Over the last year, Abilene occupancy has risen 19% compared to last year, leading to rising hotel prices. 

As construction of the new Lancium and Crusoe Data Center has begun, the influx of construction workers has caused a rise in hotel occupancy, said Robert Lopez, vice president of the Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau.

“We’ve had a lot of demand increase for people wanting to visit Abilene,” Lopez said. “There’s more demand, and there is a fixed supply of hotel rooms available, and hotels are able to charge more for their rooms because they are in higher demand.”

This increase in demand has not only affected hotels, but also restaurants and other businesses around town, Lopez said.

“If you’re staying in a hotel, well you’re gonna have to find a place to eat,” he said, “so our restaurants have seen an increase. You may want to do a little bit of shopping, whether it’s at a supermarket or a retail store, and when you have an increase in visitors you get an increase, not just in hotel occupancy, but in sales tax revenue as well.”

Under normal circumstances, around 33% of restaurant spending, 27% of retail spending and 25% of all spending in Abilene comes from visitors, Lopez said, so the increase in visitors will increase these numbers, which will help the businesses.

Bonnie Haentsch, junior nursing major from Fort Worth, said the rising hotel prices surprised her grandparents, because it was so much more expensive than in years past.

“They were trying to book a hotel and they mentioned that the prices were way higher than they remember them being,” Haentsch said. “Just to stay one night in a hotel was around $400-$500.”

Lopez said he loves weekends like Homecoming and Sing Song because it brings more visitors to Abilene, but the rise in hotel occupancy may hurt some people wanting to visit this year.

“Now with this situation where there is maybe not as much hotel availability, it is going to have an impact on the people who would come to attend those events,” Lopez said. “The more in advance parents and visitors can book their rooms the better price they are going to get and the more options they will have.”

Although the rising occupancy may negatively affect visitors, it helps Abilene as a whole, Lopez said.

“It’s great for the economy,” Lopez said. “Overall it’s good, I know it causes a strain on some events. People are used to booking at the last minute and just showing up to the event.”