São Paulo leads hotel profitability recovery in Latin America
Among key hotel markets in Latin America, São Paulo led in recovery of gross operating profit per available room (GOPPAR), according to STR‘s June 2022 P&L data release.
Press Releases
The Brazilian market is increasingly valuable, but tourists defy travel trends, says GlobalData
With an average expenditure of $2,177 per outbound tourist, Brazil was the seventh highest spending outbound market globally in 2021. This is forecasted to increase to $2,325 by 2025, to become the sixth highest behind Australia, the US, Iceland, Singapore and Mauritius, found GlobalData. The leading data and analytics company notes that the Brazilian market’s high average overseas expenditure, coupled with the fact that affordability and accessibility are not the primary factors influencing destination choice, means there is significant scope to attract these tourists to long-haul or luxury destinations.
UNWTO Sets Out Shared Goals and Opportunities for Tourism in Paraguay
Leading an official UNWTO delegation to Paraguay, Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili met with President Abdo Benitez to discuss the biggest challenges and opportunities for tourism in Paraguay and identify ways of working together to grow and the sector in both size and relevance. Paraguay currently serves as Chair of the UNWTO Regional Commission for the Americas and is a member of its Executive Council. Such an active role in the mission of UNWTO underscores the government’s commitment to establishing the country as one of the region’s top tourist destinations and the sector as a driver of sustainable development.
Webinar summary: 5 key points on Mexico hotel performance, 8 June 2022
When it comes to top-line performance recovery, average daily rate (ADR) has been the standout metric for most markets around the globe. Mexico has been no different, with ADR for the first four months of 2022 indexing 15 percentage points higher than the 2019 comparable. Occupancy, on the other hand, was at just 89% of 2019 pre-pandemic levels.
Bogotá Joins The UNWTO Network of Sustainable Tourism Observatories
Bogotá´s Tourism Observatory has longstanding and extensive monitoring experience and has been further strengthened by the City Council as an instrument of public management and mechanism to consolidate, systematize, analyze and research information of the tourism sector. Becoming a member of INSTO will help Bogotá in managing tourism development in a responsible and sustainable manner and allow it to better deal with post-pandemic recovery.
RIU celebrates 25 years in Mexico
In the summer of 1997, RIU inaugurated the Hotel Riu Yucatan in Playa del Carmen. At the time, this represented both a challenge and a milestone in the chain’s expansion plans as it was its first hotel in Mexico. However, little did we know what this step would mean for the hotel chain in the long run. This year marks the 25th anniversary of RIU Hotels & Resorts in Mexico, a country that has become RIU’s main international destination with over 20 hotels in five Caribbean and Pacific states, which have a total of 12,000 rooms and provide employment to almost 9,000 collaborators.Mexico means so much to RIU that almost 40% of its global talent is Mexican, compared to the 18% that is Spanish, yet more proof that it is RIU’s number one destination. What’s more, the authorities’ commitment to keeping the country’s borders open throughout the pandemic helped RIU to keep its hotels operating, making Mexico the lungs that allowed the rest of the company to continue breathing during this time. As the chain’s presence in the country means so much to both RIU as a company and the Riu family, in 2022 it will commemorate this 25th anniversary to express its profound gratitude to the country, to its professionals, for its good relationship with the authorities and, of course, to national guests from Mexico, 850,000 of whom visited RIU’s hotels in 2021, not to mention its Mexican suppliers, who provide all types of goods to its hotels, 98% of which are Mexican.In an informative breakfast meeting that took place during the Tianguis Turístico 2022 event held in Acapulco, Corporate Executive Director, Joan Trian Riu, and Mexico’s Secretary of State for Tourism, Miguel Torruco, presented the most significant figures and milestones from RIU’s time in Mexico to an audience including the authorities, the media and tour operators. What’s more, the 25th anniversary video was premiered during this meeting. Through the voices of the company’s most important professionals in the country, this video explains what Mexico means to RIU and how much it has learnt over the course of these years. RIU has planned a long list of actions that will take place throughout the year to celebrate such an important anniversary. They will take place with guests, employees and partners on social networks, in the media or in hotels. RIU has learnt so much about so many different areas during its time in Mexico, and this knowledge has had a profound impact on the company, which is now present in 20 countries. For example, the country's adverse weather conditions and earthquakes have meant that Mexico has some of the strictest safety regulations and most prestigious structural engineers in the world. That is why Mexican professionals work on RIU construction projects in the rest of America and worldwide. Mexico has an astoundingly rich and varied food culture. Thanks to their talent and professionalism, many Mexican chefs that start working for RIU in Mexico subsequently travel to different destinations to take on head chef positions. This is also the case with Mexican technical service managers, who are chosen to be in charge of hotel maintenance in a variety of countries.The cocktail menu offered in all RIU’s hotels worldwide has a profound Mexican influence thanks to the country’s strong tradition of cocktail making. In addition, the enthusiasm and professionalism of the entertainment teams in Mexico has made this country the destination of choice to try out new ideas such as the Riu Party events, which began and were perfected in Los Cabos before being introduced in many other destinations.However, the excellent service offered at all RIU hotels in Mexico is down to the talent of the chain’s Mexican collaborators. Their commitment, friendliness, hospitality and professionalism make it possible for RIU to welcome 1.6 million guests into its hotels in Mexico each year: guest who go home having fully enjoyed their holiday RIU also works to support communities and biodiversity in Mexico. One of the most important projects is the chain’s work with Fundación Aitana, through which RIU funds all chemotherapy costs at Cancun General Hospital. RIU also supports Save The Children, Dr. Sonrisas and Coco’s Bienestar Animal, and has a coral restoration programme alongside Oceanus.For all of the reasons above, RIU’s commitment to Mexico continues in 2022 and it will open two new hotels that are currently being built in the country later this year. The Riu Latino on Costa Mujeres will open in October, while the Riu Palace Kukulkan will open in November in Cancun.
