HOSPITALITY businesses have reported having reasons to be confident of a good 2026 after a season of festive cheers saw Islanders spill into pubs, bars and restaurants.
The Christmas and New Year period is traditionally a busy period for the industry with one business saying that turnover ‘tripled’ in the last month.
Earlier this year, restrictions on drinks deals, happy hours and other promotions in pubs, bars and restaurants were lifted in a bid to support the sector, which had reported several years of struggles since Covid.
However, some businesses have said the cost-of-living crisis was meaning fewer Islanders were spending their money on going out, while other cost increases, including staffing, mean that the sector continued to face a mixed year.
The Sundown, which opened in Febuary with a focus on providing diners with live music performances, reported being full throughout December.
Simon Soar, managing director, said: “We only opened in February so obviously don’t have a Christmas comparator, but we have had a superb December. In the last month, we have tripled the turnover from our first full month, back in March.
“We have hit capacity every weekend in December, with the whole place buzzing and the restaurant full. It’s clear that people want to enjoy something a bit different, and the appetite for live music in Jersey is huge.
“The weekdays are still not as busy as they used to be although Thursday is better.
“For us, it has been a brilliant Christmas, and it seems more and more people are discovering our unique model.”
Meanwhile, Randalls, which owns a numbers of pubs and bars, said the relatively dry weather had played a role in a successful festive period.
The firm’s commercial director, Nigel Godfrey, said: “We have seen good levels of trading especially in the final two weeks of the festive period, with strong growth on the key trading days.
“New Years Eve bookings [were] strong and there is no doubt that the dry weather has brought customers out.”
The Ommaroo Hotel, which includes the Coast Bar and Bistro, at Havre des Pas, said that they had seen a busier 2025 Christmas period than a year previously.
Managing director Fiona Kerley said: “Specifically on the restaurant side of things, we are definitely up about 6.5% compared to last year, that would probably be made up of Christmas parties, Christmas Day lunches etc.
“We’ve probably taken a few extra people. I wouldn’t say there’s been masses of extra business across the whole of December but certainly the festive period has been slightly up on last year, but we have also faced increased costs, which means that we won’t have made more than last year because of those costs.
“Obviously, we’ve had a big hike in the minimum wage over the year, and faced with another one next year. It’s hard to keep pushing the prices up, because you’ve got to look at what people are prepared to pay.
“We also lost out on some Guernsey business when Blue Islands went in to liquidation- because we had a deal with them.
“But it has been a good December and we needed it after a tough November.”
Shane Holloway, manager of popular pizza restaurant Red House, said that while Christmas had been down slightly from 2024, the festive period had still “definitely been good” and that the summer season was a success.
“I think people are struggling a lot more financially this year and being careful with spending, and that’s become the biggest issue for us,” he said. “We’re lucky that we are open during the day and for dinner service too.”
David Voisin, owner of Bar Nautique in Liberty Wharf and Bar Levant and Sage Restaurant in Broad Street, said a planning dispute over a retrospective approval to keep glass panels and other awnings at Bar Levant had had an impact on his business.
“Bar Levant hasn’t been as successful as last year, but that’s a certain amount of that is because of the planning issues we had and uncertainty over people booking events with us, because they didn’t know if we can still be around,” he said. “So that’s been it’s been difficult for us there.
“It’s hard to say with Sage, as it’s the first Christmas we’ve traded – I think we’ve had a good Christmas there.
“I haven’t looked through exact statistics yet, but the nightclub has done really well this year. On Boxing Day, we opened up to 18+ instead of 21+, which was hugely successful.”
Meanwhile, Sean Murphy, landlord at The Lamplighter, said that the festive period was “on average, the same as last year”.
“On some days when we thought we’d be busier, we weren’t; and on days we thought we’d be quiet, we were busier,” he said.
“I do think we are still feeling the effects of Covid, five years on, certainly, when it comes to people’s tolerance for standing in a busy pub. These days, I notice more people who come in, look for a seat and – if there isn’t one – they will leave rather than stand around the bar.
“When it comes to drinks, there is still a strong demand for beers and ales but spirit sales were down considerably, I would say.
“We have a strong selection on whiskies, some of them quite special. Whereas, in the past, you would find customers marking Christmas with, say, a top £60 whisky; that doesn’t happen very often now. I think people are being careful with their spending.”
