Flags flapping in the wind at the Hotel Saskatchewan in Regina. (Dominick Lucyk/980 CJME)

By CJME News

Strong demand for hotel rooms expected ahead of Labour Day Classic

Sep 3, 2021 | 9:45 AM

People visiting Regina to catch Sunday’s Labour Day Classic could run into trouble finding a hotel room for the long weekend.

“We’re forecasting a strong hotel occupancy this long weekend with the limited supply that we currently have to offer guests,” said Tracy Fahlman, president and CEO of the Regina Hotel Association.

Fahlman said supply remains constrained due to COVID-19. Thirty-five per cent of rooms in the city are still closed, she said. Most hotel restaurants and lounges have been dark for the last 18 months.

She advises guests to call hotels directly as not all listings will be displayed on online booking platforms.

This past year, Fahlman said, the hotel industry has been operating at 25 per cent occupancy. Business picked up over the summer, with occupancy increasing to 39 per cent.

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“That’s really due to the return of live events like Roughrider games,” Fahlman said.

As the pandemic has hit tourism and hospitality particularly hard, Fahlman said the sector will take years to recover.

“The hotel industry currently is struggling through lack of consistent occupancy demand (and) labour shortages,” she said.

“And (there have been) major disruptions in the supply chain, where essential hotel items like linens and towels, even soaps, have been on back order for months and months and months.”