The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Atlantis resort’s booking pace was 7 per cent ahead of 2011 comparatives for August, its operator telling Tribune Business it was confident that 2013 group business would “match, if not exceed” this year’s levels.

George Markantonis, Kerzner International (Bahamas) president and managing director, said “preliminary results indicate” that Atlantis is likely to enjoy a stronger November-December period than last year, although fall (the next two months) appeared flat.

Noting that Atlantis was anticipating occupancy levels “in the 80s” percentage wise for the just-finished Labour Day weekend, Mr Markantonis also told Tribune Business that the Paradise Island property was eyeing an average occupancy of between 68-72 per cent for the full year.

In June this year, Mr Markantonis said Atlantis’s summer bookings pace had dropped 10 per cent year-over-year, coinciding with the period between the end of one air fare credit programme and the resumption of another.

Indicating that the Ministry of Tourism/Nassau Paradise Island Promotion’s Board’s decision to launch a new air fare initiative may have aided booking volumes coming into Atlantis’s call centre, the Kerzner International executive said the resumption: “It’s been excellent; exactly what we needed.

“Bookings have been strong. This month [August], our bookings strength is up 7 per cent from the same month last year.”

Looking ahead to the remainder of 2012, Mr Markantonis added: “We’re trending fine. We seem to have a good trend for November-December, but fall seems to be flat. We’re hoping the last two months of the year will be stronger than last year, and preliminary results indicate that.”

He told Tribune Business it was particularly encouraging that November 2012 was forecast to be ahead of last year, despite coinciding with a US presidential election - an event that always has a slight effect on African travel plans.

“I think we’re satisfied,” Mr Markantonis said of the outlook. “We’ve got to negotiate this election year in the US. It will definitely have a small impact in Nassau.”

Apart from special events, such as the return of the NCAA ‘Battle 4 Atlantis’ collegiate basketball tournament, Kerzner International was “still working on a few other projects to stimulate activity”, although Mr Markantonis declined to go into detail.

Both as owner, and now as an operator, Kerzner International has used one-off events, such as its concert series, to stimulate demand and travel to Paradise Island, using them and their featured performers to act as a ‘lure’ for families and leisure travellers.

The Labour Day weekend was no different, with events featuring the likes of Kathy Griffin and Miranda Cosgrove.

“We’re going to run in the high 80s for the Labour Day weekend,” Mr Markantonis said, speaking to Tribune Business just before it hit

And, when it came to the average full year occupancy at Atlantis, he added: “We anticipate that we’re going to run somewhere between 68-72 per cent for the whole year.”

To generate such occupancy levels during the recession, Atlantis and other Bahamian resorts have been forced to use a variety of promotional deals and options - the air fare credit being a key method - to boost demand among travellers.

This, together with competition, has placed hotel room rates in the Bahamas - and throughout the world - under consistent pressure, reducing yields and margins in order to get the business.

“Rates across the industry, both in the US and locations like ours, are down from last year,” Mr Markantonis conceded. “But, at the same time, it might be to our benefit, because it enables us to increase occupancies and leisure business.”

As for Atlantis’s group and convention business, a segment he described as vital, the Kerzner International (Bahamas) chief told Tribune Business: “We’re confident group business in 2013 will match this year, if not exceed it.”

Acknowledging that it was difficult to predict next year, Mr Markantonis said: “It’s a little bit too early to say what consumer confidence in the US and the rest of the world will look like. We’re not an inexpensive destination.

“Group business [for 2012] will be up 30 per cent over last year. It’s pretty much held up throughout the year.

“For us, it’s critical. Group business can be anywhere between 25-30 per cent of your overall business. A lot of our group business, about 25 per cent of it, gets booked in the year for that year.”

While increased competition from Florida and US-based casino/gaming interests had previously caused the Atlantis casino to experience a declining business volume trend year-over-year, Mr Markantonis indicated 2012 may have broken this cycle.

“We’re pleased with how this year has gone,” he added. “We want to see if this trend continues, but right now have been very pleased with what our marketing team is doing.”

Explaining that casino business was not tied just to economic activity and consumer confidence, Mr Markantonis said it also reflected the marketing programmes and teams involved, and “you’ve got to have strong efforts in both categories.”