Hotel Rooms Scarce, Becoming More Costly

Hotel reservations are getting harder to come by as the high season kicks in.

A survey published by the daily La Nacion this week found some hotels in the PacificCoastprovince of Puntarenas and the northwestern province of Guanacaste up to 90% full.Many tourists are even arriving early.

Meanwhile, even those who can still get reservations might end up paying more. Last month’s increase in the value of the colón made life more difficult for businesses that receive income in dollars and pay expenses in colones.

Hotels, of course, fit that profile perfectly.

“We don’t have any alternative but to raise our current rates,” said Pablo Sala, the manager of Grupo Marta in a press release announcing a 10% hike.

Grupo Marta owns the Best Western Irazú, BestWesternJacóBeach, Best Western Downtown, the Hampton Inn & Suites, and the Garden Court & Casino.

The hike represents something of a break from the bind hotels find themselves in.

“There’s a lot of skepticism about the devaluation because the service providers charge in dollars and the rates have already been published,” said National Tourism Chamber Executive Director Alberto López, according to daily La República. “Because of that, they can’t change the price.