Nov. 28, 2008 — Several local hoteliers said the Thanksgiving weekend was certainly not as good as last year, but they were optimistic occupancy rates would not be as bad as some have predicted.
"I was definitely way under this year, but I was grateful my houses weren't full because of the power outages," Vacation Vistas villa management company owner Lisa Durgin said, referring to the V.I. Water and Power Authority power problems Tuesday and Wednesday on St. Thomas and St. John.
Durgin, based on St. John, said that while Christmas week isn't looking too bad, December overall won't be that good.
As for January and beyond, she said that experience has showed her that in years with presidential elections, winter bookings don't pick up until January. Whether the upcoming winter season follows suit remains to be seen.
And the number of people asking for price breaks is growing. Durgin said she even had one female guest ask for a discount after she had booked a house.
Durgin sees several factors as issues for the vacation villa business. For starters, she estimated that St. John has about 900 vacation villas, which gives vacationers a big choice when it comes to picking a villa. With more villas than potential vacationers, many go empty.
"Those that are doing well are newer and have air conditioning, a pool and a hot tub, but they're not necessarily expensive," Durgin said.
Another factor is the late arrival and early departure of flights, a result of airlines recently slashing the number of flights to the territory. Durgin said some vacationers are now forced to spend the night on St. Thomas because ferries between St. Thomas and St. John don't run early or late enough to connect with flights. This means Durgin is losing out on a night or two of rental at the villas she manages.
At Carambola Beach Resort on St. Croix, the hotel's director of sales and marketing, Dawn Taber-Cayer, is optimistic.
"People are waiting till the very last minute to book," she said.
The hotel is sold out three days next week and bookings are good during December. January is flat, but Taber-Cayer thinks vacationers looking for last-minute deals will fill in the month.
Taber-Cayer said efforts by the Tourism Department and the V.I. Hotel and Tourism Association are helping convince people to visit. And she said that Carambola has invested marketing dollars in Scandinavia.
"We're seeing some results," she said.
David Yamada, manager at the Westin Resort and Villas on St. John, is hoping for last-minute bookings too, and he's optimistic that will happen.
"The booking window is getting shorter and shorter," he said.
Thanksgiving weekend at the Westin has an occupancy rate in the 80 percent range, Yamada said, and December is starting to shape up a little bit.
"Christmas is full with a couple of holes on either side," he said.
While the bookings are looking fairly good, Westin guests are spending less on things like dinners and shopping, Yamada said.
At Best Western Emerald Beach Hotel on St. Thomas, manager Joel Kling said the hotel has cut prices and is running specials at its restaurant. And lower room rates are coming.
"Right now we have to get heads in the beds," Kling said.
The Best Westerns attract a mid-market guest, and Kling said those are the people that are hurting the most with the dismal stateside economy. That said, Kling believes about 70 percent of the people who planned an upcoming vacation will still do so despite the soft economy.
Emerald Beach has a 30 percent occupancy rate for Thanksgiving weekend, with Carib Beach running 20 percent.
He said December bookings are off by about 10 percent over last year. "I can swallow 10 percent," he said.
Roger Carrington, who owns the five-room Carringtons Inn bed and breakfast on St. Croix, said two sets of people arrived Thursday.
"I guess it's cheaper to fly then," he said.
December and even into January and February is looking good with returning guests.
"I am very happy," he said.
The Paradise Jam basketball tournament gave Marriott Frenchman's Reef Beach Resort on St. Thomas a boost.
"We're a host" for the NCAA event, marketing manager Victoria Kuglics said.
She said the occupancy rate stood at almost 100 percent, and December is starting to pick up. "But it's not like last year," she said.
At the 14-room Estate Lindholm bed and breakfast on St. John, December is "rocking," assistant manager Ali Karn said.
"Yesterday and today, we got more requests for Christmas. January is looking pretty busy and people are booking into May," she said.
For Thanksgiving weekend, the bed and breakfast is 50 percent booked.
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