Sedona hotel owner talks impact of COVID-19 on the hospitality industry
It's no secret COVID-19 has affected small businesses tremendously, but how is it affecting the hospitality industry with not many people traveling right now?
FOX 10's Jennifer Martinez spoke with the owner of Sedona Real Inn & Suites who says lack of travel due to the coronavirus has hurt their industry tremendously.
RELATED: LIVE Blog: Coronavirus in Arizona - Latest case numbers
Hotel owner Robert says that with everything starting to open back up, he's hoping it will go back to what it was like.
He says he's hoping that he can get everything back to normal by mid-summer or the fall, but for now, he's focusing on safety.
"We created check-in procedures, check-out procedures," he said. The only direct communication they have with guests is handing them their keys.
RELATED: US jobless claims soar past 30 million as 3.8 million more workers seek aid
At the start of the pandemic, the hotel employed 35 people, now only 13. It was just a year ago when they were almost at full capacity when it comes to occupancy.
"The occupancy was just falling to the floor, we were supposed to have a 90% occupancy in April to 12% huge," he said.
He doesn't think the numbers will be like the ones he has seen in the past year until confidence increases in society.