Occupancy is going down and rates are going up

At Tuesday’s meeting of the Hot Springs Travel and Tourism, the board officially accepted the budget for the fiscal year 2018-2019. However, Carl Leyba voted “no” to the motion, and indicated there were some cuts and he was uncomfortable with some areas of the budget at this point. Discussion was planned for a later date to address his concerns.

It was noted during the meeting that the funding for special events had been decreased.

A mandatory meeting for those requesting event funding will be at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 23 at Big Horn Federal. Director Amanda Moeller said the meeting will be where award letters are handed out and they discuss the new funding strategy.

Moeller also spoke to a recent lodging study discussed during a work session. Among the points were highlights of what is working in the community and addressing, as a board, things that are not. The general point, she noted, was that we could not advertise our way out of our current situation as occupancy rates continue to go down.

“There is a trend currently,” Moeller said, “where our occupancy is going down and the rates are going up.” She added that the person doing the study does not feel that’s sustainable, so it’s encouraged the board to do more civic pride activities, pull in some of the advertising being done on a national scale and have more of a local campaign.

What was discussed at the work session was using some of the pulled funding for items such as updated welcome signs, more promotions and advertising on the digital media fronts and props that people can put their faces through for photo opportunities.

Leyba questioned whether data from other communities could be obtained to see if the downturn in occupancy is a trend that’s happening statewide or just here. He also pointed out that, while some communities within the same region as Thermopolis have built more new hotels, they are also losing hotels.

Kevin Skates said there is a lot of potential here, though it was pointed out at the meeting that the business clientele is not particularly conducive for people staying here more than a day at a time. Angie Guyon said with some improvements Thermopolis might actually become a central point for people. They could stay for less in Thermopolis, but still be able to travel to other locations such as Yellowstone, Worland, Riverton for day trips.

Troy Dorman said educating our citizens in how to respond positively to tourists can make a big impact on whether people choose to stay here or not. While Thermopolis has been home to hospitality workshops, such as one on April 17, Skates said it is also on business owners to get their employees to those trainings.

Though a recent decision was made regarding the funds provided for staffing at the visitors center, scaling the amount back to $3,000 so that the center could remain open on weekends and holidays during the summer months, it was further discussed that the center should be open weekends from April 15 until Oct. 15, as visitors tend to come in that stretch of time rather than just the summer months.