By the Caribbean Journal staff

Caribbean hotel occupancy declined by 2.6 percent in April, the region’s largest monthly decline in almost four years.

According to STR’s monthly trend report, Caribbean hotel occupancy finished April at 72.4 percent, down 2.6 percent from 74.4 percent in April 2013.

That was the largest year-over-year monthly decline since the region’s occupancy fell by 3.3 percent in November of 2010.

Among the region’s other indicators, the region saw a 15.6 percent increase in average daily rate and a 12.5 percent improvement in RevPar (revenue per available room).

It was the third straight month in 2014 in which Caribbean hotel occupancy experienced a year-over year decline, following a 0.8 percent drop in March and a 0.2 percent reduction in February.

For the year to date, Caribbean hotel occupancy stands at 75 percent, down 0.3 percent from the same period in 2013.

STR data surveys 1,889 hotels comprising 225,716 rooms in the Caribbean region, which includes Bermuda.