By Nelson Belen, Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – With the mega music festival, Rock in Rio 2017, set to kick off this weekend, a report by RioCeptur (Research Center and Tourism Applied Studies of the City of Rio de Janeiro), shows that with an increase in hotel reservations compared to Rock in Rio 2015, this year’s event may generate R$74 million.
Rock in Rio 2017 starts this coming weekend and will take place over the course of the next two weekends, with show dates on September 15th, 16th, 17th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, and the 24th.
Using ABIH-RJ (Rio de Janeiro Hotel Association) figures, RioCeptur’s report shows that Rio de Janeiro hotels currently have a 67 percent occupancy rate for the first weekend of the event (September 15th to the 17th).
On a positive note, despite the huge expansion of hotel rooms since the last Rock in Rio in 2015 (due mainly to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games), the current 67 percent occupancy rate is five percent greater than the occupancy rate in the same period heading into Rock in Rio 2015.
“It is great that the occupancy rates of 2017 are higher than 2015 because Rio needs more tourists with higher spending power to visit the city,” said Tavi Norén, Swedish expatriate and operator of destination management service Rio Love Story.
“It also means that the hotels have done a good job to reposition themselves, with for example new services,” Norén added, “to confront the increasing competition from alternative solutions such as AirBnB.”
According to RioCeptur’s analysis, the current occupancy rate amounts to about 40,200 reserved hotel rooms across the city, with an expected 168,800 guests in the Rock in Rio 2017’s first weekend, which will generate approximately R$29 million.
The neighborhoods where hotels have the highest occupancy rate during Rock in Rio’s first weekend are in Ipanema and Leblon, where hotels have an 84 percent occupancy rate. Hotels in Copacabana and Leme came in second, with an occupancy rate of 71 percent.
Interestingly, hotels in Barra da Tijuca, located close to Rock in Rio’s site, the new Cidade de Rock (City of Rock) in the little-used Olympic Park, lag well behind Ipanema and Leblon, with an occupancy rate of only 64 percent in the event’s first weekend.
In the second weekend of Rock in Rio (September 21st to the 24th), the survey shows that hotels across the city have a 77 percent occupancy rate. This figure represents a sizeable increase from the same period before Rock in Rio 2015 when hotels had an occupancy rate of 63 percent.
RioCeptur calculates the hotel occupancy rate in Rock in Rio’s second weekend to amount to 46,200 reserved rooms, with approximately 258,700 guests and an estimated revenue of R$45 million.
Hotels in Ipanema and Leblon again lead the way, with an occupancy rate of 84 percent. A close second is Copacabana and Leme, which sees a big jump in hotel occupancy for Rock in Rio’s second weekend, at 82 percent.
Hotels in Barra also see a big surge in the event’s second weekend, with an occupancy rate of 76 percent. RioCeptur’s full report can be found on the organization’s website.
Rock in Rio 2017 will feature an all-star lineup, from world-renowned pop artists such as Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake and Alicia Keys; to rock legends, like Guns ‘n’ Roses and the Who; and Brazilian superstars, including Ivete Sangalo and Skank. The complete lineup can be seen on their web site.