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Hotels in Cancun, and other parts of the Riviera Maya are expected to be almost fully booked for the first week of July. Some hotels in the region are already set to put up no vacancy signs for that particular week as tourists have flocked to book their trips in advance. The president of the Hotels’ Association of Cancun, Puerto Morelos, and Isla Mujeres, Jesus Almageur, shared the positive news with the media. He mentioned that the north part of the state of Quintana Roo, which includes Cancun is expected to see very high occupancy numbers for the summer break.
What may not be great news for travelers who are still hoping to book a trip to the region particularly in the first week of July, is that prices are skyrocketing due to the demand. As mentioned before, local hotels are filling up fast. There’s a good chance that the tourists that haven’t booked their trip yet may have to look to the vacation home rental market to fill their lodging needs. The President of the Hotels’ Association had this to say about the projected occupancy rates,
“We are seeing that the summer will be a very positive vacation season just like Easter was. Some hotels are even reporting to us that they have their reservation books filled for the start of the summer season in July.”
Occupancy Levels Are Set To Eclipse 2021 Numbers By A Wide Margin
In 2021 the Cancun region saw right around 2.8 million tourists arrive through the summer months. Those tourists left 1987 million dollars in revenue to the city. We have to take into account that in the summer of 2021 many COVID restrictions were still being enforced. This meant that hotels were not able to operate at full capacity, with most of them only allowed to operate at 50% capacity in July of 2021. Surprisingly in last year’s summer months Cancun hotels reached occupancy levels of 80% across the board. Granted that was 80% of the permitted 50% capacity.
With that in mind, it’s easy to see that 2022 numbers should comfortably eclipse what was generated in 2021. Hotels are going to be operating at 100% capacity this summer, with many of them hoping to even remove mask mandates at their facilities by the summer. The President of the Hotels Association once again mentioned that laxer COVID protocols in Europe could increase the number of travelers from across the pond. They’re betting on that market to fill the few remaining spaces in Cancun hotels.
The Cancun Main City Still Features Most of The Hotels In The Region
The north side of Quintana Roo that was referenced by the president of the Hotels’ Association features around 52 thousand hotel rooms to accommodate guests arriving to the Mexican Caribbean. Although places like Tulum and Playa del Carmen have increased the number of hotel rooms being offered in those cities respectively, it’s still Cancun that houses the bulk of the local tourism. Of the 52 thousand hotel rooms that are going to be available for tourists to book this summer over 38 thousand are located within the main city, Cancun.
Rates For Rooms In Quintana Roo Continue On The Rise
Since most of the rooms are being booked in advance, rates for the few remaining rooms have gone up at least 10% throughout the region. Another factor that could contribute to the increase in the prices of hotel rooms in the area is the labor shortage that the local tourism industry is currently experiencing.
The Hotels Association estimates that the industry as a whole is suffering a 15% staff shortage rate. Hotels and other businesses within the tourism industry are having to lure in workers from other parts of Mexico with higher wages. That could drive the price for a Cancun vacation up even more.
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