Fairmont Bermuda is "cautiously optimistic" for 2010 as corporate group bookings are showing signs of improvement.

Shelley Meszoly, regional director of sales and marketing for Fairmont Bermuda, said groups and individuals were leaving it much later to book.

In 2009, she said group bookings fell 30 percent at the Fairmont Southampton — reflecting a global trend — partially offset by a 20 percent rise in room nights sold to leisure guests, achieved with the help of a series of discount offers.

Ms Meszoly believed many corporate customers had been put off by the bad publicity surrounding an event staged by bailed-out American International Group (AIG) at a luxury resort in California.

"In 2009, many of the groups who were planning to come here cancelled," Ms Meszoly said. "A lot of them were not in financial difficulty. But after the AIG situation in the US, no-one wanted to seem like they were being frivolous. They wanted to appear financially responsible and so did not have those meetings.

"People used to book a year to two-and-a-half years out — now they're booking within a year.

"If you looked at my order book today, it wouldn't look too exciting on the group side. However, we are seeing a lot of last-minute groups.

"And I can tell you we're going to have a very good June — the group business is really back for that month.

"We have a number of promotions out there for April and May and we're hopeful of capturing some last-minute business."

The group cancellations have stopped happening, Ms Meszoly said. And those returning for strategy meetings and brainstorming, face-to-face sessions are telling her that companies had suffered from the lack of corporate get-togethers.

"Most of the leads we've been receiving are companies that have not met in a long time and they feel it's time to get back together," Ms Meszoly said.

"We're cautiously optimistic about 2010. It's not going to be an easy year, but there is business out there and you can get it if you put out the right offer."

Fairmont Bermuda believes it can attract more Canadian guests, after the arrival of WestJet on the market as a competitor for Air Canada.

The low-cost airline will start its flights from Toronto on May 3 and Fairmont has stepped up its marketing efforts in Canada to win some of the anticipated extra arrivals.

The Canadian dollar, the UK pound and the euro, have strengthened against the US dollar over the past year and a half, making Bermuda a more affordable destination for visitors from many countries.

Currently around three to five percent of Fairmont Bermuda's business originates from Canada and about five to seven percent from the UK.

Ms Meszoly did not believe the closure last November of the Elbow Beach resort's main building for several years of renovations would benefit Fairmont much — or any other hotel operator on the Island, for that matter.

"Any hotel closure in Bermuda is difficult and sad," she said. "That business does not go to other hotels, as a general rule, most of that business goes away." She added that other Island hoteliers saw their business pick up at times when the Fairmont's group business was strong.

Fairmont is already investing much marketing effort into 2011 and anticipates that next year will see a significant uptick in business.