The effects of the mosquito-borne Zika virus is starting to sting South Florida’s tourism industry with hotel demand down.
Hotel industry analyst STR said the number of room nights sold dropped 2.3% year-over-year in the Miami Beach area.
It comes just a week after the Miami Beach Zika transmission zone was expanded to cover most of the city.
Other stats released by STR paint a worrying picture for the Miami Beach hotel market.
STR said room revenue is down 6.1% and revenue per available room fell 11.1% compared to the same period in 2015.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has so far recorded 41 cases of locally transmitted Zika.
According to the Miami Herald, the iconic Fontainebleau said it had just experienced the worst three weeks since 9/11 and the 150-room Carillon, located outside the Zika zone, suffered cancellations totalling $100,000.
"I’ve heard that there are rates as low as $59 a night, which is like what I would call similar to after 9/11 for several hotels," Mitch Novick, owner of the 20-room Sherbrooke Hotel told the Herald.
However hotel supply was up 5.7% in mid-September, making the task of pinning down the exact impact attributed to Zika more difficult.
