The Ghana Hotels Association says the Yuletide brought some respite to its members after enduring the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their businesses.

The hospitality sector has been one of the worse hit following the outbreak with many losing millions of dollars in the process.

Many industry players closed down while others downsized their staff numbers to stay afloat during the period.

Speaking to Citi Business News, President of the Association, Dr Edward Ackah-Nyamike said even though the pandemic is not over, he hopes the growth of the local tourism sector will help cushion its members.

“I must say that Christmas brought some relief to the hotel industry, more so when it provided the icing on the cake after some increase in occupancy before, during and after the elections. Obviously, the industry is not out of the woods yet especially when you look at what’s going on in some countries. But at least the festive season and end of year activities brought some respite to operators in Ghana. We hope that the ongoing campaign for domestic tourism and other programs being spearheaded by the Ghana Tourism Authority and the marketing efforts by the hotels will sustain us in 2021 even as the government also plays its supportive role”.

After the reopening of the country’s international airspace business gradually began picking up for the many hotels across the country.

The association attributes this development to the easing of some COVID-19 restrictions in the country.

President of the Association, Dr Edward Ackah-Nyamike, said the political season also may have contributed to this improvement in business.

He told Citi Business News that, “Feedback from our member hotels across the country points to steady growth occupancy rates and hosting of events and conferences. Some attribute it to the ongoing political campaign while some others attribute it to the easing of COVID-19 restrictions and also to aggressive drive for domestic tourism by various groups and tour operators. We can only pray that the growth we are observing will continue.”

It is estimated that as of June 2020, the sector had incurred losses running into $171 million as a result of the pandemic.

Ghana’s international airspace was opened to travel in September which meant an increase in visits into the country by tourists who are the main customers of tourist sites in the country.