Marriott Vacations Worldwide has warned of a significant hit to third-quarter sales after wildfires in the Hawaiian island of Maui led it to curtail bookings for September.
In a business update on the impact of the fires, the travel company said physical damage to its resorts and sales centers has been minimal. However, due to ongoing recovery efforts in West Maui and the challenging environment for visitors traveling to the area, it has cancelled all owner and exchange reservations through at least September 10, 2023, and all transient rental and preview arrivals through at least the end of September.
As a result, the company said it expects 3Q contract sales to take a bit of $25 to $30 million.
In addition, due to the lower contract sales and the negative effect on its other Vacation Ownership business lines, as well as to its Exchange and Third-party Management segment, 3Q net income is likely to be impacted by $16 to $19 million and adjusted underlying earnings (EBITDA) by $22 to $27 million.
Marriott Vacations operates four vacation ownership resorts and sales centers in West Maui representing more than 10% of its annual contract sales. In addition, its Aqua-Aston Hospitality property management business manages five properties in West Maui.
“Hawaii is a very special place for our company and the tragic loss that the people of Maui have to endure as a result of the wildfires is difficult to see,” commented Marriott Vacations president and CEO John Geller.
“Throughout this disaster, our focus has been on the safety, security, and well-being of our owners, members, guests and associates.
The company said its focus has been on providing relief, including temporary housing, food, supplies, on-site counseling and fiscal benefits like disaster pay to the large proportion of its nearly 1,700 associates on Maui who were affected by the wildfires.
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