Despite the fact that most of those who will stay this Easter are Puerto Ricans looking to do inbound tourism, local hotels have taken measures in recent days to prevent the arrival of controversial tourists who participate in fights, destroy rooms, or do not wish to follow covid19 rules. The first was to raise the prices of the few rooms that were available, before the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Association of Hotels and Tourism, Joaquín Bolivar.
When the hotel owner said that next week’s available stock was “too little,” he said it would host “a lot of domestic tourism.”
When asked if they have implemented offers to attract Puerto Ricans, He agreed that “hotels, all of them, are raising their rates based on their great demand. The concern is that Airbnb is promoting rates as low as $ 18, which is attracting another type of tourist.”
Then, he explained, they had made the decision “to take advantage of the high season, and secondly, to banish the tourists traveling for $30 in airlines which was a problem. That way, it was a deterrent for them to stay in hotels.”
Meanwhile, a local company, is renting holiday properties seeking to give tourists a “unique” and familiar experience, said they had several properties fully booked through July.
“People give themselves the opportunity to explore the island and stay in properties with swimming pools with views near the beaches and contribute to different cities,” he said, agreeing that most of the tourists are from home.
On the other hand, he said he was confident there would be control over Easter. He explained that hotels have increased their security and that there is now coordination with the equipment.
This weekend the police effort was seen. The tourists stressed that this is the point of law and order, not to carry out the mayhem that we are witnessing on social media.
For their part, theatrical performances were not disturbed by controversial tourists. Jesus Ramos, president of the association in which they were gathered and owner of Villas de Sotomayor in Adjuntas, noted that “the parades are families that serve families” and focus on serving the local tourist.
So far, he said, they expect a “good attendance” week, with full occupancy between Holy Thursday and Easter Sunday.
“Reservations arrived early, before it was the last minute, because people are eager to leave because of the current situation and because of the aid that is arriving,” he said.
Unlike hotels, local Paradores offerings have launched various offers for this Easter. He reported that the basic fee was paid for three nights and the fourth is free.
