When the 51st Congress of the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) took place in Puerto Rico in October, attendees likely noticed that there is a lot happening here on the luxury hotel scene. The destination is, indeed, enjoying a surge of investment in the upscale sector, which bodes well for meeting planners looking for extensive amenities and luxurious event venues.
Among the newest properties is the 15-room Olive Boutique Hotel, a member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World that opened in 2012. The property is home to a chic restaurant that is available for private group events, as well as a rooftop lounge that was to open by press time. Set to debut within the next few months are the Condado Vanderbilt Hotel, a luxury waterfront property, as well as Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, which will be a 1,400-acre property with 100 guest rooms, 14 onebedroom suites and 13 private residences.
Several existing upscale properties, including The Ritz-Carlton, San Juan, the Marriot San Juan Resort & Stellaris Casino and the San Juan Water Beach Club, have undergone upgrades recently to keep up with the new competition.
And on the more budget-conscious front, International Hospitality Enterprises, a company that owns upscale properties including La Concha, a Renaissance Resort and the elegant El Convento, is working on a $20 million renovation of the former Diamond Palace Hotel & Casino in San Juan's Condado district, to relaunch it as a Best Western property in 2013.
The air travel scene in Puerto Rico is in line for some upgrades as well. Luis Munoz Marin International, San Juan's international airport, has debuted a new terminal (currently serving flights operated by JetBlue, which is now the island's largest carrier) and is in the process of privatization, with the goal of creating additional revenue and infrastructure improvements. Near the airport, plans have been announced for a 640,000-square-foot shopping complex, the Mall of San Juan, that will include luxury retail outlets never before seen in Puerto Rico, as well as a 264-room hotel with meeting space.
The Puerto Rico Tourism Company (PRTC), meanwhile, is upping its efforts to target meeting planners.
"We've brought in someone who used to run the Hawaii Convention Center to help us with this important market," says Lus G. Rivera Marin, the organization's executive director. "We've been successful with local conventions but are receiving competition from other venues, especially Las Vegas, taking away big groups. The opening of the Sheraton broadens the mix of offerings to better market the convention center."
To increase its appeal to planners, Rivera says his organization is collaborating with the convention bureau to promote Puerto Rico to groups through better packages and flattening some of the extra costs, such as transportation costs from the hotels to the convention center.
"PRTC is also establishing a marketing fund to help the CVB sales force better negotiate large groups," he says. "This will, together, put the CVB in a better position to attract new business."
