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#23962 08/07/00 06:43 PM
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Guides,
Someone mentioned being able to obtain great "LOW" walkin rates on various properties on AC. Does anyone have any actual experience doing this and if so how low do they go.

Does anyone know what is the average occupancy in Sept.


"There is a fine line between fishing and standing on the shore looking like a complete idiot." Wright
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I was thinking of reserving a couple of nights at Sunbreeze and scouting the other properties to find something that really appeals to my wife and I. I am assuming that occupancy is fairly low in Sept. and I will be able to find vacancy elsewhere. Is this a big risk?? Will my wife and I be homeless in AC. Please advise.......


"There is a fine line between fishing and standing on the shore looking like a complete idiot." Wright
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You'll be able to find plenty of vacancy in September. It is a fairly low month and there will be places offering special rates, etc.

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Click on "LODGING" on this site. Find the ones that you like and e-mail them. Good Luck and Have a Great Time!

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Marvel,
I have e-mailed several hotels and asked for better rates but they reply with the posted off season rates. I was asking about lower walk-in rates because I saw a post by Lan Sluder indicating that rates may be as low as 40% off regular season rates. So far, I've been unable to find anything better than 10% off. Any suggestions?????? Regardless, I'm coming to spend money in AC. I would just rather spend it on activities, food, and shopping rather than lodging.


"There is a fine line between fishing and standing on the shore looking like a complete idiot." Wright
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A "walk-in" rate is only available to someone who walks in shopping around for a room right then... and only if the hotel is facing an empty room for he night. The best places fill up first so may never need to offer walk-in rates. Some hotels on Ambergris Caye rarely if ever drop below 80% occupancy.

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Pescador: "Walk -In "rate means exactly that. (No Business will give you other than the rate posted.)Even in my business, I never give quotes over the phone,fax or e-mail. What I ment was E-mail some places where your like to stay(and at the rate you can handle),reserve it for a few days. Then while staying there on A.C. Take a look around at other lodging. Then you will be that "Walk-In" person that will find a lower rate. I don't think you will have to worry about a place to stay. Just think of it as an adventure!

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Thanks for the replies folks. 80% occupancy doesn't sound like the buyers market I was expecting during the off-season. I may be better off just booking the entire 7 nights at one location. I just have this feeling that when I get there, the grass is going to be greener on the other side of the fence. I guess, this will be a perfect excuse for going back.

Thanks again....


"There is a fine line between fishing and standing on the shore looking like a complete idiot." Wright
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You are correct, pick a place and book it for your entire stay. You will have better things to do for fun, then searching for a cheaper room. My husband would like to book a night or two then look for a cheaper stay, but I will have no part of that, I am the one that does the packing and unpacking, so we are staying put, so I can enjoy the vacation too. Laugh


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A few clarifications from my end:

1) My quoted comment about 40% off referred to off-season rates compared with high-season rates. On Ambergris Caye and elsewhere in Belize, *published* rates from around Easter to Thanksgiving (exact dates vary) are from 10% to 50% lower than in the high season. Typically in Belize it's 30 to 40% off the high season rate. In general, the most expensive properties offer the biggest off-season discounts; budget properties discount only a little (usually 10 to 15%) and a few may not discount at all.

2) Walk-in rates as Marvel said are exactly that. You take your chances. You cannot get walk-in rates in advance. Ambergris Caye is one place that traditionally has offered quite a few walk-in rates. This year is the best year for tourism in Belize anytime in history, so there's less pressure to lower rates than in years past, but walk-in rates are still available. At 4 p.m., a hotel with empty rooms and no bookings to fill it for a few days would rather take $60 a night than zero. Hotels don't advertise these rates and some deny they offer them at all.

3) According to the BTB's stats, the average annual occupancy for all hotels on Ambergris Caye over the past few years has been about 40%. Some well-run, well-marketed San Pedro hotels have enjoyed considerably higher occupancy than that and a FEW may be in the 80% range (though some of these pad their occupancy rates by leasing some of their rooms to med students or otherwise renting them). That figure is average annual occupancy -- occupancy tends to be highest in March (and of course at Christmas and Easter) and lowest in September and October).

Again, occupancy has been higher this year, and there hasn't been a jump in hotel construction in San Pedro (yet) as there has been in Stann Creek district, where probably one-half of the hotels are for sale now, either actively or passively, but from late August until early November is slow time for Belize hotels because U.S. schools are going back in session and families don't travel so much. Plus soon it will be prime hurricane season in the Caribbean.

4) Over the past four or five years, the total tourist arrivals show that September and October have only one-half as many tourists arriving in Belize as during June and only about a third as many as in March.

To me, the best ways to get deals on hotels in Belize are:

* Go off-season, especially in August, September or October.
* Book direct via the Internet, rather than through a travel agent. Small hotels don't like to publicize it, but they prefer to do direct bookings rather than pay a travel agent 15%+ commission.
* At least *look* at package deals with airline/hotel combos -- these can occasionally save $$ over straight bookings. Some of the hotels on Ambergris Caye stay heavily booked by working with wholesalers and package tour opertors.
* Book your first night or two at the best rate you can find, then after you arrive look for walk-in rates (unless you are satisfied with where you have booked).
* For the biggest savings, look at the expensive or luxury properties.

Of course you can't expect to get a quality hotel room for next to nothing. Even near-empty hotels will balk at discounting too heavily.

--Lan Sluder
Belize First Magazine http://www.turq.com/belizefirst/


Lan Sluder/Belize First
http://www.belizefirst.com
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