Hurricane Maria: One Year Later, Puerto Rico and Others Are Bouncing Back
by Jessica Montevago
Puerto Rico's resorts, including luxury resorts on Condado Beach, have reopened in the year since Hurricane Maria hit the island. Photo: Shutterstock.com.
At the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria, significant progress has been made across the Caribbean islands, where the powerful storm demolished infrastructure and, in turn, hampered the region’s tourism industry.
Maria first hit Dominica and Saint Croix before making landfall over Puerto Rico on Sept. 20, 2017, just two weeks after the Category 5 Hurricane Irma struck the Caribbean with St. Thomas and St. John the hardest hit.
For many of the islands, tourism is one of the largest sectors of the economy, as well as a top employer, and restoring the product became a top priority.
Over the past year, hotels have been coming back online, with more scheduled to reopen in the fourth quarter or beginning of next year.
Currently 132 properties are available in Puerto Rico. The Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve and St. Regis Bahia Beach will reopen in October. The iconic El San Juan Hotel, part of Hilton’s Curio Collection, and Meliá Coco Beach will reopen later this year. Properties that are continuing to revitalize include El Conquistador Resort, a Waldorf Astoria Resort and The Ritz-Carlton San Juan.
Some resorts have taken the opportunity during reconstruction to expand and add enhancements, reopening better than before. In Puerto Rico, hotel room inventory is increasing by 25 percent to 3,800 new rooms, bringing the island back to pre-Maria levels of inventory. The addition of new rooms will boost the island’s inventory to more than 18,000 rooms by next year.
The owner of Frenchman’s Reef and Morning Star Marriott Beach Resort on St. Thomas is planning a $200 million rebuild before it reopens. It is one of several larger resorts that took the worst damage across the U.S. Virgin Islands, as well as Sugar Bay and the Ritz-Carlton on St. Thomas; the Westin and the historic Caneel Bay resorts on St. John; and the Divi Carina Bay Resort and Renaissance Carambola on St. Croix.
More than 50 percent of accommodations across the territory are open and accepting guests, representing approximately 1,050 rooms available on St. Thomas, nearly 150 rooms on St. John, and around 600 units available on St. Croix. Cruise arrivals and sea ports, however, are back to 100 percent.
On the British Virgin Islands, which was impacted by Hurricane Irma, Scrub Island reopened with an expanded private beach, while Anegada Beach Club reopened with brand-new “glamping” accommodations.
Oil Nut Bay has significantly upgraded its facilities, and this December, will be offering stunning new one-bedroom suites with nightly availability. A marina village, with 93 slips that can accommodate yachts up to 40 meters, will also be opened in December. The resort’s helipad, which handles air arrivals along with the new facilities, will give guests the freedom to explore neighboring islands, embarking by boat or helicopter, with ease.
By the winter season, the BVI expects to have over 1,000 rooms on land available across the territory. Necker Island is scheduled to reopen on Oct. 1, with several luxury properties to follow in late 2019, including Bitter End Yacht Club and Rosewood Little Dix Bay.
Puerto Rico is anxious to show of the progress its made since Hurricane Maria devestated the island last year.
“The biggest challenge has been letting prospective visitors know the strides the BVI has made since the hurricanes last year,” British Virgin Islands Director of Tourism Sharon Flax-Brutus told Travel Market Report.
To help spread the positive word, Flax-Brutus said, the BVI Tourist Board has been hosting events such as the annual BVI Spring Regatta, the Emancipation Festival and the upcoming BVI Food Fete, and sponsor events such as the Miami Open and Hamptons Classic.
Brad Dean, CEO of Discover Puerto Rico, a private non-profit that supports the promotion of tourism, also admitted that while tourism has been on a slow and steady incline, “our greatest challenge is creating awareness of just how far we’ve come. Puerto Rico is riding a comeback story.”
A positive sign, the island is already homeporting four more cruise ships than it was prior to Maria, with 14 vessels, and has seen 1.2 million cruise ship passengers since the storm. Additional increases are expected next year, Dean noted.
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To get the world out, Discover Puerto Rico has leveraged the power of social media. Using #CovertheProgress, the organization is partnering with local communities to highlight the significant change that has taken place over the course of the past 12 months.
In one of the hardest hit areas, Punta Santiago, residents expressed a message of desperation. Now, they’re now turning the page to a new chapter.
“Maria is just a chapter. For local communities, it is very important to welcome visitors back and show the world just what is happening,” Dean said, adding social media platforms including Facebook and Twitter have been great to share those stories.
The U.S. Virgin Islands have employed #USVIStillNice, where Virgin Islanders’ shared their stories of resilience. Visitors are also encouraged to use the hashtag and share posts from recent trips, encouraging positive word of mouth.
