The Best Time To Find Better Hotel And Resort Prices In Punta Cana

To know when is the best time to find better hotel and resort prices in Punta Cana, the first thing you should know are the factors that influence the increase in hotel prices.

If you are looking for the same hotel for different dates in Punta Cana, it is normal to find different prices for the same room. The same happens if you are looking for accommodation for a specific date at different times. And if the room is the same and, sometimes, the date for which you want to book is also the same, why do the prices shown differ, sometimes, so much?

The prices of the hotels vary with a single objective: to optimize the benefits of the establishment, without implying abuse of the clients’ trust. Although the variation in prices may seem somewhat arbitrary and very difficult to predict, nothing is further from reality.

To set the prices of hotel rooms throughout the year, people who decide on them use a good number of specialized software tools that are increasingly complete and perform more complex analyses. Ultimately, the decision to set a certain price is made by the owner of the establishment, when it is a small hotel or accommodation, or the figure of the Revenue Manager, in large hotels and international chains.

Revenue Manager in hotels

Since the beginning of the 21st century, the tourism industry has suffered an explosion that has led to unprecedented exponential growth. Due to this, the competition between the different service providers associated with it – accommodation, restaurants, activities, airline tickets, transportation – has increased considerably.

Being the competition so fierce, the choice of the price of the service has become a key factor for the survival of the business. It cannot be so low that it does not generate net profits, but also not so high that it cannot compete in the market and frighten customers.

Focusing this theme on hotels and other accommodations, the crux of the matter is to set the right price for each room at each precise moment.

This is how the figure of the Revenue Manager appeared. He will be the person who studies all the factors that affect the occupation of the hotel he manages and will decide the price based on the information obtained.

The Revenue Manager has to know, for example, that it is better to have 85 rooms occupied at US$ 130 a night each, than 100 rooms at US$ 112 a night. The income derived from the second option is slightly higher than that of the first, but that benefit becomes a loss when we consider the cost of cleaning these 15 extra rooms.

It is a key figure in the modern hotel world, but not all establishments, due to its size, can be allowed.

factors that affect hotel prices

Do not confuse the variables with the fixed factors of a hotel. The fixed factors are: number of stars, location, free accessories offered in the room, quality of common areas, etc. These are objective aspects of the hotel and are not an explanation for a price change according to the time of the year, unless there is a palpable alteration in any of them (the rooms are renewed, a new pool or gym is built, etc …) .

The Revenue Manager will have at your disposal a good number of programs that analyze variables that will help you set room prices. But what variables or aspects are these?

To vary the price, previously, the only thing that was taken into account was the law of supply and demand. Based on historical occupancy data of the establishment itself, it was attempted to infer what the demand for future rooms was going to be and a price was decided based on it.

This has become totally obsolete and, although historical occupation data are still used, they only represent a part of the variables that yield the information that will determine the price.

Bid Segments in hotels

All hotels offer the same room at different prices. They use the bid segmentation method. That is, they have a certain percentage of rooms with a discount of, say, 45%; other quanta with 35% discount; others of 20%, etc.

When all rooms with a 45% discount have been occupied, that price is closed and they are offered to the next one (those with a 35% discount, in the example). It is a way to reward early booking or penalize late booking, as you look. This same technique is used by most airlines.

According to a study conducted by Tripadvisor, in the Caribbean you can save up to 7% in the hotel by booking 4 months before, if you book a hotel in Punta Cana in advance, you will be getting a better price.

Seasonality in Punta Cana hotels

It is no secret that hotel prices increase when designated vacation dates approach. Summer vacations, Christmas, Easter and long bridges are the most prominent dates in this regard.

In Punta Cana, the months between December and March are the best to travel because there is the least chance of rain, this season is where the hotels have the highest prices.

Punctual events in Punta Cana

The hotels raise their prices when there are specific events in the area such as concerts, activities and other types of events that will eventually attract a large number of people to the area.

In Punta Cana, the most outstanding annual events are related to concerts and DJs, an example is the Electric Paradaise festival that is usually held in the month of December in Punta Cana, the “Oktoberefst” is also celebrated in the month of October.

Number of searches and air reservations made

Some Hotel Revenue Managers, when setting the price of the rooms, begin to take into account data from other agents in the tourism industry, such as airlines.

If they observe, for example, that there has been a sudden increase of 20% in the sales of airline tickets to the destination where the hotel is located, they may decide to raise prices. They would also lower them from lowering flights to the area.

According to Dominican civil aviation data, the month of March is the month with the highest air traffic in Punta Cana regularly, this coincides with the fact that March is the month with the lowest probability of rain in Punta Cana.

hotel public

A hotel that usually has customers composed mainly of customers traveling for work, may make higher price increases than another establishment whose guests travel for leisure. It is shown that customers traveling for work reasons are less price-sensitive than those who are enjoying their vacations.