Next Monday 20 and Tuesday 21 February is the carnival holiday, one of the most outstanding dates for Uruguayan tourism and the one that marks a turning point in the summer season.
In this context, the operators of the main tourist spots in the country anticipate which will be the hot spots in terms of occupancy and at what prices are the offers that remain available.
From Punta del Este, the president of the local Real Estate Chamber, Javier Sena, projects that rental values will be up to 20% below what they were in the first 15 days of January.
“February prices are between 20% and 25% below January,” he points out in dialogue with El Observador, and although prices may tend to pick up a bit during Carnival, they will not match the values of the first fortnight of January and will remain between a fifth and a quarter cheaper than at the beginning of the year.
In the case of the main resort, the beginning of 2023 was characterized by a strong arrival of foreigners—mainly Argentines—who even arrived in the country in the last week of 2022. This phenomenon resulted in Punta del Este being almost at the top in the number of of property owners who visited the city, although, in Sena’s view, “they were missing between 10% and 15% of tenants.”
In February the movement decreased, reaching 20% lower than the previous month. However, facing the second part of the month, from the real estate chamber they hope to recover occupation thanks to Carnival. In this sense, Sena estimates that “between 85% and 90% of the owners” arrive in Punta del Este and although he considers that the tenants will also respond to the tourist offer, he hopes that it will not be at the same levels that were seen before. of the covid-19 pandemic. “They will be 15% less than in 2018 and 2019,” says the businessman.
In the case of Rocha, the promotions take over the Carnival holiday, although the prices are similar to those of the peak of the season. “It’s not that prices fell, but with the same values they stay four nights and pay three”, describes the president of the Rochense Tourism Corporation, Delvair Amarilla.
Regarding occupancy, Amarilla forecasts good rates, especially for the first four days of Carnival until Tuesday the 21st, inclusive.
In this department during the first days of February the occupation was 40% on weekdays, reaching 60% on weekends. “As it is historical, we did not reach the numbers for the first 15 days of January,” says Amarilla, analyzing the first section of February.
During the first month of the year, Rocha managed to exceed 90% of the occupancy of its real estate offer, something that the president of the Rochense Tourism Corporation hopes will be replicated on the next Carnival holiday. “I don’t want to play 100%, but I think that in the four days of the carnival we will exceed 90% again,” he anticipates.
In this sense, Punta del Diablo will be the star of Carnival, mainly due to the interest of Uruguayans and Brazilians. To this destination are added others that have performed well during the season such as Barra del Chuy, La Pedrera, La Paloma, Valizas and Cabo Polonio.
Meanwhile, on the Gold Coast a greater demand is perceived but always linked to short stays. “The owners do not want to rent for such a short time”explains the president of the Canelones Coast Real Estate Association, Daniel Santestevan.
In this area, during the first half of February, 50% of the offer was rented and it is expected that for Carnival this figure will rise to 80%, but strictly for the weekend, Monday and Tuesday.
As far as prices are concerned, Santestevan asserts that the offer is at the same level as the first half of February, that is, 20% cheaper than in January. The area most in demand in this part of the country is Atlántida and the surrounding spas such as Las Toscas and Parque del Plata.
