Hotel occupancy increased by 2.5% in May 202

GREAT BAY--The St. Maarten Hospitality & Trade Association (SHTA) provided the occupancy statistics for the Month of May 2025. Hotel occupancy for the month of May 2025 showed an occupancy increase of 2.5% over May 2024.

It is the best May occupancy performance since before Hurricane Irma and the COVID-19 pandemic. Total combined occupancy across hotels and timeshares reached 72.7%, significantly surpassing both recent years and the pre-Irma benchmark of 61.9% from May 2016.

Hotel occupancy rose to 77.9% in 2025, a year-over-year gain from 75.4% in May 2024 and 67.4% in May 2023. It reflects not only an increase in stayover tourism but a gradual strengthening of St. Maarten’s product during the traditionally softer shoulder season.

Timeshare occupancy in May 2025 recorded 69.7%, showing an increase over 64.3% in 2024 and significantly outperforming 55.5% in 2023. Although still slightly below May 2016’s 68.7%, the figure demonstrates sustained interest in timeshare stays, likely buoyed by returning repeat visitors and increased airline connectivity.

Importantly, the average daily occupied rooms rose to 2,593, the highest in the comparison group and an indicator of more consistent guest traffic. With total available rooms steady at 3,568, the sector appears to be operating at near-optimal capacity as it heads into the summer months.

Last week The Peoples' Tribune published the occupancy rates from January to April. In the first four months of 2025, St. Maarten’s tourism sector demonstrated strong and consistent performance, with occupancy levels generally surpassing both post-Irma recovery figures and even pre-Irma benchmarks from 2016. January showed a solid start, with total occupancy at 84.4%, improving on 2023 and 2024 levels.

February emerged as the peak month, setting a new high at 88.5% total occupancy despite a slight dip in hotel figures. March maintained this momentum, with hotel occupancy jumping to 88.4%, and overall occupancy at 81.9%. In April, while a seasonal decline was expected, the island still performed well, ending the month with a stable total occupancy of 74.4%. Strong timeshare performance across all months played a key role in supporting these gains.

𝘕𝘖𝘛𝘌: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘷𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘮𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘴/𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘰𝘤𝘤𝘶𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘺. 𝘖𝘤𝘤𝘶𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘺 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘚𝘏𝘛𝘈'𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘴𝘰 𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦.

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