Tourism experts and hoteliers are reporting that strong demand for the Antigua and Barbuda tourism product remains positive.
This is supported by the September hotel occupancy statistics published by the Antigua and Barbuda Hotels and Tourist Association (ABHTA).
The ABHTA has been using the country’s performance in 2019 as the benchmark against which this year’s room occupancy is compared as it was the last normal year of operation before the start of the pandemic in March, 2020.
2019 was also one of the best performing years for tourism in the country’s history.
This year in September, there was a 9 percent increase in occupancy over the same month in 2019, according to the ABHTA’s figures.
Regarding arrivals by air, the total for the month of September was 15,462 compared with 14,124 in 2019.
The United States continues to be the main source market for visitors to the country with the United Kingdom a distant second.
An examination of the statistics also showed that most visitors – 43 percent – stayed at hotels, 23 percent opted to vacation in private villas and 21 percent stayed in their own accommodations. The remaining 13 percent of visitors used various other options.
