March Hotel Occupancy In Colombia Reported Best In 11 Years

José Manuel Restrepo, Colombia’s Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism has announced a hotel occupancy rate for March of this year of 58.44% reached by hotel occupancy in March, according to figures released by DANE, Colombia’s national statistics agency.

For Restrepo, this result, the highest for the month of March in the last 11 years, shows the efforts being made by the sector, and government initiatives to strengthen the most dynamic destinations in the country and work on solutions to informal commerce within the sector, and technological changes with platforms such as AirBnB.

“This variation in the occupation confirms that this is a good time for tourism in Colombia, taking into account that the month of March 2019 had fewer holidays compared to the third month of 2018, which included Semana Santa (Easter week),” explained Restrepo.

José Manuel Restrepo, Colombia’s Minister of Commerce, Industry & Tourism

According to the size of the hotels, the greatest dynamism was found in large establishments (those with more than 150 rooms). They attained an occupancy rate of 63.2%

Mid-sized establishments, those in the range from 51 to 100 rooms, reached an occupancy of 53%, while the intermediate segment of between 101 and 150 rooms reached an occupancy of 58.4%.

The income reported by DANE trended favorably with an annual variation for the month of March of 9.8%, in comparison with similar period of the previous year.

“This positive balance demonstrates the work we have been carrying out from the Ministry in the regions, where we are interested in strengthening the development and competitiveness of tourist destinations in a sustainable manner,” said Restrepo.

Finally, the official expressed the commitment of his office to promote the regions, betting on quality tourism that generates economic and social benefits to the local communities where it takes place.