Hotels in the Central/South America Region Steep Declines for March 2020

In its first month with a visible impact from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Central/South America hotel industry reported steep declines in the three key performance metrics during March 2020, according to data from STR.

U.S. dollar constant currency, March 2020 vs. March 2019

• Occupancy: -48.0% to 31.0%
• Average daily rate (ADR): -6.1% to US$85.61
• Revenue per available room (RevPAR): -51.2% to US$26.56

The absolute occupancy and RevPAR levels were the lowest for any month on record in the region.

Local currency, March 2020 vs. March 2019

Colombia

• Occupancy: -49.6% to 30.5%
• ADR: -0.7% to COP272,820.00
• RevPAR: -50.0% to COP83,252.00

The absolute occupancy was the lowest for any month in STR’s Colombia database. Bogotá experienced a 48.4% decrease in occupancy.

Brazil

• Occupancy: -43.0% to 32.4%
• ADR: -9.9% to BRL294.19
• RevPAR: -48.6% to BRL95.43

The absolute occupancy level was the lowest for any month in STR’s Brazil database. When looking at key markets, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo recorded occupancy declines of 46.2% and 46.9%, respectively.

Daily Hotel Occupancy Falls to As Low As 12.9% in Lima, Peru

As the impact of COVID-19 broadens in South America, Lima’s daily hotel occupancy fell to as low as 12.9% on 19 March, according to preliminary data from STR.

That occupancy level came one day after the Peruvian government imposed a nightly curfew to combat the spread of COVID-19. STR’s most recent data for 22 March showed that just 13 of 100 rooms on average were occupied in the city.

“Despite the fact that corporate tourism is not strong during January and February, daily occupancy in Lima was as high as 70.1% on 19 February,” said Patricia Boo, STR’s area director for Central/South America. “The market’s daily occupancy was above 40% as late as the 12th of March, with the exception of 29 February and 8 March when occupancy was roughly 38%, but has been declining recently by more than 70% in year-over-year comparisons.”

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