The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

MAJOR Nassau/Paradise Island resorts are projecting high occupancies for the Thanksgiving weekend, with Atlantis yesterday telling Tribune Business the resort was “sold out”, due in large part to the third Battle 4 Atlantis tournament generating 15,000 room nights.

George Markantonis, Brookfield Hospitality’s president and managing director, said: “Things are looking fantastic. We have a huge demand for the Battle 4 Atlantis. We’re completely sold out for the final session of the games, which will be on the Saturday night.

“All of the other games are filling up fast. We have a lot of supporters coming in for all of the teams, particularly since Kansas is now ranked number two in the nation, and some people have noticed that Iowa, which is coming to the tournament, is being ranked as number 26, just outside of the top 25, which has been a lovely extra bonus.”

Mr Markantonis added: “It’s going to be a very busy week around here. We’re sold out over four nights, and we have got 4,000 rooms just in our campus. It’s more in the region of 15,000 room nights that are generated for us.

“We were at capacity the previous two years as well. The beauty of it is that it is televised across North America, which provides a lot of publicity for Atlantis and the Bahamas.”

Jermaine Wright, director of operations for the British Colonial Hilton, said: “We are projected to experience high occupancy levels during the Thanksgiving weekend. The hotel’s high occupancy is a combination of moderate group business, along with leisure guests enjoying the Thanksgiving holidays.”

Patrick Drake, general manager at Sandals Royal Bahamian, said: “We’re not doing too bad. We’re not over the top, to be honest with you.

“We believe we will see a pick up towards the end of December. Right now is not a busy time for us. We’re definitely off from last year; we’re definitely behind our booking pace.”