‘Do you think gringos are clueless?’: COP30 attendees stung by accommodation price hikes in Belem

The first-ever annual ‘COP’ meeting to take place in the Amazon is already turning heads - and all for the wrong reasons, nine months ahead of the climate event.

Belem, an Atlantic port city that lies on the edge of the rainforest, doesn't have the same infrastructure as other big cities, which has led many to question its ability to host COP30.

The host city, a bustling metropolis of 2.5 million people, is already seeing a massive shortage of housing and high interest, which is emboldening property owners and rental companies to charge five-digit rates, even for cramped rooms with shared bathrooms.

To ensure all voices are heard at COP30, NGOs and campaign groups are having to rethink their accommodation options.

‘This is like putting gringos in captivity’ - Belem accommodation is severely limited

One of the last available hotel rooms listed in Belem on the online travel platform Booking.com is a flat apartment. This currently costs an eye-watering $15,266 (€14,733) for one person, up from $158 (€152) for the same category - a 9,562 per cent increase.

A 15-day stay during the conference in November would total $228,992 (€221,001), enough to buy a four-bedroom apartment in one of Belem’s top neighbourhoods.

On Airbnb, a room with a shared bathroom in Ananindeua, a poor city near Belem, is listed at $9,320 (€8,995) per day. A comparable room today could be rented for as little as $11 (€10.62) per day. In more upscale neighbourhoods, renting an apartment that accommodates eight people costs up to $446,595 (€431,012) for a two-week stay.

“This one scared me," joked local architect and digital influencer Renato Balaguer about a dilapidated apartment listed at $10,000 (€9,651) for an 11-day stay.

"This is like putting gringos in captivity. False imprisonment is a crime!” said Balaguer in a post that went viral.

The median income in Belem is $920 (€888) per month. Owners and property managers offering rentals say the prices are a question of supply and demand, and besides, they also have high costs.

“Just the electricity and water for my house cost 5,000 Brazilian real (€833) per month,” said Gisleno da Silva, who posted the ad for the Ananindeua room for $9,320 (€8,995) per day.

“At this price, I already have someone interested,” he said, while adding he was open to negotiate.

COP30 is a critical climate event that will celebrate free speech - and the Amazon

President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who champions himself as a protector of the environment, has boasted about hosting the event in the Amazon, which helps regulate the climate by storing large quantities of carbon dioxide.

This is also a landmark year in the annual process because countries must come forward with updated commitments to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

What’s more, civic groups are particularly interested in attending because Brazil allows for protests and free expression, which are sharply restricted in the previous three host countries: Azerbaijan, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.

Brazil, Latin America's largest and most populous nation, has hosted other world events, such as the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and the 2014 World Cup, with games played in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Manaus, Belo Horizonte and several other cities.

Officials estimate that about 50,000 people will attend the summit in Belem, scheduled to take place from 10-21 November. Last year in Baku, Azerbaijan, the official tally was 54,148. Before that, in Dubai, attendance reached a record 83,884.

Neither the federal government nor the Para state government responded to questions about the number of rooms currently available in Belem.

COP30 organisers promise to provide accommodation alternatives

COP30 attendees who booked more than a year in advance secured lower prices, but many of those reservations have already been cancelled without explanation - a common practice in the hospitality business ahead of major events.

Another issue is the increasing prices of accommodations already booked. One European nonprofit reserved a room for $2,000 (€1,930) in December, only to see the price rise to $7,200 (€6,949) two weeks later.

Various groups that often attend the annual summit, including environmental nonprofits, activists, scientists, journalists and businesses, are having to rethink whether they go as the prices rocket up.

“Planning for COP30 in Belem has been challenging due to limited and expensive accommodations, creating barriers for our participation," said Roberta Alves, deputy director of communications at Mercy Corps. The international humanitarian nonprofit has participated in several COPs, focusing its advocacy on financing a transition to green energy, adapting to climate change impacts and how climate change exacerbates conflict.

“We are awaiting alternative options from the COP30 organisers - critical to ensuring that all voices, especially those from the frontlines of the climate crisis, are included in global conversations,” Alves added.

In the face of mounting criticism, the Brazilian government has said it will provide an additional 26,000 bed spaces. Those will include accommodations in docked cruise ships, public schools, new hotels, and military facilities.

In a social media post published Friday, COP30 organisers said accredited participants would soon be able to book accommodations on an online platform.

“We have observed a disproportionate increase in rental prices, which we attribute to real estate speculation. This should stabilize as the government increases the availability of accommodations,” Valter Correia, the special secretary for the event, said in the statement.

Local environmentalist defends Belem, urging attendees to look at the bigger picture

Plenty of advocates are defending Belem, saying its challenges are minor compared to the significance of hosting the most important annual climate meeting in the world’s largest rainforest.

In an article published in Valor Economico newspaper in December, environmentalist Priscilla Santos, co-founder of the Amazonians for Climate Network, said criticism of Belem “not only reveals colonialist biases but also undermines an event that could be transformative” for the region.

“Everyone wants to ‘save the Amazon,’ but no one wants to discuss it in the territory?”

Meanwhile, worried about their reputation, some property managers are distancing themselves from the speculation.

In an Instagram video that went viral, Fabrício de Menezes compared the daily rental price of an apartment in Belem, charging $21,800 (€21,039) during COP, to the much lower rates of the iconic Jumeirah Burj Al Arab in Dubai, which markets itself as the world’s only seven-star hotel.

“I hope this is a joke by the owner,” he said.

Another local property manager, Carlos Netto, said he would never advise a propriety owner to charge such high prices.

“Do you think that gringos are clueless? Where in the world is a 20-day rental more expensive than the property?” he posted.