More than one thousand hotel rooms are expected to be added over the next year as new hotels open their doors in Guyana, according to the Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Oniedge Waldron.
At a press conference, the Minister noted the growing hotel industry in Guyana and said the additional hotel rooms will complement the existing 3,300 rooms.
The Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce is also working with home owners to increase the number of Bed and Breakfast (B&B) facilities available in the country to complement the existing hotels.
“So, we continue to this end actively working with private property owners to expand and enhance the bed and breakfast option across the country, and this is not just Georgetown, this is in every single region. We do this by providing technical support so we just done leave you; we give you advice on how to make the standard of your bed and breakfast internationally acceptable,” Minister Waldron explained.
The Ministry of Tourism recently approved 26 properties to offer Bed and Breakfast (B&B) facilities.
The Tourism Minister said the move to expand the country’s hotel industry is in direct response to the growing number of visitors coming to Guyana.
Between January and October, visitor arrivals increased by 15% when compared to the same period in 2023. Approximately 300,000 visitors arrived in the country, according to Minister Waldron.
The stats show that a large percentage of the visitors come from the United States of America (USA), and Caribbean.
“The market share distribution for these visitor arrivals, you should know, 46% of these visitors come from the USA, 28% is from the Caribbean, so you are seeing a lot of interregional travel, hence, you will see strategically us having more airlift in and amongst our Caribbean countries, Canada is 8%, Europe 6% of our visitors, and Latin America another 6%. Other markets another 6%,” Minister Waldron explained.
She said with robust bookings reported by airlines for the Christmas Holidays, the upward trajectory is likely to continue to the end of the year.
And within the next week, Avianca Airlines is expected to begin operations in Guyana.
“Next week Avianca Airlines will commence direct flights between Guyana and Bogota, Colombia. This will establish a crucial link with South America and reinforce Guyana’s position as a regional transit hub. In 2025, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is expected to add 1072 seats per week, connecting Amsterdam, St Martin and Guyana,” the Tourism Minister said.
Already for 2024, Sky High Dominicana launched direct flights between Guyana and the Dominican Republic, while Caribbean Airlines launched non-stop flights between Guyana and Suriname and Inter Caribbean recently launched flights to Grenada as LIAT 2020 started operations here with non stop flights to Antigua.
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