Despite the indisputable beauty of its beaches and the amount of projects real estate booming tourism, Juan Dolio It has not managed to recover the splendor that once distinguished it, due to obvious neglect.
For years, this town was a favorite destination for vacationjust one hour from the capital, offering attractive options for locals and foreigners. However, today, that dynamic seems to have lagged behind, losing the momentum that had placed it at the center of tourist offers.
In times of its greatest splendor, Juan Dolio It was one of the most prominent tourist spots in the region, having Hotel offers that amounted to 4,255 rooms operational, plus 130 units under construction, and around 600 rooms extra Hotel. Without imagining that it would experience a radical change that would bring its occupancy down to 35%, one of the lowest points due to the crisis of 2004.
Between 2005 and 2015, the area experienced a huge blow, faced with closing of several hotels emblematic buildings, including the Barceló Capella Beach Resort, with 500 roomsas well as other renowned establishments such as the Decameun Hotel, the Metro Marina Hotel, the Playa Real Hotel, the Punta de Garza Hotel, the Costa Linda Hotel and the El Tamarindo Hotel.
The departure of these accommodations, which were pillars of the tourism local, left a significant gap, in the middle of an offer that faces the challenge of renew and adapt to new market demands.
According to the director of the Association of Hotels and Tourism of the Dominican Republic (Asonahores), in Juan DolioFrancisco Bonilla, today some 1,744 are enabled rooms hoteliers. Currently the accommodations that remain closed have about 1,200 rooms that have been largely displaced by the tourism real estate.
Stagnation
He stagnation of Juan Dolio in it sector Hotel industry, has deep roots, one of them goes back to the implementation of Law 158-01 on Tourist Investment Incentives (Confotur).
According to Bonilla, most of the funds destined to promote the sector tourist They headed to nearby destinations, such as Punta Cana and Bávaro, leaving the town out of the equation in the first years of the law. This caused the area to fall behind in terms of modernization infrastructure, which affected its competitiveness.
Furthermore, international factors, such as attacks of September 11, 2001, which seriously affected the tourism global, and the subsequent slowdown economic world, diminished the Hotel occupancy in many regions of the Caribbean, including Juan Dolio. The impact of the pandemic of COVID-19 in 2020 was another hard blow to the already weakened industry tour.
David Llibre, outgoing president of Asonahores, believes that, with a renovation focused on offering unique and differentiated experiences, Juan Dolio has the potential to resurface like a destination tourist comprehensive.
“It is not enough to be close to the capital. It is necessary to have a Hotel offer that attracts tourists with innovative and quality proposals,” he points out.
Persistent urban challenges
Although the Government has invested in the construction of a wastewater treatment plant and the repaving of some sectors of the town, numerous urban problems.
In several areas, lack of lighting and the bad condition of the streets They affect safety and quality of life, both for tourists and residents.
In the Mardesol residential complex, the neighbors they denounce that the conditions of its streets are unsustainable, with puddles, mud and improvised landfills that make mobility difficult and affect the health of residents. residents.
“The community is forgotten“laments a neighbor, who assures that, despite calls to the authorities, no substantial progress has been seen.
At the social level, the conflicts derived from the presence of Haitian workers andConstruction works have also been a source of tension. The residents They ask that this situation be regulated to prevent it from affecting the environment and the quality of life in the area.
Yesreal estate actor
Despite the challenges, Juan Dolio has found an alternative path in the real estate offer.
Bernardo Florida, a resident of the town, points out that occupancy has exceeded 80% in recent years, mainly due to the boom in industry cinematographicwhich has attracted a greater number of tourists and residents.
However, he states that the lack of promotion and the competence with other nearby destinations demand a more aggressive marketing strategy to revitalize the brand Juan Dolio and attract both national and international tourists.
As the projects real estate continue to develop, the question about the future tourist remains uncertain. Meanwhile, Juan Dolio continues to struggle to find balance between its rich heritage as a destination tourist and the needs of modernization and adaptation to face the challenges of the present.
