December 2011: Hotels are satisfied with the rate of filling

The holidays are winding down. This is the day of reckoning for the hotel sector. While executives of the major hotel groups have yet to resume their activities, many individual franchises are satisfied with the fill rate for December.

In hotels, responsible for sales or marketing look forward to the situation. Many say that the period of December was good. "The month of December was pretty good with a fill rate of 80%. January looks pretty, even better ... "suggests one of the managers of a hotel located on the west coast. But the only problem is that "before, for three months before we knew whether we would or not full in December. Whereas now, only at the last minute as we become aware of the filling. "

At the other end of the country, in the north, the Maritim Hotel  Mauritius seems enthusiastic about the present situation. "We have a good load factor in December with 90%. January looks good too, "said Patrick Lan, director of sales. According to the official, the majority of the guests were foreign but nevertheless a good representation of the premises. The theme nights Eve of New Year's Eve have also seen the presence of many Mauritians, as was the case at the Maritim.

Contacted for comment on the situation, Robert Desvaux, Chairman of the Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority said that "the period of December was good in quality and quantity. It's very encouraging. January as well start with visibility over the next three months looks positive. "

If in December will be able to give a smile to our hotel, it is only the icing on the cake. 2011 was a good year overall. According to statistics from the Association of Hoteliers and Restaurateurs of Mauritius (AHRIM), the figures for 2011 (January to September) displace significantly the results of 2010. From January to September 2011, 674,383 tourists have set foot in Mauritius against 646 656 in 2010, an increase of 4.3% for this period (which also corresponds to an increase of 7% of Tourist receipts: Rs 28.168 million to Rs 30.149 million). Only in March, May and September were down. We will not be able to get the figures for the period October to December.

Nevertheless, a great year 2010 does not amount to a great 2011. It is worth recalling the international economic situation which will no doubt against the tourism industry. A modicum of common sense is enough to conclude that 2012 may be more difficult, even if the authorities show confidence - matter of principle in the hotel industry: a smile, always smiling. It is clear that, according to the logic of expectations, it is always better to deal with a crisis ... as long as no mention of crisis. And we are still miles away from talk of crisis.

The enemy lies in wait, however: France and Italy without AAA, the EU faced the "worst crisis in its history" (according to Sarkozy), among others. European politicians, meanwhile, do not display a smile ... And this climate of mistrust, it is hardly conceivable that the propensity to consume of European tourists will be the same this year. May still be so: the possibility of us to glean new billionaires in some pockets of over-consumption: Russia, Ukraine, China, India ...