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LOCAL Monday 11 noveMber 2019
A17

Column by: Shanella Pantophlet
‘It’s the season

ORANJESTAD — The one sure fire way to tell high season is about
to kick off is a sudden boost in occupancy. After the mad rush of
summer and the slow pace of September and October, Novem-
ber serves as the herald of the upcoming busy period for hotels.

We all suffered through a pretty low Septem- out of the way, most of us start looking toward agers and team meetings discussions are al-
ber across the board, with both occupancy Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year. I like to ready being had about inventory and supplies.
and ADR (average daily rate) dropping for separate this period into two groups, the pre- We take data from the previous year and go
that month. A phenomena caused by the lack holiday vacationers who want to get away over what went right and what went wrong,
of the Venezuelan market to tide us through a for a bit before the holidays and then be with in an effort to make sure everyone is working
slow September and October period. One in- their family at home. They’re usually the ones on the same page. Based on the information
teresting thing that came out of that though, who come in the first two weeks of November gathered and the holiday spread of either be-
is with a quieter than usual pool/ beach area, to fill up your rooms. After them you have the ing in week or on the weekend, schedules are
we actually generated more sales of people next group who enjoy getting away from it all, being adapted.
wanting to come down this time of year. Which especially the snow, by coming to Aruba and
makes sense since once summer is done and spending their holidays on the beach. Everyone is giving employees as much vaca-
school vacation is over, it gives those of dual The second group gets to experience the hol- tion as possible now, so that we will be fully
income with no kids an opportunity to vaca- idays in a more low key way, with the resort staffed once the hotel is at 100% capacity.
tion to Aruba on a budget and without the doing all the decorating and promoting the We want to be able to deliver the best service
hassle of waking up early to reserve a place holiday cheer. It’s a no muss no fuss type of to our most particular guests and that means
on the beach or pool deck. The take away season where if you want a big holiday meal making sure our employees are well rested
being if you want a relaxing vacation maybe all you need to do is hit up your local restau- and have all the tools they need to meet and
consider September and October as the best rant, which hopefully you’ve booked way in exceed expectations.
travel times. advance of your arrival.
All our guests should see is the calm, while the
Of course the chill of the previous two months Knowing these groups and being able to pre- buzzing storm happens in the background as
was bound to give way to the madness of the dict what they expect from their vacation is we get ready for the upcoming holiday pe-
upcoming holiday season. Once Halloween is key to a successful busy season. In both man- riod. It’s going to be interesting. q

Aruban born and bred Shanella Pantophlet is passionate about tour-
ism. That is the world she studied and works in, so we might as well call
her a specialist. Luckily for Aruba Today Shanella also loves to write.
And together with the fact that the majority of our readers are tourists,
we found ourselves a perfect combination for a column: Hotel Hustle.