Hotel of the Month: InterContinental São Paulo
In this series, we go behind the front desk to learn everything from the strangest room service requests to quirky fun facts, to the most heartwarming reunions. We pick a new destination and hotel each month to give you the inside scoop.
This Baja Hotel Is Building A Community
Rancho Pescadero began as one woman’s dream almost three decades ago. Today, it’s a driving force behind powerful environmental and community projects in the fast-growing Baja region on Mexico’s Pacific coast.
Horwath HTL Appoints Michel Montant Managing Director Mexico
Horwath HTL, the world’s only independent advisory brand focused one hundred percent on hospitality, tourism, and leisure development, today announced that Michel Montant has joined the group as Managing Director Mexico to offer advisory services in the Mexico, Central America, and Caribbean markets.
Pueblo Bonito Resorts Launches New Luxury Brand, Pueblo Bonito Vantage
Pueblo Bonito Golf & Spa Resorts, one of Mexico’s leading hospitality companies, has unveiled a new upscale brand – Pueblo Bonito Vantage.
IHG Hotels & Resorts Introduces voco hotels to Mexico with Latest Signings
IHG Hotels & Resorts, one of the world’s leading hotel companies, today announced the signings of two new voco hotels in Guadalajara and Saltillo, Mexico. The signings mark the introduction of the voco hotels upscale hospitality brand to the Mexico market, and an extension of its global reach beyond its current foothold in major cities in the United States, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia.
South America hotel profitability still slumping
Key hotel markets in South America are still struggling to regain profitability due to inflation, pandemic-driven gaps in travel, and lessened impact from events, according to STR‘s February 2022 P&L data release.
Highgate Assumes Management of Six Hotel Portfolio in Peru
Highgate, a leading hotel management, investment, technology, and development company, announced today the Company’s launch into South America by taking over management of a portfolio of six hotels in Peru, owned by Urbanova – one of Peru’s most notable real estate groups. The deal expands Highgate’s portfolio in the Caribbean and Latin America (CALA) to a total of 26 hotels and resorts, making it one of the largest hospitality management companies in this sought-after region.
Chile hotels show resilience
Every country around the world has had to work through significant challenges since the start of the pandemic in 2020. For Chile, challenges were nothing new as protests that began in October 2019 were already affecting hotel performance around the country. The pandemic and those protests are still ongoing late into 2021, but Chile’s hotels are slowly but surely moving toward performance recovery.
COVID-19 webinar summary: 5 key points on Brazil hotel performance, 2 December
Knowing you might not have time to watch our full webinars, we are pleased to continue our series of COVID-19 webinar summaries. In this latest edition, we talk performance in Brazil.
STR: Chile hotel occupancy nearing pre-pandemic levels
Chile’s hotel occupancy reached 90% of the 2019 comparable, according to September 2021 data from STR.
STR: Brazil hotel ADR higher than 2019 levels
Brazil’s hotel industry has surpassed its 2019 comparables in average daily rate (ADR) for two of the last three months, according to September 2021 data from STR.
The Excellence Collection Formalizes Sustainable Credits From BBVA For Properties In Mexico
The Excellence Collection formalizes its first and largest financial stride to set in motion a plan that adheres to a more responsible and sustainable concept of hospitality. The funds, referred to as Green Credits, will be financed by BBVA Mexico - a leading institution that encourages and enables bio-friendly solutions in tourism - and will be focused on the improvement of the environmental, social and governance performance (ESG) at the adults-only, Excellence Playa Mujeres; the all-ages, Finest Playa Mujeres; and the couples-only, Beloved Playa Mujeres.
Brazil Hotels Recovering ADR Much Faster Than Occupancy
After a difficult winter, Brazil’s hotel occupancy is once again on the rise, reaching 44% in August 2021, or about 74% of the 2019 comparable. While occupancy recovery has been slow, the country’s rebound in average daily rate (ADR) has been strong, with monthly rates even exceeding 2019 levels earlier this year. August ADR reached BRL295.05, which was just 3.4% below 2019, as shifts in demand and supply have helped drive impressive ADR performance.
A Brighter Future for Colombia?
Colombia’s accelerated vaccination rollout and lessened restrictions on eligibility pushed the country’s vaccination rate to 32.1% as of 22 September, according to Our World in Data. Is that growing vaccination rate helping improve hotel performance in this key South American country? The answer would seem to be, yes, but to a lesser extent for some areas of the country.