tax, which is levied on rental income generated by residential properties and cottages, and extend it to hotels, motels and other commercial rentals.
“It would be like pouring vinegar into a sore,” said Inez Conover, who owns the Sea Witch Manor, BEDazzled and Bewitched inns. “We’re taxed enough already.”
Hotel and motel owners are not currently taxed by the city, but 8 percent of their annual rental income is paid to the state. Changes at the city level would mean owners could be forced to relinquish 11 percent or more of their annual income.
If that’s the case, Conover said spending a night in Rehoboth Beach will be more costly.
“I’ve had to reduce my rates significantly (because of the economy),” she said. “But if taxes are going up, then prices will have to as well.”
by admin on April 11, 2010
There was a fun article recently in a Delaware newspaper about “the other Hollywood” — namely Hollywood Florida. As the article note, Hollywood Florida is a lovely little beach community with quite a few nice beach hotels to choose from. Here are some excerpts from that article:
A low-key, friendly town located on Florida’s Atlantic coast, it is unpretentious and un-glitzy.
Located right between two high-profile resorts — Fort Lauderdale to the north, and Miami to the south — Hollywood takes pride in its small-town charm. This low-key Hollywood was named an “All-America City 2007” by the National Civic League.
One example of its special ambience is the popular beach promenade known as the Broadwalk. It’s indeed broad and an ample 27-feet-wide, so there’s plenty of space for a separate lane for bikes, as well as the wider lane for walking. Stretching for two-and-a-half miles, the Broadwalk is a colorful brick-lined oceanside promenade, the most extensive along Florida’s East Coast.
Strolling on this promenade, pedestrians are practically on the beach. This is not an elevated walkway as in Atlantic City, N.J., or Ocean City, N.J. Instead, it’s flush with the beach, which is just steps away.
This beach, studded with palm trees, is a 5-mile expanse of soft sand and clear ocean water which was voted Florida’s best beach by Florida Living magazine. It’s also earned the distinction of “Blue Wave Beach,” an award given to selected beaches by the Clean Beach Council.
And the Broadwalk has its own claim to fame. It’s been named one of American’s Top 10 nostalgic promenades by USA Today.
by admin on April 10, 2010
The funeral was held today for the high school All-America football player who died recently after falling from a 5th story balcony at a Panama City beach hotel. Here is an bit from the AP story on the subject:
A funeral has been held in Ohio for a 17-year-old Notre Dame football recruit who fell from a Florida hotel balcony during spring break.
An overflow crowd gathered Saturday at St. Xavier Church in downtown Cincinnati to remember high school student Matt James.
Police say the 6-foot-8, 290-pound offensive lineman was drunk when he fell over a fifth-floor railing in Panama City Beach, Fla., a week ago. His coaches and teammates say he should be remembered for his hard work and loyalty, not the way he died.
James attended St. Xavier High School, where a visitation for him was held Friday.
by admin on April 9, 2010
According to a recent article in the South Florida Business Journal hotel occupancy in South Florida and specifically at Palm Beach hotels is up this Spring. Here are some highlights from that piece:
Hotels in South Florida continued to bounce back from the recession last week, according to data from Smith Travel Research.
The peak of the tourist season and special events brought occupancy gains in all three counties.
For the week ended April 3, occupancy in Palm Beach County was up 33.4 percent, year-over-year. Occupancy in Miami-Dade was up 9.1 percent, while occupancy in Broward was up 6.6 percent.
Occupancy across the U.S. fell 3.6 percent.
by admin on April 8, 2010
There was a lot of news recently about new owners taking over the St. Regis Monarch Beach Hotel in Dana Point. Here are some excerpt from the LA Times piece on the topic:
St. Regis Monarch Beach, the posh Orange County resort tarred in a public backlash to corporate travel spending, has a new owner after a transaction that values the property at about $235 million. …
Like other hotels, the 400-room resort was hammered by the downturn in the economy. It was further battered as corporate executives canceled meetings and retreats at upscale resorts in part because they didn’t want to appear to be living large while a recession squeezed the middle and lower classes. …
by admin on March 31, 2010
There is a new beach hotel being launched on Jekyll Island GA. Here are some excerpts from the press release on the subject:
With the historic oak tree canopy unique to this Jekyll Island hotel, the Hampton Inn & Suites, welcomed its first guests in January 2010 to the eco-friendly, beachfront hotel that utilized sustainable practices to help preserve and honour one of the eastern seaboard’s few remaining true maritime forest and dune eco-systems. The first hotel to be built on Jekyll Island since 1974, the 138 room Jekyll Island hotel provides guests with beach access in minutes while maintaining the unique natural area with dunes ranging from 18 to 30 feet above sea level with an elevated wooden walkway, providing guests a scenic route to access the Jekyll Island oceanfront.
USA:
Non-USA: