Above: Grenada (Caribbean Journal photo)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

After three consecutive months of year-over-year decline, the Caribbean hotel industry rebounded with a strong month of May, according to a new report from STR.

Hotel occupancy in the Caribbean improved by 3.2 percent in May compared to May 2013, the largest year-over-year increase since December of 2013.

Occupancy finished May at 65.8 percent, with overall occupancy for the region for the year at 72.8 percent. The improvement brought the region’s year-to-date change in occupancy to 0.

Average daily rates rose by 7.4 percent to $174.16, while revenue per available room rose by 10.8 percent to $114.52, according to the report.

STR’s survey included 1,891 hotels comprising 226,144 rooms in the Caribbean, which includes Bermuda.