WILLEMSTAD - The requested mass redundancy at Santa Barbara Beach Hotel heralds the rest of the hotel sector in Curaçao. Especially if the border doesn't open very quickly now.
"If the borders are not opened for tourists next month, we will be forced to close our doors indefinitely and we will have to file mass redundancies," said Terence van der Valk, owner of the Kontiki Beach Hotel. "As stated by several hoteliers before, July 1 is really the deadline." Currently 275 employees work in the Kontiki hotel.
Santa Barbara Beach Hotel with 350 rooms and more than 250 employees closed its doors on June 1 for at least one and a half years. Next year, the hotel expects tourism to pick up again and start operating cost-effectively.
Miles Mercera, director of Curaçao Hospitality & Tourism Association (CHATA), says that other hotels on the island must also make the same decision if the borders do not open before July 1. “There are 16 thousand people directly and indirectly dependent on tourism. All these people run the risk of losing their job and income in the coming month.” He warns against this domino effect.
Currently, keeping hotels open according to owner Robbin Vogels of the Avila Beach Hotel is not cost effective. "We will get some people, but it is really a drop on the glowing plate." According to the hotel owner, the local market is too small to keep the hotels open. Also, the locals do not pay the same price as the tourists. "It is impossible for hotels to survive in this way."
According to the hotel owners, a decision must now be made. "You also have to take the start-up phase into account," explains Vogels. "It is not the case that if we now hear that we can open July 1, that we will immediately be full from July onwards."
"We can't miss this season" -Terence van de Valk, owner of Kontiki Beach Hotel
In addition, opening up after July and August is even more difficult because most people in the Netherlands no longer have a holiday. “Not only are we missing the season, but more importantly, we are losing the tourist battle with other countries that have proceeded energetically. Starting up will then no longer be possible in the short term and as Curaçao we will have to rebuild tourism completely. This will take years and will not be without disastrous consequences,” says Van der Valk.
According to the hotelier, responsible organizations need to understand what the downside of the corona measures are and that failure to open completely ultimately leads to many more victims.
"I hope this will be recognized, because without an economy there will ultimately be no health care," Van der Valk concludes.
By Kim Hendriksen
