The Cable Beach Resorts will temporarily lose 330 rooms, which will have an effect on their summer occupancy and rate levels, when the first stage of the $80 million Radisson renovation begins.
Robert Sands, executive vice-president of administration and public affairs for Baha Mar Development Company, predicted that once construction begins on the Radisson Cable Beach Resort, they will lose those occupancies temporarily. However, he said the Cable Beach Resorts hope to improve occupancy and rates over last year, taking the lost rooms into consideration.
The conversion of the Radisson to Starwood’s Sheraton brand is expected to begin within the next month, as the first physical step towards changing the resorts into the proposed $2 billion Baha Mar development begins.
Another hotel reporting on its summer rates was the British Colonial Hilton. Michael Hooper general manager, told The Tribune yesterday that while bookings for the summer season were slightly down from last year, they will still be strong with the hotel expected to have an average occupancy level of around 90 per cent in July and 78 per cent in August.
Mr Hooper said that while those numbers were not bad, they were below the strong showing the Hilton posted in the first six months of the year.
He added that while in the past the summer season was seen as the slow period for the Bahamian hotel industry, the summer now tends to bring in stronger number because it “‘the time that more families tended to take their vacations with school out.
Mr Hooper said the slower season was now during September and October, the period that is in the thick of hurricane season.
By CARA BRENNEN Tribune Business Reporter
