When the multi-billion Baha Mar project is completed in December 2014, the Wyndham Nassau Resort will be able to “hold its own” next to the luxurious hotels set to come on stream with the hotel development, according to Baha Mar’s Senior Vice President of Administration and External Affairs, Robert Sands.

“Part of the Wyndham is challenged because of its direct location to construction,” he told The Bahama Journal in a recent interview.

“The Wyndham, however, does offer price points that attract a particular customer and that’s not available any place else in New Providence. With the right business model and the right sense of marketing it will be able to hold its own in this Baha Mar environment because it will attract its own customers that will continue to sustain the hotel.”

The hotel has had some problems over the past few years and has had to close due to low occupancy levels.

Just last week, the hotel re-opened after a five-week closure.

The resort closed its doors temporarily in 2009 for eight weeks and again in 2010 for six weeks.

The closures impacted more than 1,000 employees.

Earlier this year, Tourism Minister Obie Wilchcombe expressed hope that the hotel would not have to close ever again.

“We do understand the difficulty the hotel faces, given the fact that you have construction going on just near the towers of the Wyndham,” he said at the time.

“Once it’s beyond the stage that it is at now in another three, four months, we believe that we will be in better shape. Early next year, we begin the year with several major conferences that will be held at that hotel. We are hoping that they move with haste.”

Moving forward, Mr. Sands said he is optimistic about the hotel’s projected forecast.

“We are continuing to market the hotel so that it can attract business going forward,” he said.

“It’s still very early to tell how the winter months will turn out. Closer into the winter months, we will be in a better position to articulate the actual amount of bookings that have been received in particular, for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s and heading into February. We also include the months leading up to Easter in that projection.”

He said the hotel should still be able to pick up business “right where it left off.”

“We are optimistic that we will achieve our forecasted level of business and we are going to work towards those goals,” Mr. Sands explained.