Bahamas Tourism Faces Booking Slowdown After U.S. Travel Alert

The Bahamas saw a January slowdown in short-term rental bookings — and, to a lesser extent, hotel reservations — following news reports about an uptick in murders and a U.S. State Department alert to travelers.

In January, short-term rental bookings fell 7.3% compared to the same month in 2023 after seeing months of growth, according to AirDNA.

Reservations per property and occupancy at short-term rentals were down 10%, according to Key Data.

Hotels, which tend to be concentrated in tourist areas, saw weekly occupancy declines year-over-year between 2% and 14% throughout January, according to CoStar's STR. But average daily rates rose year-over-year, so higher prices may have played a factor in deterring bookings.