BELGAIMAGE
Easter Weekend a “bull's-eye” for Brussels tourist sector
The long
Easter weekend with fine weather was a godsend for the Brussels tourist and
hospitality sectors. Hoteliers report
occupancy levels close to those experienced before the pandemic.
“A pleasant surprise”. This is how Hans Vanderbiesen, director of Thon Hotels Brussels, describes the Easter weekend in the Belgian and Flemish capital for the tourist sector. “It’s given us fresh courage after a difficult period. Easter Weekend was a bull’s-eye”.
But Vanderbiesen remains cautious: “It’s not just because we have experienced a bumper weekend that everything is sorted. Still there is a steady stream of bookings for May and June”.
Bookings materialised late in the day. “During the first week of the Easter break it wasn’t as busy as we had hoped” says Yves Fonck, president of the Brussels Hotel Association. “The second week was a lot better with Easter Weekend the highlight. Brussels hotels were fully booked”.
Due to the pandemic fewer conferences and political meetings are being held. It’s bad news for Brussels hotels. “There’s little business tourism” says Fonck. “Occupancy rates are still far off 2019 levels”.
