The Listín Diario reports that hotel occupancy declined 3.7% last year, while the nation’s hotel inventory increased 4.2%. The steady increase in new hotel rooms places a heavy toll on local hotel operators that continuously need to seek new markets or accept lower prices for their product given the intense competition for travelers. The surplus of rooms versus the demands has turned the DR into a buyer’s market, affecting profitability of hotels. A Central Bank quarterly report attributes to multi-destination tourism the shorter stays of tourists in the DR. Other reasons for the decline in occupancy was the press reports on the Dominican Municipal League clash between political parties. The same report states that overall there has been an increase in travelers compared to the same time last year, and that these are spending more. Tourist card sales were up 17.6%. The increase of arrivals is attributed to arrivals from new source markets. Travel was up by way of Puerto Plata and Punta Cana airports. 78% of foreign travelers visiting the DR come from the US, Germany, Canada, France and Italy. For more information, see http://www.bancentral.gov.do
