Faced with a 67% drop in revenue, Huatulco hotels will explore domestic tourism

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Canadian and Mexico City tourism allowed Huatulco to maintain occupations of more than 70%, which was paralyzed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Huatulco hotels suffered a 67% drop in revenue during 2020, due to an occupancy of approximately 30% during a year marked by the Covid-19 pandemic, compared to 2019.

Faced with a total stoppage of more than four months that forced them to cut 50% of their employees, the Huatulco Hotel Association plans to bet on domestic tourism from Chiapas, Tabasco, Oaxaca, Veracruz, and even Tijuana.

“We are starting a promotion and activities with them, after we had the opening of up to 75% occupancy in December , today they have lowered it to 30% again,” explained Gustavo Ficachi, President of the Huatulco Hotel Association and Director of the Hotel Binniguenda in an interview for Forbes MĂ©xico.

The association’s director stressed that despite the fact that Huatulco is one of the 15 most important destinations in the country, it remained in the first place for fewer infections by Covid-19 thanks to the protocols in hotels and the municipality currently, it is in second place after Isla Mujeres.

The tourist destination expects recovery from the levels of 2019 for 2022 or 2023, above all due to the drastic decrease in Canadian tourism, which registered an average arrival of 18 to 20 planes a week during the months of October, November, and April.

With the arrival of Covid-19, each week one flight a week from Canada was allowed and with the current red light, the next flight to be received will be on May 31.

Similarly, the stoppage of activities in Mexico City marked by the epidemiological red light stopped tourists from this area from continuing to travel.

“Our number one issuer for Huatulco is the CDMX by air and from the red traffic light the cancellations were carried out every day and at all times, it was the strongest we went through.”

The destination that has nine bays and 36 beaches stated that the purchase of masks, gloves, mouth covers, gel and sanitizing bows is “an excessive expense” that was not contemplated, after the great losses of the hotel industry and with no support from the authorities.

“There has been no support from the federal government, only some incentives from the state to not pay the lodging tax, which would not have to be paid because we do not have occupied rooms, but nothing has been had, they told us that we had to scratch with our own nails and we are doing it, ”Ficachi concluded.

Source: forbes.com.mx

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