The Brazilian government launched a long-awaited official accommodation platform for COP30 last Friday after a UN committee had urged the summit’s hosts to find urgent solutions for the mounting logistical challenges.
Around 2,700 additional rooms in apartments, holiday homes and private residences dotted across the Amazon city of Belém were made available on the website, according to the COP30 presidency.
When Climate Home News accessed the platform, the cheapest rooms on offer were priced at around $300 with a minimum stay of 15 nights. But the website also featured options with steep markups on what would otherwise be inexpensive lodgings.
A “suite” near the COP30 venue in a facility usually advertised as a love motel was offered on the platform at $570 per night for the two-week summit. Normally, guests are charged $20 per night, or $6 per hour, to book a room in the same hotel, according to rates advertised online.
A three-bedroom rental apartment can cost up to $3,400 per night on the platform.
The COP30 presidency also chartered two cruise ships – MSC Seaview and Costa Diadema – that will be docked about 20km from the COP30 venue at the Port of Outeiro. An additional 3,800 rooms are available on the ships, although the cheapest options have already sold out.
Logistics turmoil
The Brazilian press reported last week that a group of negotiators had officially requested the summit to be moved to a different city if solutions are not found. In response, COP30 president André Aranha Corrêa do Lago accused hotel owners in Belém of causing a “crisis” due to “completely abusive” prices.
“While in the majority of cities where COPs have happened, hotels charged double or triple the regular price, in Belém hotels are asking for more than 10 times the normal prices,” do Lago told O Globo. “There’s a sense of revolt from some countries for that insensitivity.”
At an emergency meeting last week, a UN committee gave the Brazilian government until August 11 to find concrete solutions to the logistics issues in Belém. Members of the UN COP bureau warned that many delegates, especially from poorer countries, would be excluded from the negotiations unless affordable accommodation was offered.
Richard Muyungi, chair of the African Group of Negotiators (AGN) at the talks, said some delegates were beginning to question why Brazil does not want to move the COP to a larger city. But Corrêa do Lago insisted during a briefing on Friday that “the COP will be in Belém” and that “there is no Plan B”.
Belém’s ‘distinctive’ accommodation landscape
COP30 officials said earlier in July that 2,500 individual rooms would be made available for delegations at about $100-$600 per night, with priority given to least developed countries (LDCs) and small island developing states (SIDS), which were also offered a preferential rate.
Many COP delegates, including campaigners from the Global South, had pinned their hopes on the release of the official platform to secure accommodation for the summit. Operated by Bnetwork, which also managed accommodation at the last two climate summits, the booking site was long delayed.
A welcome message informs visitors to the website that the “accommodation landscape in Belém is distinctive” with a limited number of hotel rooms. The majority of options consist of private properties temporarily vacated by local owners for COP30, it adds.
“In close coordination with Brazilian authorities and local hospitality representatives, efforts are ongoing to expand the available inventory and encourage practices that ensure fair and accessible accommodation solutions for all participants,” the notice said.
Brazilian COP30 authorities have repeatedly said they are rushing to make more rooms available and convince hotel owners to lower prices. In an online briefing with journalists held last week, COP30 president André Corrêa do Lago said the issue has taken up time, when “we should be discussing substantive matters”.
Alia Kajee, global campaigns manager at environmental group 350.org, said high prices in Belém “put the inclusion of those most affected by the climate crisis in jeopardy once more” after many were shut out of the last few summits in countries with limited space for civil society.
“If people are priced out and vulnerable communities are unable to represent themselves, it is not only a risk to inclusion and justice, but also for fit-for-purpose solutions and approaches to meet the needs of the climate emergency,” she added.
